| 'Jackets Win On The Road |
| |
Saturday's game had all the trappings that lead
to an uninspired effort for a team, perhaps even an upset loss.
A long bus trip, an unfamiliar opponent, an earlier start time than
normal. The list goes on, but 'Jackets did what they had to do
and avoided said trap and the upset loss. There were a few
tense moments, but overall the 'Jackets played well on their way to
a 6-2 win over Lawrence on Saturday in Appleton, Wis.
The 'Jackets dominated play in the opening 20 minutes, outshooting
the Vikings 15-3 and outscoring them 1-0. Justin
Faryna (Fr. Calgary, Alberta) drove the net and put home a
rebound just 2:38 into the game to give the 'Jackets the lead.
It was Faryna's first goal of the season.
In the second, the Vikings made some adjustments and came out hard.
The evened the game at 1-1 when Marc Howe got behind the defense and
scored on the breakaway, beating Jim Patterson (Jr.
Kamloops, British Columbia) with a backhand for his fourth
goal of the season. Midway through the period, with the
Vikings carrying the majority of the play, they took their first
lead. Again it was Howe, picking up the puck in the slot and
stickhandling around Patterson, shooting it into an empty net to
make it 2-1. The Yellowjackets then went on the power play and
wasted little time in tying the game. Art Clark (Sr.
Bloomington, Minnesota) got the puck at the top of the left
circle and let a wrist shot go that beat Lawrence goaltender Evan
Johnson high on the glove side to make it 2-2 at 11:41 of the
period. The 'Jackets took the lead for good just nine seconds
later. Tyler Fletcher (Sr. Calgary, Alberta)
took a pass and carried into the Lawrence zone, letting a wrist shot
go that beat again high over the glove to make it 3-2. It went
to 4-2 at 15:06 when Fletcher banged home a rebound in the crease
for his sixth of the year. Kyle Leahy (Fr. Fort St.
John, British Columbia) and Josh Kesler (Fr.
Naperville, Illinois) assisted on Fletcher's first two
goals. Fletcher then completed his first career hat trick at
17:27 of the second period. Josh Seifert (Sr.
Superior, Wisconsin) intercepted a pass at the Lawrence
blue line and fed Fletcher in the slot, who redirected it past
Johnson to make it 5-2. It was Fletcher's team-leading seventh
goal of the season.
In the third, the 'Jackets closed out the scoring with their second
power play goal of the game. Braden Desmet (Sr.
Strathmore, Alberta) had the puck in the right corner,
feeding a pass to the right circle where Jesse Junkermeier
(Jr. Minnetonka, Minnesota) one-timed it past Johnson for
his first of the season at 10:03 of the third period to make it 6-2.
Lawrence made a goaltending change after the sixth goal, and the
'Jackets continued to pressure hard, but were unable to add any more
goals to the total.
Patterson finished the game with 28 saves to improve his record to
3-0-0. Johnson finished with 23 saves and Michael Baldino, who
came in in relief for the Vikings, stopped all six shots he faced.
The Yellowjackets went 2-6 on the power play and were a perfect 6-6
on the penalty kill, improving their mark on the season in each
category. Each team took seven penalties for 14 minutes, most
of them coming in the third period.
The Yellowjackets (3-2-0, 0-2-0 NCHA) return home this weekend and
return to conference play with a two-game series against UW-Eau
Claire. The Blugolds are currently fifth in the NCHA standings
with one point after opening their conference season last weekend
against UW-River Falls. Game time on Friday night will be 7:05
p.m. and can be heard live locally on KUWS 91.3 FM, beginning with
the pre-game show at 6:45 p.m. If you are outside the local
listening area, you can tune in on the Internet at
www.kuws.fm. Jon Garver will
have the call. |
|