Friday Finals: Brown Bears win clinches playoff spot

Friday Box Scores

Kenai River 3 @ Anchorage 1: The Kenai River Brown Bears punched their ticket to the 2023 Robertson Cup Playoffs as they topped the Anchorage Wolverines in a 3-1 final after scoring a goal in each period. The game was tied 1-1 after the first with Garrett Dortts and Hayden Hennen scoring. In the second Ben Monson scored then in the third Nick Stevens for a 3-1 final. Nils Wallstrom got the win in net after stopping 46 shots. Eino Rissanen made 23 saves in the loss.

Lone Star 0 @ Amarillo 3: The Amarillo Wranglers kept their playoff hopes alive with a shutout the Lone Star Brahmas in a 3-0 final. In the second period, Chase Davis scored for a 1-0 Wranglers lead. In the third the Wranglers added two more goals as Ben Ivey and Chase Davis scored for a 3-0 final. Connor McDonough posted a 19-shot shutout win, with William Gramme making 26 saves in the loss.

Northeast 2 @ Danbury 5 – Chase Sandhu scored twice and Thomas Kiesewetter made 28 saves as Danbury picked up their 4^th win of the season in a 5-2 win over the Generals. After a scoreless 1^st period, Danbury jumped out to a 4-0 lead, which included goals from Sandhu, Nash Jacobsma, Logan Furstenau, and David Overbeeke. The Generals pulled to within 4-2 on goals from Jacob Wilson and Jared Scott, but an empty-net goal from Sandhu secured the win.

New Jersey 2 @ Maine 1 – The Titans won their 6^th straight and kept their chances to win in the East title alive thanks to a 2-1 win in Maine. The Titans opened the scoring with a 1^st period goal from Brendan Dumas. In the 3^rd period, Michael Young scored to make it 2-0. Maine netted their lone goal later in the 3^rd period from John-Paul Steele. Zakari Brice made 22 saves in the win, while Thomas Heaney made 37 saves in the loss.

Aberdeen 5 @ St. Cloud 1 – Nikolai Tishkevich had two goals and an assist and Cole Moore made 34 saves to give the Wings a 5-1 win and keep their playoff hopes alive. The Wings led 2-0 after the 1^st period with goals from Tishkevich and Jordan Ronn. In the 3^rd period, a power play goal from Kade Peterson cut the lead down to 2-1, but the Wings would pull away with three straight goals from Zachary Reim, Patrick O’Connell, and another from Tishkevich. Ethan Dahlmeir made 21 saves in the loss.

Springfield 2 @ Janesville 1 – While Jets goalie Annelies Bergmann was solid in her NAHL debut, making 22 saves, Jr. Blues goalie Aksel Reid stole the show with 46 saves as the Jr. Blues picked up a 2-1 win in Janesville on Friday. Both goals for the Jr. Blues came in the 1^st period and both goals were shorthanded as Isaac Keller and Alex Fendler both scored to make it 2-0. A goal from Connor Brown in 2^nd period pulled Janesville to within one, but that’s where the final score would stay. Bergmann ended up with 22 saves in her NAHL debut.

Johnstown 1 @ Philadelphia 6 – The Tomahawks playoffs chances continued to diminish as they fell to the Rebels for a second straight day. Brock Jones and Charles Panchisin each scored twice in the win. Johnstown took a 1-0 lead in the 1^st period with a goal from Johnny Ulicny. It was all Rebels after that, which included a 2^nd period goal from Jones and then five more goals in the 3^rd period, including another from Jones, two from Panchisin and others from Tyler Stern and Kristians Samitis. Jakub Krbecek made 27 saves in the win.

Bismarck 3 @ North Iowa 0 – Linards Lipskis stopped all 30 shots that came his way for his 3^rd shutout of the season as the Bobcats kept their playoff hopes alive with a 3-0 win in North Iowa. Calvin Hanson and Adam Pietila both scored in the in the 2^nd period and Patrick Johnson added an empty-net goal in the 3^rd period. Bulls goalie Mitch Day made 10 saves in the loss.

Corpus Christi 1 @ Shreveport 6 – Six different players scored and Simon Bucheler made 22 saves as the Mudbugs handled the IceRays on Friday by a 6-1 score. The IceRays were first on the board in the 1^st period with a goal from Blake Lewis. It was all Mudbugs after that as Logan Gotinsky tied the game later in the 1^st period. Drake Morse, Alex Park, and Niklas Miller scored in the 2^nd period and Liam Fleet and Eric Vitale added 3^rd period goals.

Wisconsin 2 @ Minnesota 3: The Minnesota Wilderness netted a goal in each period to take a 3-2 win over the Wisconsin Windigo. Late in the opening period Benjamin Anderson netted a goal for Wisconsin to get ahead 1-0. Soon after, Kevin Marx Noren evened the game with a Wilderness goal 1-1. In the second, the Wilderness took their first lead of the night 2-1 with a gaol from Oliver Stumpel. In the third the Wilderness extended their lead with a goal from Sawyer Scholl, 3-1. The Windigo added another goal with Connor Mahony for a 3-2 final score. Goaltender Isak Posch took the win in net after stopping 25 shots. Gavin Moffatt made 26 saves in the loss.

El Paso 0 @ Oklahoma 4: The Oklahoma Warriors blanked the El Paso Rhinos in a 4-0 game. Joey Delgreco netted the first goal of the game in the opening period. In the second Garrett Horsage, Mikko Liukkonen and Kaden Nelson all scored for a 4-0 final score. Daniel Duris picked up the win after stopping all 23 shots he faced. Nolan Suggs made 30 saves in the loss.

Odessa 2 @ New Mexico 1 (OT): The Odessa Jackalopes picked up two points in an overtime win against the New Mexico Ice Wolves. In the second, the Jackalopes got on the scoresheet with a goal from Charlie Emme. In the third period, Graham Harris evened the game 1-1 for New Mexico to force overtime. In the extra frame, John Wojciechowski scored the game winner for a 2-1 final. Gergely Orosz made 35 saves in the win, while Carsen Stokes made 34 saves in the loss. 

Austin 2 @ Minot 3 (SO): The Minot Minotauros took two points and helped their playoff chances in a shootout win against the Austin Bruins. In the second the game was tied 1-1 as Trevor Stachowiak scored for Minot and Matthew Deesiderio for Austin. In the third, Gaivn Morrissey scored for Austin to take a 2-1 lead. Later in the third, Weston Knox scored to even the game 2-2. The game went to overtime then a shootout where Chase LaPinta scored for a 3-2 Austin win. Goaltender Noah Rupprecht took the win in net after stopping 36 shots. 

Chippewa 0 @ Fairbanks 3: The Fairbanks Ice Dogs kept their playoff hopes alive as they quieted the Chippewa Steel in a 3-0 shutout win. Jake Cameron, Cameron Ricotta and Jacob Conrad all netted goal for the Ice Dogs. Kayden Hargraves picked up the shutout win after stopping 30 shots. Carter Wishart made 22 saves in the loss.