2017-2018 PLAYER & GOALIE OF THE WEEK #14

Evgeni_MalkinChad_JohnsonThomas_VanekFrederik_Andersen

EASTERN SKATER TEAM GP GOALS ASISSTS POINTS PM  +/-  SOG S%
Malkin, Evgeni HAM 4 3 3 6 11 4 13 23%
                   
EASTERN GOALIE TEAM GP GOALS AGAINST G.A. AVERAGE SAVES SAVE %
Johnson, Chad CBJ 2 2 0.99 72 .973
                   
WESTERN SKATER TEAM GP GOALS ASSISTS POINTS PM  +/-  SOG S%
Vanek, Thomas TOL 4 0 6 6 2 3 11 0%
                   
WESTERN GOALIE TEAM GP GOALS AGAINST G.A. AVERAGE SAVES SAVE %
Andersen, Frederik LGD 3 3 0.98 89 .967
                   

Clearfield Bison Only 1 home game for the Bison as they face some old friends in the Toledo Walleye before hitting the road once again.
Toledo Walleye @ Clearfield Bison Many former Sycamores are facing off against each other in this one, as well as recent tradees Okposo and Brodie.

Slow start – Toledo gets a few chances, but Anderson holds the fort, and we are scoreless after one.

Clearfield breaks the ice early in the 2nd on a goal by James Neal..but a few minutes, later, Okposo extracts some revenge, beating Anderson glove side to tie it at 1…we go to the third still tied.

Brodie returns the favor early in the frame, blowing one by Dubnyk to give Clearfield the lead…but again it’s short-lived, as Reider scores on a wraparound to tie it at 2.

The Bison could not stay out of the box..and this time it cost them, as Toledo got the game-winner on the man advantage with just over 5 to go, on a one-timer by JVR.

Clearfield applied pressure…but Doughty took a terribly untimely penalty with 2:20 to go,which pretty much cooked Clearfield’s goose. Dubnyk withstood the 3rd period Bison stampede, and the Walleye swam away with the 3-2 win.

The Bison led in shots 34-28 and faceoffs 63-37%…but the Walleye went 2-5 on the PP while Clearfield was 0-1.

STARS: #1 Dubnyk 32 Sv on 34 shots #2 Reider 1G #3 JVR 1G

Weekly Summary: The old Sycamore/Bison connection hurts the home squad, as JVR and Okposo lead Toledo to a much-needed win. Clearfield now hots the road for 6 of their next 7, glad that they have a bit of a cushion in the divisional standings.

LA Great Danes 2 Divisional match-ups at home this week, with game 2 against the Alamo Defenders, who are challenging the Great Danes for the top spot in the Pacific.
California Regulators @ LA Great Danes Backup Steve Mason gets a rare home start as Frederick Andersen gets the night off to get ready for the big game against Alamo. Johnny Gaudreau scores on Cal’s first shot of the game 1:20 in, and Zibanejed puts the Regulators up 2-0 midway through the period. The Danes outshoot California 20-7 after 1 but trail 2-0. The Danes then get the first 11 SOG of period 2, but California’s next SOG is a PPG by Jacob Trouba. Halfway through the game, the Danes have outshot Cal 32-8 but trail 3-0. LA resisted thoughts of pulling Mason to keep Andersen rested, and the Danes finally solved Phillipp Grubauer when Jamie Benn converted on the power play to close the gap to 3-1 after 2. When Alex Pietrangelo scored 7 minutes into the third, there was hope that the Danes could recover from the hole they found themselves in. But 2 LA penalties slowed their momentum, and it was desperation time when the Danes pulled Mason for an offensive zone face-off with 1:25 left. After trailing all game long, Jamie Benn’s second goal of the game tied it up at 19:18, and we headed to overtime. It did not last long as Kevin Shattenkirk beat Mason 46 seconds in to give California the road win 4-3.

Jamie Benn’s 2 goals earned the #1 star in a losing effort, and Johnny Gaudreau had a big night for California with 1G-2A. Phillipp Grubauer had 44 saves and probably deserved the #3 star ahead of Jacob Trouba’s 1G-1A effort for Cal.

