Saturday Scores: A Four-Goal Push in the Third Period Lifts the Norsemen to a Weekend Sweep

Johnstown 4 @ New Hampshire 8 - The New Hampshire Mountain Kings hosted the Johnstown Tomahawks for their sixth matchup of the season and second of the weekend. Johnstown won the previous game 7-4. The first period began relatively quietly. Forward Alex Gelhar got New Hampshire on the board first with a goal at 18:11. Johnstown defenseman Sean Morgan tied up the game with a goal at 11:34. In the second period, Johnstown briefly pulled ahead with a lead following forward Sean Leetch’s goal at 11:47. New Hampshire followed with a series of goals from forwards Van Martin at 11:39, Aidan Petroff on the power play at 8:15, Ben Dias at 3:30 and Dylan Podergois at 2:22 to end the period 5-2 for the Mountain Kings. The third period kicked off with a goal from Tomahawks forward Nick Jarmain to hopefully close down the Mountain Kings’ lead. However, New Hampshire forwards Martin and Lucas Mann scored another two at 12:22 and 12:10, respectively. Johnstown defenseman Kirby Perler scored at 4:12, while New Hampshire forward Nico Pasquale scored at 3:18 to finish the game with an 8-4 win for the Mountain Kings. Jason Cai started in net for New Hampshire and made 46 saves on 50 shots. Zack Ferris started the game for Johnstown and made 17 saves on 22 shots before Nikita Oleksiienko finished the game with 11 saves on 14 shots.

Rochester 1 @ Maryland 4 - The Maryland Black Bears hosted the Rochester Jr. Americans for their sixth matchup of the season and second of the weekend. Maryland won the previous game 3-0. Maryland got on the board first with forward Graiden Insana scoring his first of the season and only goal of the period at 18:26. Maryland would extend its lead with forward Logan Deuling scoring the only goal of the second at 9:13. In the third period, Rochester managed to get on the board with a goal from Cameron Doran at 4:08 to get them within one. However, Rochester was unable to complete a comeback, and Maryland forwards Brayden Wade and Ryan Franks scored at 3:48 and 0:50, respectively, to secure a 4-1 win for the Black Bears. Dom Gatto started in net for Maryland and made 19 saves on 20 shots. Jensen Carlstrom started in the net for Rochester and made 18 saves on 22 shots.

Maine 3 @ Philadelphia 2 (OT) - The Maine Nordiques erased a two-goal deficit and defeated the Philadelphia Rebels, 3-2 in overtime, Saturday at Hollydell Ice Arena. Philadelphia opened the scoring with two power-play goals in the first period from Abzal Alibek, assisted by Mikey Conlon, and Thomas Klochkov, assisted by Mikey Conlon and Jordan Brothers. Maine answered in the second period with a power-play goal from Austin Borggaard, assisted by William-Francisco Parent. Borggaard scored again in the third period with an assist from Henry Butte to tie the game. In overtime, Damon Myers scored the game-winner with an assist from Austin Borggaard.

Lone Star 4 @ Odessa 3 - The Odessa Jackalopes hosted the Lone Star Brahmas for their seventh matchup of the season and second of the weekend. Lone Star won the previous game 4-2. Saturday’s game was close, with the score being tied multiple times. Odessa forward Alex Thomas scored the first goal of the game in the first period at 14:26. Lone Star forward Leo Isaksson was able to tie up the score at 9:18, and his teammate, forward Tyson Scanlon, scored at 3:56 to end the game with a one-goal lead for the Brahmas. In the second period, Jackalopes forward Nicholas Puricelli scored the lone goal of the period at 17:33. In the third period, Lone Star forward Vladimir Saibel took the lead again with a goal at 12:08. Odessa forward Chris Graves tied up the game with a goal at 2:28. With 38 seconds remaining on the clock, Scanlon scored an unassisted goal to win the Brahmas the game, 4-3. Leo Gabriel started in net for the Brahmas and made nine saves on 12 shots. Ben Vatis started in net for Odessa and made 27 saves on 31 shots.

