Friday Finals: Helena Claims Frontier Division Crown
Ty O'Bey's two goals were critical in the Americans crucial win over Badlands
Helena 5 @ Gillette 2: Two goals from Patrick Crooks led the way as the Helena Bighorns won their 30th straight game and clinched the Frontier Division regular season title after they took down the Gillette Wild 5-2 on Friday night. Tim Mattingly and Finn Theriault each pocketed a goal and an assist in the win. Joe Feamster also scored for the Bighorns. Will Sexton and Chase Hapka netted goals for Gillette in the loss. Jesse Schindel stopped 25 shots for Helena to pick up the win, Cole Wheaten made an impressive 51 saves in a losing effort.
Louisiana 10 @ Austin 0: Jake Bergstrom netted a hat trick and added two assists as the Drillers trounced the Ice Bats 10-0. Dominic Toews had two goals and two assists of his own while Finn Overby had two goals and an assist. Cheeno Gryska had a goal and a helper while Alex Boyd and Brody Neish also lit the lamp for Louisiana. Darren Love was perfect in goal stopping all 16 shots he faced and even picked up an assist. Jadon Mammen and Gorial Yaro combined to make 36 saves.
Great Falls 3 @ Badlands 2: The Great Falls Americans kept their playoff hopes alive with a huge 3-2 win over the Badlands Sabres. Zack Vockler got the Sabres on the board first with his 12th of the season just 62 seconds into the game Ty O’Bey responded for the Americans with his 27th of the campaign. Vockler and O’Bey would once again trade goals in the second period, setting up an exciting final 20 minutes. Then with just over five minutes remaining Darren Narvaez put home just his second goal of the season and that would be the game winner as Great Falls moved to within one point of Badlands for the final playoff spot in the Frontier Division. Easton Eriksmoen earned the win in goal making 37 saves. Kaden Ryhder took the loss as he made 40 stops.
Sheridan 5 @ Butte 4: The Sheridan Hawks pulled off a dramatic comeback as they defeated the Butte Irish 5-4. Andrew Browe had a hat trick for Butte just six and a half minutes into the second period to put the Irish out front 3-0. Ayden Attungana and Danill Vista scored to bring the game to within one. Ryan Sikorski increased the Butte lead with a goal late in the second period. In the third Makhai Sparks got the comeback started and then Kyler Couture tied the game just four minutes later. In the final minute of play it Sparks who scored his second of the night with just 34 seconds remaining in regulation to give the Hawks a thrilling win. John Simon made 33 saves for Sheridan to get the win in the blue paint. Braylon Rogers suffered the tough loss as he made 50 saves for Butte.
Yellowstone 0 @ Bozeman 9: Bodie Shepardson had a hat trick and finished with five points as the Bozeman Icedogs dominated the Yellowstone Quake 9-0. Kody Wallenberg had a hat trick of his own in the win while Mason Czarnecki tallied four assists. Mattias Godfrey had a goal and two helpers, Casey Sturm had a goal and an assist, while Bryce Sturm also got on the scoresheet. Ryan Stowe earned the shutout in goal, stopping all 15 shots he faced. Otto Reinhart took the loss in goal, he made 57 saves for the Quake.
Wausau 3 @ Wisconsin 1: The Cyclones picked up two crucial points to maintain the top spot in the Central Division standings after taking down the Woodsmen 3-1. Matthew Mahoney broke the deadlock just under six minutes into the 1st period with his 13th of the season. Wausau got their offense rolling in the 2nd as Anderson Brien and Ricky Nelson both extended the lead with goals. Jackson Heim got Wisconsin on the board with less than two minutes remaining in regulation but it couldn’t spark a comeback. Tanner Benjernoor was strong in Wausau’s crease, stopping 34 of 35 shots faced. Steven Kelley kept out 24 shots in the loss.
Willmar 4 @ Minnesota 2: A hat trick performance from Hudson Zinda was enough for the WarHawks to edge past Minnesota 4-2 on the road. Zinda tickled twine twice in the 1st period to hold a 2-0 lead for the visitors through 20 minutes. He tallied the natural hat trick just over five minutes into the 2nd before Broden Fawcett got the Loons on the board later on in the period. Edouard Hamm cut the deficit in half in the 3rd for Minnesota but Sam Holm deposited the dagger late in regulation to seal the victory. Josh Mack made 31 saves in the victory while Alex Harden kept out 50 shots in the loss.
Peoria 2 @ Oregon 9: The Tradesmen dominated their matchup against Peoria Friday night, taking them down 9-2. Will Biggar, Jackson Vogel, and Tyler Steuck all scored for the Tradesmen in the 1st while Paul Allison got the Mustangs on the board. Oregon’s Bryce Stensrud and Biggar extended the lead in the middle frame with goals. Sebastian Schuehle, Steuck, Dylan Wedward, and Cam Schneider provided more insurance and put the game out of reach in the 3rd. Peoria’s 2nd goal came from Massimo Polistina midway through the final frame. Tyler Fromolz kept out 24 shots in the win while Kason Yamada made 50 saves for Peoria.
Norwich 8 @ New Jersey 1: The Norwich Sea Captains took down the New Jersey Titans by a wide margin win, 8-1. The Sea Captains netted two goals in the opening period with Blake Alexander and Brian Essing. In the second, Skylar Bawcom, Nicolas Piluso and Chase Leivian all scored for a 5-0 lead. Jason Cameron netted a goal to start the third period for the Titans, 5-1. Norwich answered back with Ryan Janik, Glen Farmer and Jameson Bain for a final score of 8-1. Norwich netminder Riley Gorman stopped 28 shots on net.
Rochester 4 at Alexandria 3 (OT): In an overtime thriller, the Rochester Grizzlies won 4-3 over the Alexandria Blizzard. Leo Milan got the game's first goal for a Grizzlies 1-0 lead. In the second, Tyler Kludt tied the game 1-1 for Alexandria. Rochester took back the lead with Owen Van Tassel, then Alexandria evened it up again with Karsten Senden to end the period with a 2-2 score. In the third period, Wyatt Witham got Rochester ahead 3-2. Soon after, Ashton Collings tied up the game again with a goal for Alexandria. THe game went into overtime where Spencer Klotz scored the game winner for a 4-3 final. Goalie Tate Cothern picked up the win in net stopping 22 shots.
El Paso 4 @ Texas R 1: The El Paso Rhinos topped the Texas RoadRunners by a final score of 4-1. El Paso took a 1-0 lead to end the first period with Jake Sherry scoring. In the second, Rocco Romita netted back-to-back goals to extend the El Paso lead, 3-0. Late in the second, Kyle Mackintosh scored to get the RoadRunners on the board, 3-1. At the final buzzer of the game, Mackenzie Bolger scored to seal the win for El Paso, 4-1. Rhinos netminder Ryan Piekarski stopped 30 shots in the win.
Texas B 10 @ Mid-Cities 1: The Texas Brahmas defeated the Mid-Cities Stars in a 10-1 final. The Brahmas added four goals in the first period with Caleb Murray, Mitchell Berens, Seth Mayes and Beau Kralovec. In the second, Kaden Spaniol and Beau Kralovec scored for Texas to make the score 6-0. William Heskett netted the lone goal for the Stars making the score 6-1. Chase Forry and Sam Bailey added two more to end the second period for the Brahmas leading 8-1. In the third, Mitchell Berens added two more goals for a hat-trick on the night and the win, 10-1. Brahmas goalie Luke Romney stopped 15 shots in the win.