Alamo Defenders @ LA Great Danes The Danes are feeling a little pressure after a home loss leading into the matchup with 2nd place Alamo, who has owned the Danes in their previous games. And when a coaching error makes Tyler Toffoli a lineup scratch, the Danes have to scramble their lines unexpectedly. It was a scoreless 1st period despite the teams putting 29 total SOG. Brayden Schenn put the Danes up with a PPG at 6:42 of the second, but a Tomas Plekanic deflection beat Andersen to knot the game 1-1 heading into the third. There was no scoring in the 3rd as well as in the OT, so we went to a shootout, only the 2nd one of the year for LA. It did not start well for the Danes when Pacioretty scored on Alamo’s first attempt, but Jamie Benn evened it up. After Patrick Eaves hit the crossbar, Mark Scheifele scored on his shootout attempt, and when Andersen stopped Tyler Seguin, the Great Danes got their first shootout win of the year. Both goalies were outstanding in this one, with Lehner with 48 saves for Alamo and Andersen with 35 saves.
Weekly Summary: Both home games extended to OT, and the Danes feel fortunate to get 3 of 4 points, with the comeback and late goal against California followed by the big shootout win against Alamo.

Jagr Mullets Surging Jagr has two games at home against division rivals Columbus and Bathgate.
Columbus Brew Jackets @ Jagr Mullets The only team with more goals — and more goals allowed — than Jagr comes to town.

The last time these two squared off, Jagr won it 6-5 in the shootout. There’s no reason to think that the fans won’t see a lot of scoring again in this one.

In the first, it’s all Jagr as they pour in 3 goals behind Budaj. And it’s not the star power, but rather the depth guys: Derek Ryan (3), Elias Lindholm (6), and Brock McGinn (4).

But in the 2nd period, the ice tilts the other way as Columbus and their big cannons shell-shock the Mullets, scoring three to match: Brent Burns (16 and 17) and Kucherov (19) light the lamp.

In the 3rd, both teams turtle up a bit… who will give up the backbreaker?

Jordan Staal (10) answers that question at 16:22, as Vasilevskiy keeps the Jagr net empty as the Mullets win it 4-3 in regulation. Jagr held the advantage in most statistical categories, going 43-21 in the faceoff circle, 80-40 in shot attempts, and 22-7 in scoring chances.

Columbus can only muster 1 PPG on 4 tries, while Jagr goes 0-2.

The Mullet 4th line wins the day: Derek Ryan (1G 1A), Antoine Roussel (2A), and Brock McGinn (1G).

Scoring Summary
Per Time Str Team
1 3:18 EV JAG Ryan (3), assisted by Ellis (13) and Roussel (12)
1 8:22 EV JAG Elias Lindholm (6), assisted by Granlund (20) and Gaborik (6)
1 11:58 EV JAG McGinn (4), assisted by Ryan (5) and Roussel (13)
2 1:33 EV CBJ Burns (16), assisted by Sheary (22)
2 8:02 PP CBJ Burns (17), assisted by Hayes (32) and Sheary (23)
2 18:40 EV CBJ Kucherov (19), assisted by Miller (25) and Holden (19)
3 16:22 EV JAG Staal (10), assisted by Ovechkin (33) and Laine (25)

Star 1: CBJ Burns 2 G
Star 2: JAG Ryan 1 G, 2 Pts
Star 3: JAG Lindholm 1 G

GWG: Jordan Staal

Notables: CBJ Budaj 40 saves
JAG Staal 17 faceoffs won

Bathgate Rangers @ Jagr Mullets The Rangers come to town with their lethal backline, hoping to spoil Jagr’s recent good fortune.

Unfortunately for the Rangers, Nazem Kadri wakes up from his winter slumber in this one. Kadri has lead the league in goals most of the season, but his recent hiberation has seen him plummet in the standings. But the beast awakens as he scores his 28th at 10:04 of the 1st to open the scoring. 3 minutes later, Marian Gaborik (6) puts one behind Nilsson to give Jagr the early 2-0 lead.

At 6:47 of the 3rd, the Rangers break the ice with Anderson’s 15th goal on the PP. We have a game!

But Kadri’s not done. He scores his 29th at 9:55 on the power play to extend the Jagr lead to 3-1. Justin Schultz (8) joins the rush at 18:42 and adds some insurance as Jonathan Quick and Jagr take the game 4-1.