Elmira 0 @ Northeast 6 - The Northeast Generals hosted the Elmira Aviators for their sixth matchup of the season and second of the weekend. The Generals won the previous game 5-3. On Saturday, the Generals proceeded to blank the Aviators 6-0. In the first period, forward Logan Poulin scored the lone goal of the period at 5:27. Poulin scored his second of the game at 5:00 in the second. His teammates, forwards Rich Rucireto and Andrew Gibbons, scored at 4:43 and 1:48 with a short-handed goal, respectively. In the third, Poulin completed a hat trick by scoring a shorthanded goal at 15:39. Forward Trey Janssen recorded the last goal of the game at 14:37 for the win. Will Mizenko started in net for the Generals and made all 36 saves. Jake Shingles started in net for the Aviators and made 29 saves on 35 shots.

North Iowa 6 @ Watertown 2 - The North Iowa Bulls scored three times in the first period and went on to defeat the Watertown Shamrocks, 6-2, Saturday at Prairie Lakes Ice Arena. Michael Malatino opened the scoring with assists from Vitaliy Korolyuk and Ethan McKay. Zachary Howard followed with assists from Denis Kuzmenkov and Michael Malatino, and Denis Hodas added another goal with assists from Ivan Berčík and Andrej Tomasec. Hodas scored again in the second period on the power play with assists from Brody Dietz and Zachary Howard. In the third period, Ivan Berčík scored shorthanded with an assist from Brayden Hughes. Watertown got goals from Owen Chartier, assisted by Zach Boren and Kyle Greene, and Jake Pietila, assisted by Grady Dimberio and Brody Josselyn. North Iowa closed the scoring with a goal from Jacob Voris, assisted by Ethan McKay and Marat Mikhin.

Minot 2 @ Austin 3 - The Austin Bruins scored twice in the first period and held on for a 3-2 win over the Minot Minotauros Saturday at Riverside Arena. Minot opened the scoring with a goal from Dane Ramirez, assisted by Peter Murray and Riley Mullen. Zander Lipsett answered with two goals in the first period. His first came shorthanded with an assist from Bobby Williams, and his second was assisted by EJ Paddington and Nathan Williams. Minot tied the game in the second period on a power-play goal from Ty James, assisted by Jachym Prusek and Philip Wiklund. Later in the period, Tucker Lovejoy scored the game-winner with assists from Ryan Lund and Alvin Elisson.

Chippewa 1 @ Janesville 4 - The Janesville Jets scored three times in the first period and defeated the Chippewa Steel, 4-1 Saturday at Mercy Health Arena. Joseph Hyten opened the scoring on the power play with assists from Grant Dillard and Nathan Tobey. Hans Hedlund followed with another power-play goal assisted by Joseph Hyten and Grant Dillard, and Mason Minsky added a goal assisted by Wyatt Ezman and Jonathan Lyskawa. Nate Hart scored the lone goal for Chippewa later in the first period. After a scoreless second period, Jonathan Lyskawa added a power-play goal in the third period with assists from Kade Meyer and Connor Hillig.

El Paso 2 @ Corpus Christi 3 (SO) - Earning their first victory over the El Paso Rhinos this season, the Corpus Christi IceRays battled from behind and won the game in shootout fashion. The scoring kicked off in the opening frame with El Paso’s Jacob Solano finding twine less than five minutes into the contest. Later in the frame, the Rhinos’ captain, Kamden Kaiser, converts on the man advantage to give his team a 2-0 lead heading into the second period. Looking to even the scoreboard, the IceRays responded in the middle frame with a pair of tallies. First, James Chase lights the lamp to cut the deficit in half. With 1:35 left on the clock, Nick Evans ties up the contest for the IceRays. With the scoreboard even, both teams looked to light the lamp in the final 20 minutes of regulation. Both teams traded chances, with the IceRays outshooting the Rhinos 12 to 4; however, no one could light the lamp.  The game was forced into overtime and an eventual shootout. In the shootout, Alexandr Skuratov finds twine in round one, eventually lifting his team to a shootout victory. Despite earning the loss, El Paso’s Logan Hughes put up a dominant effort in net. He stopped a season-high of 44 out of 46 shots.

