Friday Finals: Willmar Defeats North Iowa at Home

Provided by Kellan George

Phoenix 5 @ Oklahoma City 1 - The Phoenix Inferno secured the series sweep over the Oklahoma City Warriors with a 5-1 win Friday. Oklahoma City came out with the early advantage, striking first halfway through the opening frame with a slapshot from Braxton Doherty. The Inferno did not let the Warriors hold the lead for long, tying things up with a power play goal from Camden Babin. With 13 seconds left in the first period, Chris Pellatt scored his first goal of the season to give Phoenix their first lead of the night at 2-1. Heading into the middle frame, the Inferno did not take their foot off the gas. Within the first two minutes, Kash Benson grew the lead to 3-1. Brayden MacMillan tacked on another goal for the Inferno, sending a wild rebounded puck into the back of the net with a powerful slapshot. Stas Ershov grabbed the last goal of the night on the power play, bringing Phoenix’s lead to 5-1. Defense stepped up in the final frame, with neither goalie allowing anything between the posts for the final 20 minutes of play. The Inferno outshot the Warriors through all three periods, finishing with a 42-23 advantage. 

Norwich 1 @ New Jersey 2 (OT) - The New Jersey Titans defended home ice in a battle with the Norwich Sea Captains, pulling off the narrow 2-1 overtime victory. In the first 20 minutes of action, both teams traded shots, with defense stopping any scoring opportunities, sending the teams into intermission scoreless. It wasn’t until six minutes into the second period that a team was able to break the ice. Matthew Johnson scored his first goal of the season for Nowich as the power play clock was about to run out, giving the Sea Captains an early lead. The remainder of the second period finished without either team sending a puck between the pipes. New Jersey tied things up in the third period after Dewight Singleton was able to score on an odd-man rush. As the clock was running down on regulation, either team was looking for a chance to put things away. Both teams had 14 shots in the final period of regulation, but the netminders wouldn’t let anything slip through, forcing extra time. In overtime, New Jersey went on the power play advantage less than a minute into the action. Andrew Metzger was the overtime hero for New Jersey, scoring halfway through their man advantage.

New Hampshire 2 @ Garden State 3 - The Garden State Gamblers defeated the New Hampshire Jr. Mountain Kings in a back-and-forth affair Friday night. Forward Talon Schackmann opened the scoring, giving New Hampshire the lead with 13 minutes left in the opening frame. It looked like the Jr. Mountain Kings would keep the lead heading into intermission, before Filip Piatowski tied things up with 29 seconds left. Reclaiming the lead, New Hampshire tacked on another power-play goal from Jacob Landry in the final six minutes of the second period. Moving into the final frame, Garden State battled from behind to secure the win. The Gamblers tied things up again, bringing the score to 2-2, with a shorthanded goal from Darius Malecki. In an offensive play that saw multiple rebound attempts, Isaac Emmerich was able to capitalize on the repeated offense, slipping past the goalie and giving Garden State their first lead of the night. The Gamblers held onto that lead as the final three-and-a-half minutes ran out. The game’s neck-and-neck nature showed in shots on goal, with the Gamblers holding a slight 20-18 advantage over New Hampshire. 

Austin 5 @ Atlanta 1 - In an offensive display, the Austin Ice Bats defeated the Atlanta Capitals, 5-1, at the Atlanta Ice Forum. Both teams' defenses were prevalent in the opening 20 minutes, keeping things scoreless going into intermission. Less than a minute into the middle frame, Austin picked up their first goal of the night from Jack Pettipas, his first of the season. This kicked off the momentum for Austin, as they scored three more goals in the second period. Cayden Reamer scored a power-play goal, while Guhnas Hillman and Ronan Howard each tacked on a goal themselves, making the score 4-0. Atlanta’s lone goal came less than two minutes into the final frame from Isaiah Ronson, cutting into Austin’s lead to 4-1. The Ice Bats widened their advantage again, as Matthieu Leblanc put things away for the night with another power-play goal. Kellen Hardy was between the pipes for Austin, making 33 saves over the course of the game. Although the Ice Bats held the major scoring advantage, the Capitals were right behind in shots on goal, 35 to 34.