Both Ovechkin and Patrik Laine are quiet at home this week, but the Mullets pull out two victories thanks to depth and a resurgent Nazem Kadri.

Weekly Summary: With 4 points at home, Jagr now sits at 60 on the year and is closing in on playoff position. Will the surge continue this week on the road at Columbus and Lakeland? We’re eager to see!

Weekly Preview: Two home games for the red hot Bandits. Tied as the “best” team in the league with Clearfield. Lakeland and Bathgate come to town.
Bathgate Rangers @ Brentwood Bandits Brentwood scores 3 unanswered goals (Backes, Marleau, and Krug) to take a 3-0 lead into the 2nd Period when Bathgate turns the faucets on. Staal closes the gap with his 12th. 3-1 Bandits going into the 3rd.

3rd perdiod was ALL Bathgate. Outshot us 20-4, and it showed. Hornqvist (11), and Tierney (6) tied it at 3.

Looks like we’re headed to OT… or not? Shaw scores his 6th at 19:58. Yeah, with 1.2 seconds left!!

Needless to say Bathgate deserved to win this one. 4-3.

1 2 3 F
2017-18 Bathgate 23-23-0-7 0 1 3 4
2017-18 Brentwood 37-13-0-3 2 1 0 3

Scoring Summary
Per Time Str Team
1 2:33 PP BWB Backes (13), assisted by Miller (10) and Tavares (29)
1 15:34 EV BWB Marleau (23), assisted by Tavares (30) and Backes (16)
2 9:46 EV BWB Krug (5), assisted by Kessel (42) and Niederreiter (29)
2 13:58 EV BGR Staal (12), assisted by Ferland (8) and Hornqvist (23)
3 11:15 PP BGR Hornqvist (11), assisted by Staal (26) and Ferland (9)
3 14:23 EV BGR Tierney (6), assisted by Gryba (2) and Eriksson (4)
3 19:58 EV BGR Shaw (6), assisted by Karlsson (33) and Anderson (14)

Penalty Summary
Per Time Team
1 :33 BGR Staal (29), 2:00 – charging
1 15:18 BGR Anderson (87), 5:00 – fighting
1 15:18 BWB Bieksa (15), 5:00 – fighting
1 17:30 BWB Backes (49), 2:00 – hooking
2 3:44 BWB Forbort (35), 2:00 – holding
2 15:10 BWB Tavares (20), 2:00 – tripping
2 18:21 BGR Franson (8), 2:00 – slashing
3 :37 BWB Halak (2), 2:00 – delay of game
3 11:07 BWB Helm (2), 2:00 – roughing

SOG 1 SOG 2 SOG 3
Bathgate 14 10 20
Brentwood 12 9 4

BGR BWB
SOG 44 25
FOW 43 25
FO% 63.2 36.8
Hits 16 27
Blocks 19 13
Missed Net 17 20
Shot Attempts 74 64
Scoring Chances 13 18
PIM 9 15
PP 1-5 1-2
TOA 4:54 4:29

Star 1: BGR Hornqvist 1 G, 2 Pts
Star 2: BGR Staal 1 G, 2 Pts
Star 3: BGR Tierney 1 G

GWG: Andrew Shaw

Notables: BGR Shaw 15 faceoffs won
BWB Halak 40 saves

Bathgate GA SV Save% TOI W L OL Rate
G Rinne -W 3 22 .880 60:00 17 17 5 6.2 (-1.1)

Brentwood GA SV Save% TOI W L OL Rate
G Halak -L 4 40 .909 60:00 11 4 2 7.7 (+0.8)

Lakeland Flying Tigers @ Brentwood Bandits Lakeland comes to town. Hoping that the Bandits fare better with this “water-based” team than they did with Bathgate.

Steen (9) starts the scoring at 6:44 of the 1st to give Lakeland a 1-0 lead.

Crosby ties it up with his league leading 31st from Kessel (43).

Lakeland takes the lead back with Vatanen’s 3rd of the campaign from Boyle (4) and Paquette (5).

We go to the 2nd. Lakeland leading 2-1

31 seconds in Kessel notches his 14th of the season from Krug (50) and Crosby (29).

At the 10:00 mark Sid scores his 2nd of the night (32) from Kessel (44). 3-2 Bandits lead.