Amarillo 2 @ Shreveport 7 - The Shreveport Mudbugs featured a scoring frenzy against the Amarillo Wranglers on Saturday night at George’s Pond. The contest kicked off in the opening frame with Liam Wolf-Taulbee lighting the lamp a little over two minutes into the game. The Mudbugs would show up on the scoresheet again, this time Owen Case scoring with 11 seconds on the clock in the first period. In the second frame, the Mudbugs scored a trio of goals to give their team a 5-0 advantage. Charlie Burchfield got the scoring started with a power-play tally 90 seconds into the frame. Following him 27 seconds later was Vincent Diiulio, finding twine for the sixth time this season. Later in the middle period, William-Alexis Tremblay scored to seal the 5-0 lead. Moving into the final 20 minutes of regulation, both teams scored two apiece. First, Shreveport’s Jared Greiner scores midway through the frame. Two minutes following him, Danylo Dolin scores for the Wranglers, giving them their first goal of the night. Tremblay would find twine again in the contest, this time on the power play for Shreveport. Following him minutes later, the Wranglers score their second of the contest, this time Alfons Jentler lighting the lamp. The Mudbugs skate away with a dominant 7-2 win on home ice.

St. Cloud 5 @ Aberdeen 1 - What was a mostly quiet game for the first 40 minutes of regulation turned into an exciting third period for the Norsemen. The contest kicked off with St. Cloud striking first. Christian Garrity scores on the man advantage to give the Norsemen the lead heading into the second period. The middle frame was quiet as both teams traded chances. Aberdeen outshot St. Cloud 20 to 6 in the period. Moving into the final period, the scoring picked back up midway through the frame with Mate Tardi finding twine for the Norsemen. 30 seconds later, Matthew Martin scored for the Wings to cut the deficit in half. That comeback was quickly diminished as Tardi scored eight seconds later for the Norsemen. St. Cloud would continue their scoring ways with Wyatt Farrell lighting the lamp on the man advantage and Garrity scoring his second of the night in the final moments of the game. St. Cloud skates to a 5-1 win and a sweep over the Wings. Between the pipes for the Norsemen, Beck Liden turned aside 39 out of 40 shots on net, lifting his team to a win.

Springfield 1 @ Minnesota W 6 - After falling in Friday’s contest, the Minnesota Wilderness bounced back in a big way in Saturday's series finale with a dominant 6-1 win over the Springfield Jr. Blues to earn a weekend-series split. The Wilderness got contributions from all over the lineup in Saturday’s win as 13 different skaters recorded at least one point. Minnesota Goaltender Valdemar Andersen was also spectacular, making 25 saves on 26 shots. Minnesota already has the Midwest Division locked up while Springfield continues to jostle for playoff position, sitting at the fifth slot of the Midwest – eight points up on sixth-place Janesville. The scoring got started early when Minnesota’s Avery Anderson buried his 14th goal of the year to put the Wilderness ahead 1-0 just 2:36 in. Kevin Lysohir (11th) added another goal with five minutes left in the opening period to give Minnesota a 2-0 lead heading to the second period. The Jr. Blues got some life back in the form of James Marshall’s eighth goal of the campaign early in the middle frame. After Marshall’s goal, it was all Minnesota. Goals from Caleb Kim (17th), Robinson Djian (13th), and Ryan Deangelis (second) pushed the Wilderness’ lead to 5-1 after 40 minutes. Minnesota shut the door for the remainder of the game despite a third-period push from Springfield in which they put 12 shots on Andersen. Talan Blanck (25th) netted a power-play goal just over six minutes into the period to add insurance, which finalized the score at 6-1 for the Wilderness.