West Bend 7 @ Peoria 1 - Despite the lopsided final score, Peoria Mustangs netminder Chase Vaughn still nabbed an impressive 33 saves. Perhaps more impressive, was the West Bend Power defense and goaltending, which allowed only one goal on just 18 shots. The West Bend offense featured a lot of Blake Kohinen, who scored the only goal of the first period, the opening goal of the second, and a total of four goals. Breton Maroney scored and the ’Stangs got on the board, but the Power was plugged in, Reece Beckwith, Evan Burchsrd and Zachary Halling, to add to Kohinen’s unreal scoring night, and, paired with elite defense, help West Bend to a gaudy win. 

Wausau 4 @ Rochester 5 - Offense, offense, and more offense was the name of the game as the Rochester Grizzlies narrowly  spun past the visiting Wausau Cyclone. The game saw more than 70 total shots and nine goals, and yet goalie play still told the story of the game. Wausau’s Parker Nevenhoven was impressive, stopping 29 of the shots he faced. In the other net, Cameron Patrick posted 36 saves. Starting the scoring was the Grizzlies Jace Jordan, quickly answered by the Cyclones Brady Schute, with both goals coming immediately after successful penalty kills. Rochester added three more goals in the second period, one each from James Esposito, Konnor Gogland and Rocco Corl, while Wausau got one back in the period with a goal from Jackson Schroeder. With the Grizzlies ahead 4-2 to start the third, Wausau fought back and temporarily tied the game; the goals coming from Sean Hall and Schroeder again. Alexander Waino and the Grizzlies got the last laugh, however, in the Central Division duel. 

Granite City 5 @ Minnesota 4 (SO) - The Granite City Lumberjacks overcame the Minnesota Wilderness in a close contest that would end in a shootout on Friday night. Granite City took an early lead in the first period when they scored three uncontested back-to-back goals. Minnesota would finally answer late in the first period when Evan Brown scored with only one second left in the period. The second period saw Minnesota making their comeback when they scored a pair of goals by Jace Kampula and Brown. The Wilderness took their first lead of the game with ten minutes left in the third quarter. Elijah Fitch capitalized on a power play opportunity for the Lumberjacks, leaving the score tied at the end of regulation. The overtime frame would end up being a stalemate, as neither team was able to find the back of the net. The shootout would go into six rounds, with Connor Hanley finding the game winner for the Lumberjacks.

North Iowa 6 @ Willmar 7 - In an electrifying showdown at the Willmar Civic Center Arena, the Willmar WarHawks edged out the North Iowa Bulls 7-6. The opening goal came at 14:35 of the first period when Kyler Flanders found the back of the net, assisted by Elliot Domagala. Just 20 seconds later, Maddux Domagala doubled the lead, setting the tone for a high-scoring affair. The Bulls clawed back into contention with Grant Harder and Christian Plaga scoring power-play goals at 09:41 and 4:33 of the first period. However, Wyatt Garvey restored the WarHawks’ lead at 00:55. The second period saw the teams trading blows, with Lucas Thelen and Jacob Canfield adding to the WarHawks' tally, while Christian Plaga and Logyn Kaufman responded for the Bulls. The two teams would continue to go back and forth in the third. North Iowa charged back early with a pair of goals, before Willmar tied the score at 4:27 with a power play goal from Jacob Canfield. Wyatt Hauer would seal the deal for Willmar when he found a late opportunity at 1:28. 

Bayou State 2 @ Texas 6 - In a showdown at Spirit Ice, the Texas RoadRunners bested the Bayou State Rougarou 6-2, marking a decisive victory in the Southeast Division clash. Bayou State struck first in the opening frame when Cooper Saari scored early on a power play. Kristopher Pope tallied the RoadRunner’s first goal at 3:54 of the first. The second period was a scoring frenzy for the RoadRunners. William Dyker netted their second goal at 15:09, followed just under two minutes later by Logan Diskey at 13:41. Benjamin Deutsch capitalized on a power play at 11:20, assisted by Memphis Palmer Gummer. The dynamic Memphis Palmer Gummer then scored at 00:44, and Nathan Pickett sealed the period with a goal at 00:25, assisted by Brady Warrington. In the third period, Gavin Vernarsky scored a power play goal for the Rougarou at 08:59, bringing their final score to two, while the RoadRunners final score was six. 