Oshie (21) ties the game from Ristloainen (24) and Steen (26). 3-3 going into the 3rd.

Back and forth in the 3rd. Bandits head coach Tom Atkins remembers the last game and losing with 1.2 seconds left. He presses aggressively in the last 3 minutes, and it pays off with Krug scoring his 6th of the season from Kessel (45) and Niederreiter (30).

Bandits go on to win 4-3.

1 2 3 F
2017-18 Lakeland 24-25-0-4 2 1 0 3
2017-18 Brentwood 38-13-0-3 1 2 1 4

Scoring Summary
Per Time Str Team
1 6:44 EV LAK Steen (9), assisted by Ristolainen (23) and Seabrook (21)
1 8:46 EV BWB Crosby (31), assisted by Kessel (43)
1 14:56 EV LAK Vatanen (3), assisted by Boyle (4) and Paquette (5)
2 :31 EV BWB Kessel (14), assisted by Krug (50) and Crosby (29)
2 10:00 EV BWB Crosby (32), assisted by Kessel (44)
2 16:29 EV LAK Oshie (21), assisted by Ristolainen (24) and Steen (26)
3 18:13 EV BWB Krug (6), assisted by Kessel (45) and Niederreiter (30)

Penalty Summary
Per Time Team
1 6:28 LAK Boyle (40), 5:00 – fighting
1 6:28 BWB Miller (27), 5:00 – fighting
1 9:57 LAK Ristolainen (42), 2:00 – checking from behind
2 10:28 BWB Backes (51), 2:00 – holding
2 18:36 LAK Seabrook (22), 2:00 – roughing
3 3:01 LAK Henrique (27), 2:00 – tripping
3 5:37 LAK Thornton (22), 2:00 – hooking
3 11:06 LAK Boyle (42), 2:00 – roughing

SOG 1 SOG 2 SOG 3
Lakeland 10 12 14
Brentwood 16 10 18

LAK BWB
SOG 36 44
FOW 36 42
FO% 46.2 53.8
Hits 23 17
Blocks 16 11
Missed Net 12 18
Shot Attempts 59 78
Scoring Chances 15 11
PIM 15 7
PP 0-1 0-5
TOA 2:56 7:16

Star 1: BWB Crosby 2 G, 3 Pts
Star 2: BWB Kessel 1 G, 4 Pts
Star 3: BWB Krug 1 G, 2 Pts

GWG: Torey Krug

Notables: LAK Jones 40 saves
BWB Crosby 18 faceoffs won, Halak 33 saves, Kessel 3 assists

Lakeland GA SV Save% TOI W L OL Rate
G Jones -L 4 40 .909 58:13 11 18 4 7.0 (+0.3)

Brentwood GA SV Save% TOI W L OL Rate
G Halak -W 3 33 .917 59:53 12 4 2 7.2 (+0.3)

Weekly Summary: Bandits go 1-1, getting 2 of 4 points at home. Not ideal, but could have been worse.

Still 1st in the division, Tom Atkins was asked about the playoffs. He stared at the pimply faced noob reporter for an eternity before he said “Next question”.