Minnesota M 1 @ Bismarck 9 - The Bismarck Bobcats flexed their Robertson Cup-championship pedigree Saturday night, running the Minnesota Mallards out of Bismarck with a dominant 9-1 victory and earning them a weekend-series sweep. The Bobcats were all over the place on offense in Saturday’s contest as 15 of their 19 skaters recorded at least a point. Bismarck was led by Mark Evans, who notched two goals, and Theodore Richardson, who tallied three assists. Bismarck keeps its hopes alive in the hunt for the top seed in the Central Division as it remains one point back of first-place Austin, which won Saturday. Minnesota has already been eliminated from playoff contention. The Bobcats lit the lamp twice in the first period. Oscar Jonsson nabbed his sixth goal of the year while Evans tallied his 19th of the season and first of the game to put Bismarck ahead 2-0 after 20 minutes. The offense really came alive for the Bobcats in the second period. Goals from Evans (20th, second of the game), Nick Snyder (10th), Caden Bell (fifth), Jimmy Dodig (eighth), and Patch Cronin (sixth) pushed the Bismarck lead all the way to 7-0 after 40 minutes. The offense did not stop for Bismarck in the third period. Daniel Browning (first) scored just 17 seconds into the third period to extend the lead to 8-0. Camden Alemond (15th) also got in on the fun to put a nine spot on the board for the Bobcats. Joseph Delaurentis broke up the shutout with his eighth goal of the season to get the Mallards on the board, but they could not find any more offense as the Bobcats cruised to the 9-1 win.

Oklahoma 3 @ New Mexico 5 - A second-period natural hat-trick from Sean Gibbons spearheaded a come-from-behind win for the New Mexico Ice Wolves over the Oklahoma Warriors by a final score of 5-3 to earn a weekend-series sweep. With his team trailing 2-0 after the first period, Gibbons put the Ice Wolves on his back to get them back in the game with three goals – two of which came via the power play. Gibbons also tallied an assist in Saturday’s game to bring his point total to four on the night. New Mexico remains three points up on El Paso for second place in the South Division with the win. Oklahoma has now lost three straight games and remains in the sixth and final playoff spot in the South, leading seventh-place Odessa by six points. The Warriors began the game hot, getting goals just 37 seconds apart from Trace Day (21st) and Easton Rooney (fourth) to give Oklahoma a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes. When the second period came around, Gibbons took over. He scored his 27th, 28th, and 29th goals of the year in the period – the first two on the power play – to get New Mexico back in the game. Oklahoma’s Bronson Sabol (sixth) added a goal for his squad between Gibbons’ first and second goals, putting the score all even at three goals apiece heading to the third period. The Ice Wolves got another chance on the power play just under seven minutes into the final frame, and they took advantage. Stanley Hubbard (10th) buried the go-ahead goal – assisted by Gibbons – to put New Mexico ahead for the first time in the game. Oklahoma looked for the equalizer as the clock wound down, but New Mexico’s defense and goaltender Jackson Silverberg turned the Warriors’ attackers away. Andy Earl (29th) added the insurance marker with 2:36 remaining to seal the 5 3 comeback win for the Ice Wolves.

Wisconsin 1 @ Anchorage 3 - The Anchorage Wolverines hosted the Wisconsin Windigo for a one-game special. The contest kicked off with a pair of goals by the Wolverines in the opening frame. First, Oliver Morris finds twine four minutes into the contest. 10 minutes later, Chase Trompeter scores his 17th tally of the year, giving the Wolverines a 2-0 advantage into the middle frame. In the second period, Air Force commit Duke Gentzler scores on the man advantage midway through the frame. Looking to respond in the final period, the Windigo scores their first of the night on the power play. Brayden Severin scores with a little under  two minutes on the clock for Wisconsin. Anchorage skates away to a 3-1 victory and a punched ticket to the postseason. Between the pipes, Kai Weigel stopped 17 out of 18 shots on net for the Wolverines, lifting his team to the win.