Fox Cities 2 @ Wisconsin 6 - The Wisconsin Woodsmen overcame the Fox Cities Forge with a commanding 6-2 victory. The game kicked off with a bang as Andrei Khomenko netted the opening goal at 19:42 of the first period, putting the Woodsmen ahead. Just over a minute later, at 18:28, Malachi McCormack of the Forge leveled the score, only for Ozbej Muzan to reclaim the lead for the Woodsmen at 07:28. Malachi McCormack struck again at 05:56, tying the game for the Forge. But the second period was all about the Woodsmen. Nejc Golob scored at 17:39, followed by another Khomenko goal at 11:25. Parker Holloway sealed the victory with goals at 05:05 in the second and 05:00 in the third period, earning him a well-deserved spotlight. Standout performances included Khomenko and Holloway, each with two goals. Goaltender Nicholas Foy was solid between the pipes, stopping 29 of 31 shots. Despite a valiant effort by Forge’s goalie Filip Kaczmarczyk, who faced an onslaught of 50 shots, the Woodsmen's offensive power proved too much. 

New Mexico 0 @ Texas 2 - The New Mexico Ice Wolves were shut out by the Texas Brahmas with a 2-0 victory. Texas made their way onto the scoreboard for the first time with only one second left in the first period, when Joshua Reaska scored on a power play. The second period would go scoreless. The third period saw one more power play goal from Xavier Othon.  The Brahmas outshot the Ice Wolves with 42 shots on goal, while Gavin Erickson turned away all 30 of New Mexico’s attempts, earning himself a shutout. 

Badlands 5 @ Sheridan 7 - Caden Gleason netted two goals to lead the Sheridan Hawks past the Badlands Sabres in a 7-5 back-and-forth battle at Whitney Rink in the M&M's Center. Dayton Niedert opened the scoring for Badlands early in the first period, but Sheridan answered on a power play when Gleason found twine midway through the frame. The offensive pace accelerated in a wild second period that featured six combined goals, highlighted by a power-play marker from Oliver Giles and tallies from Michael Buckowitz and Kento Sanchez-Maruyama to keep the score tight. The Hawks seized control in the final 20 minutes as Max Krueger converted on the man advantage and Eli Farris scored to extend the lead. Gleason sealed the victory with an empty-net goal in the dying seconds of regulation. Wyatt Knott turned aside 33 shots to earn the win in net for Sheridan, while Gavin Peery stopped 32 shots for the Sabres.

Bozeman 4 @ Gillette 2 - A multi-goal performance from Lex Steckelberg powered the Bozeman Icedogs past the Gillette Wild in a 4-2 road victory at Spirit Hall Ice Arena. Steckelberg broke the ice for Bozeman late in the opening frame, but Gillette answered quickly when Ian Zarvos found the back of the net before the intermission. The Icedogs took control in the second period, stringing together three unanswered goals behind Steckelberg's second tally of the night, an even-strength goal from Seth Hanson, and a power-play marker from Preston Wight. The Wild mounted a push in the third period when Beau Delich scored midway through the frame, but Bozeman's defense held firm down the stretch. Goaltender Kayden Thalhuber stopped 19 of 21 shots to secure the victory between the pipes, while Andrew Knox recorded 29 saves for Gillette.

Butte 2 @ Helena 7 - A dominant offensive showing led the Helena Bighorns past the Butte Irish in a 7-1 victory at Steed Arena. Helena set the tone early in the first period as Kade Pareja and Joey Hemr struck less than a minute apart, with Hemr's tally coming on the power play. The Bighorns kept the pressure on in the middle frame, expanding their advantage behind goals from Cal Kellenberg, Lincoln Kearney, and Tyler Parsons to take a commanding lead into the second intermission. Austin Uecker and Braden Davis added third-period scores to keep Helena rolling. Tyler Jones and Kaleb Ivens supplied the goals for Butte, while goaltender Jackson Wagner turned in a busy 65-save performance in the loss. Landen Bullock Pahua stopped 16 shots to pick up the win in net for the Bighorns.

Great Falls 4 @ Yellowstone 5 (SO) - The Great Falls Americans bested the Yellowstone Quake in a shootout on Friday evening. Shayne Smith opened the scoring for Yellowstone in the first period, and Carson Joersz extended the lead early in the middle frame. Great Falls fought back aggressively as EJ Sanchez and Keifer Lundmark ignited a charge, with Lundmark netting a pair of goals to level the contest 3-3 by the second intermission. Gordon Jennings pushed the Americans ahead early in the third period, but Brayden Krous answered for the Quake with under a minute remaining in regulation to force extra hockey. The Americans would end up with the win after Paxon Sacre netted a goal in the 10th round of the shootout.