Bathgate Rangers Bathgate has 1 home game this week and it’s right off the bat – January 31st. Then the go on the road for the next 3. They open with Brentwood, then travel straight to Brentwood for a road game on the 1st. What a way to start a week ….
Brentwood Bandits @ Bathgate Rangers Game for the ages? Well, maybe ….
1st Period – Rangers draw 6 minutes in penalties to 2 for Brentwood. But the Bandits couldn’t take advantage. But Kessel (14) does crack the pipes to give Brentwood a 1-0 lead after 1. The Bandits fired 17 shots at Rinne – then snapped off 12 more in the second, but that Kessel goal was all they got for it. Brentwood even had 4 power plays in the 2nd, but nada. Meanwhile the Rangers weren’t sitting on their gloves, they popped 18 shots on Gibson in the 1st 2 periods but he handled them all.THIRD PERIOD – This is where the excitement starts. at the 4:49 mark, Brentwood’s Tavares decided to take on Killorn in a knock down, drag out fight. Wrong move. Killorn was all over him and the crowd was lit up even more than Tavares. Both guys exit for 5. Rangers joined the fan excitement and score 15 seconds after the fight when Shaw (6) takes one from Karlsson to knot the game at 1. Then Krug gets sent to the box for roughing at 6:20. Well, the Rangers actually convert on a PP 30 seconds later with Staal (12) taking a pass from Karlsson and beating Gibson. Rangers now up 2-1.
The game muddles on – the Bandits getting plenty of chances, but the Rangers hold them at bay – until the 16:27 mark when Vatrano takes one from Krug (assist 50!) to tie the game. Then with just under 2 to go, Shaw (7) teams up with Killorn and Zajac and the Rangers regain the lead, 3-2!! Bandits pull out the stops – AND GIBSON – and go on the final ditch attempt – and of course Crosby sets up Tavares (20 – the brawler) for the game tying goal with 15 seconds left! 15 seconds!!!!!OT – Rangers looked somewhat dejected after that goal, they tried hard, but the OT appeared to belong to Brentwood – so much so that when Guentzel stole one and scored unassisted with 2 to go, no one was surprised. Brentwood the 4-3 OT winner.
STARS – the scoring group felt that hometown skater Andrew Shaw deserved star 1 for his two goals. The Bandits Guentzel got star 2 for the game winner in OT plus and assist. Vatrano – 1 goal – got star 3.
Weekly Summary: Home game – 1 point – but it was against Brentwood, so the young Rangers don’t feel too bad. Well …….

Wausau Lumberjacks The Lumberjacks only home game this week is against the Thunder Bay Nor’Wester’s. The Nor’Wester’s are lead by Charlie Coyle who has 40 points on the season. In net for the Nor Wester’s will be James Reimers 11-10 .917 Sv%. The Wausau Lumberjacks will counter with Mikw Smith in net 11-16 .906 Sv%. Mike Hoffman and Mats Zuccarello lead the Lumbers with 32 points each.
Thunder Bay Nor’Westers @ Wausau Lumberjacks Wausau 2 Thunder Bay 1
After a scoreless first period.Wausau’s Matthew Dumba score the games first goal. He was assisted by Ondrej Palat in the second period at 11:25. Going into the third period Wausau leads 1-0. Thunder Bay counters early in period three. Reilly Smith scores the goal with assist from Ryan O’Reilly and Jake Muzzin. With 1:43 left in the game Wausau’s Matthew Dumba strikes again. Dumba scores the game winner with assist from Dustin Brown and Claude Giroux.
Weekly Summary: The Wausau Lumberjacks go 1-0 at home for this week. They were lead by Matthew Dumba 2 goals. Also the Lumberjacks receive quality goaltending from Mike Smith.

Gilbert Sharks Gilbert has just one home game this block against Long Beach
Long Beach Ice Dogs @ Gilbert Sharks Long beach scores first but Gilbert gets the next 4 and gets a 4-1 upset victory.
Weekly Summary: Gilbert gets a much needed victory

Toledo Walleye Toledo (27-21-4) has only one home game this week against Bathgate (22-23-7). Bathgate is led by Erik Karlsson with 49 points in 52 games.
Bathgate Rangers @ Toledo Walleye Toledo draws first blood early with a goal by Foligno 2 minutes in. The joy is short lived as the Rangers hits back quickly on a deflection by Subban on a Klingberg rocket. Toledo strikes back 10 minutes later with a 3rd line success from Anisimov, making it 2-1. This time the lead lasts 5 mintues, not all the way to the end of the period, as Staal scores assisted by Klingberg and Subban. First period ends 2-2.

Anisimov breaks the tie early in the 2nd assisted again by Vanek. The game is tied up once again by our favorite defensemen, Klingberg unassisted this time, making it 3-3. Toledo takes the lead one more time with familiar players, Anisimov and Vanek assisting Versteeg this time, and the period ends with Toledo leading 4-3.

The goalies rule the 3rd period and Dell perserves the win for Toledo.
1st star – Anisimov 2g1a
2nd star – Klingberg 1g2a
3rd star – Vanek 3a

Weekly Summary: Toledo wins their only home game 4-3 with Anisimov and his 3rd line buddies doing most the damage. Anisimov with 2 goals and 1 assist leads the team.

Long Beach Ice Dogs This game is being played by Thunder Bay
Thunder Bay Nor’Westers @ Long Beach Ice Dogs Thunder Bay (3) at Long Beach (4) in Overtime
1st Period
LB – Carter (15)
LB – Teravainen (6)
Long Beach leads 2-02nd Period
TB – Couturier (15)
Lon Beach 2 Thunder Bay 13rd Period
TB Barkov (12)
LB Matheson (4)
TB Athanasaiou (15)
Long Beach 3 – Thunder Bay 3Overtime
LB Skinner (23)
Weekly Summary: Game played by Thunder Bay

Corktown Suds Corktown Suds
Clearfield Bison @ Corktown Suds Corktown does something few have able to do lately and defeat the Bison.

Corktown 4-1

Corktown Suds @ Hampton Blizzard Hampton battles and grinds out the two points in overtime.

Hampton 5-4 OT

Weekly Summary: Corktown gets 3 points in the division.

Chicago Cosa Nostra Chicago by far the worst team in the MWHL, looking to get some points at home.
Toledo Walleye @ Chicago Cosa Nostra Though Chicago out shoots by a margin of 40 to 28, Toledo scores 4 goals before the Cosa Nostra net their first. Not even close in this one.
Final Score: Toledo 4 – Chicago 0
LA Great Danes @ Chicago Cosa Nostra Chicago is Shutout by Frederik Andersen.
Final Score: LA 3 – Chicago 0
Weekly Summary: Chicago looking for points can’t score. It’s as simple as that, if you can’t put the biscuit in the basket, your not going to win games.

Alamo Defenders Alamo entertains Chicago, Gilbert, and Long Beach.
Chicago Cosa Nostra @ Alamo Defenders Marchand and Pacioretty get the scoring going in the 1st period for Alamo. Toews scores for Chicago to narrow the lead. Alamo gets 3 unanswered goals to build up a nice lead. Chicago nets 2, and Alamo gets an insurance goal from Boychuk. Lots of penalties in this game.

Alamo 6 Chicago 3

1st – Pacioretty – 2 goals
2nd -Marchand – 2 points
3rd – Gardiner – 2 points

Gilbert Sharks @ Alamo Defenders Gilbert plays a pretty competitive game against Alamo. Voracek scores 1st for Gilbert. But, Alamo gets 4 in a row from Eaves, Vlasic, Plekanec, and Perrault. Spooner scores one late for the Sharks. But, Alamo prevails.

Alamo 4 Gilbert 2

1st -Vlasic 2 points
2nd – Perrault 2 points
3rd – Spooner – Sharks – 2 points

Long Beach Ice Dogs @ Alamo Defenders In the 1st period, Eaves and Pearson score to put Alamo on top. The Ice Dogs net 3 in a row to take a 3-2 lead. Skinner, Faulk, and Carter score within 7 minutes. Faulk’s goal was on a power play.

Alamo gets it going late in the game. With 3:58 to go, Seguin ties the game for Alamo. With 2:24 to go, the Defenders get their first power play of the game, and Perrault converts for the game winner.

Alamo 4 Long Beach 3

1st – Seguin, 1 goal and 1 assist
2nd – Marchand, 3 assists
3rd – Skinner (Long Beach) – 1 goal and 1 assist.

Weekly Summary: Alamo puts some heat on LA as they win all 3 against Chicago, Gilbert, and Long Beach. The Defenders pulled out the game against the Ice Dogs late.

New Jersey Grizzlies After a tough week NJ needs to bounce back.
Thunder Bay Nor’Westers @ New Jersey Grizzlies Thunder Bay 3
NJ 2
Thunder Bay Nor’Westers @ New Jersey Grizzlies Thunder Bay 2
NJ 3
Weekly Summary: NJ Splits with Thunder Bay.

Lakeland Flying Tigers 2 Home games for Lakeland this week. Vs Gilbert and Jagr.
Gilbert Sharks @ Lakeland Flying Tigers Gilbert 2, Lakeland 1 – SO.

Not really a great game by either team. Jones has never been strong in the shoot outs, and the same holds true for this game.

Jagr Mullets @ Lakeland Flying Tigers Jagr 2, Lakeland 1.

Jagr gets a GW Goal late in the 3rd to put this game away. Jagr should have won by a little more if it wasn’t for Jones making some key saves in the 2nd Period.

Weekly Summary: 2 home game and no points for the Flying Tigers this week. That pretty much seals this season for us.

Bucks County Racoons The 2nd week of an 8 game homestand finds the Racs going against much tougher competition facing likely playoff teams….
Corktown Suds @ Bucks County Racoons The visiting Suds strike first, but it is the last goal they will see as Bucks County puts the clamps on Corktown and skates away with a 3-1 win. After a Stone goal opens the scoring in the 2nd period with a PP goal the Racs storm back in the 3rd with goals from Lucic, Dominic Moore and John Moore. BC controlled the face off dot and held Corktown without a shot in the 3rd period, but even with that the visitors ourshot the Raccoons in the game 19-18.
Wausau Lumberjacks @ Bucks County Racoons Thinking they may be onto something here, the Bucks County Raccoons shut down another opponent, this time defeating the Wausau Lumberjacks 3-1. The script was totally different in this game as the Racs opened up a 2 goal lead in the first period and then were content to let G Jake Allen stand on his head the rest of the way, making 35 saves and keeping the Lumberjacks at bay. The game featured a line brawl in the 2nd period at the 17:15 mark which allegedley began when Claude Giroux of Wausau indicated to Connor McDavid that he, Giroux, did indeed have the better behaved dog. All hell broke loose after that, and who could blame McDavid for initiating fight night after that kind of trash talk.
Brentwood Bandits @ Bucks County Racoons Flexing their new found defensive muscle, the Bucks County Raccoons stifled and frustrated the Brentwood Bandits and defeated the visitors by a score of 2-1. Duncan Keith scored the game winner with 50 seconds left in the 3rd period, and it was apparent that nobody mentioned their dogs in this one as it was a fairly tame game with only 10 PIMS, 8 of which came for tripping or holding…..
Toledo Walleye @ Bucks County Racoons All good things must come to an end, as did the Raccoons defensive prowess, as the Toledo Walleye came into Bucks County and thumped the Raccoons by a score of 5-3. The Walleye scored 4 unanswered goals after BC opened the scoring, and although the Racs tried to rally, Toledo was too much for them and took the game, even though they allowed 42 shots on goal. An interesting note for Toledo was that they generated 14 scoring chances on their 31 SOG, a good indication of their control of play.
Weekly Summary: 6 of 8 points against a strong visiting contingent with only 3 goals against in the first 3 games had the Racs on the upswing, no doubt uplifted by the fact that they have the best behaved dogs in the league, at least in their collective minds….

California Regulators  
Clearfield Bison @ California Regulators Clearfield beats California 3-2.
Long Beach Ice Dogs @ California Regulators California beats Long Beach 3-2.
LA Great Danes @ California Regulators LA beats California 3-2.
Weekly Summary: California drops 2 of 3. Fun times.

Minneapolis Deep Freeze Minneapolis gets 4 home games this week, including 3 in the division. They’ll hope to close the gap on division-leading Toledo who currently holds a 3 point lead.
Wausau Lumberjacks @ Minneapolis Deep Freeze Wausau Lumberjacks (2) @ Minneapolis Deep Freeze (5)

Wausau scores first with Frolik’s 7th of the year on a one-timer from Faksa. Minneapolis ties it up less than 3 minutes later when Gagner feeds Hartnell (11) on a 2-on-1 to beat McElhinney. Pavelski (20) makes it 2-1 in favor of Minneapolis with a deflection on a shot from Markov that caught McElhinney way out of position. Just minutes later, the Deep Freeze thought they were going to make it 3-1 when Marchessault, Spezza, and Aho get loose for a 3-on-1 rush but this time McElhinney is there to make the huge save. Wausau outshoots Minneapolis 10-8 but trails 2-1 at the first intermission.

Three minutes into the second period, Gagner (9) extends the Deep Freeze lead to 3-1. While the two teams play some 4-on-4 hockey, Spezza (13) buries one-timer from Aho to make it 4-1 for Minneapolis. Minneapolis extends the lead to 5-1 when Tkachuk feeds Pavelski a nearly identical one-timer, this time on the powerplay. Minneapolis dominates the second period with 17 shots to the Lumberjacks 6, getting 3 goals out of it and leads 5-1 after 40 minutes.

Minneapolis gives Wausau a golden opportunity 7 minutes in to the 3rd period when Hartnell takes a 5 minute penalty for an ugly hit from behind. Wausau musters 6 shots during the 5 minute advantage but is still unable to get another past Bobrovsky. The Lumberjacks finally get another goal with just over 6 minutes left to play… but the refs get a call from Toronto to review it and they determine that it never actually crossed the line! Heartbreaking for Wausau, and Minneapolis still leads 5-1. On the ensuing faceoff Faksa wins it to Zucker (12) who gets one past Bobrovsky for real to make the score 5-2. The lumberjacks play an incredible third period en route outshooting the Deep Freeze 16-3 but are only able to get one more goal on the board thanks to some strong play from Bobrovsky. Minneapolis holds on to win 5-2.

Scoring Summary
Per Time Str Team
1 8:56 EV WLJ Frolik (7), assisted by Faksa (11) and Hanifin (9)
1 11:14 EV MIN Hartnell (11), assisted by Gagner (24)
1 15:06 EV MIN Pavelski (20), assisted by Markov (19) and Tkachuk (
2 3:18 EV MIN Gagner (9), assisted by Seidenberg (7) and Manning (10)
2 12:59 EV MIN Spezza (13), assisted by Aho (27)
2 17:29 PP MIN Pavelski (21), assisted by Tkachuk (30) and Hossa (14)
3 13:59 EV WLJ Zucker (12), assisted by Enstrom (9) and Faksa (12)

SOG 1 SOG 2 SOG 3
Wausau 10 6 16
Minneapolis 8 17 3

WLJ MIN
SOG 32 28
FOW 27 41
FO% 39.7 60.3
Hits 26 24
Blocks 10 18
Missed Net 14 9
Shot Attempts 64 47
Scoring Chances 4 9
PIM 6 25
PP 0-4 1-1
TOA 4:19 2:04

Star 1: MIN Pavelski 2 G
Star 2: MIN Gagner 1 G, 2 Pts
Star 3: MIN Spezza 1 G

GWG: Sam Gagner

Notables: WLJ None
MIN Bobrovsky 30 saves, Hartnell 15 PIM, Pavelski 16 faceoffs won

Weekly Summary: Minneapolis wins 3 out of 4 at home including all 3 divisional matchups this week 

Columbus Brew Jackets Jackets at home this week against Jagr and Gilbert. Still resting some guys and still trying to stay in the playoff hunt…but Brentwood is really moving up – but playoffs should still happen (??).
Jagr Mullets @ Columbus Brew Jackets Expecting a high scoring game between these two and what do you get – DEFENSE. Columbus jumped in early at 2:54 when Holden (6), from Sheary and Kucherov, netted a PP goal when Gaborik was called from tripping. Gaborik (6) makes up for his sin, tying the game at the 10 minute mark of the 1st and that ended the scoring during regulation. And it wasn’t for trying. Jagr fires 19 shots in the 2nd (after 15 in the 1st) and 9 in the 3rd – 43 shots and Johnson getting the start stopped 42 of them.
On to OT and both teams only manage 1 shot each. But then there was only 1:25 in OT as Kucherov (19) gets one past Vasilevskiy to win the game 2-1.
STARS (all CBJ)
1. Johnson 43 saves
2. Kucherov 1 goal, 1 assist (GWG)
3. Holden 1 goal
Gilbert Sharks @ Columbus Brew Jackets Sharks in town and the home team shares a lot of Brew with them and it stifled their offense. Apparently the Jackets guzzled a lot of the Brew too, but they managed one more goal in what ended up as another tight defensive struggle.
Columbus gets the 1st 2 goals – Burns (16) in the 2nd and Brodziak (4) made it 2-0 2 minutes into the 3rd period. Gilbert tried hard in the 2nd and 3rd and finally Burrows (8) split the piles at 17:32. Rask was then pulled for the final minute – but Johnson again played well in goal and stopped everything and the Brew Jackets take it 2-1.
STARS (all CBJ)
1. Johnson 29 saves (2 #1 Stars this week)
2. Burn 1 goal
3. Brodziak 1 goal
Weekly Summary: Brew Jackets get 2 2-1 wins this week. Chad Johnson had two strong wins this week and has been showing well between the pipes, now 14-5-2 in his starts.