*Photo contributed by Juan Carlos Wood – @shotsbyjcw on Instagram
At the 22nd Annual NAHL Showcase, the Wisconsin Windigo saw an action-packed week of hockey headlined by their win over the Corpus Christi IceRays. The Windigo played three games at the showcase and went 1-2-0 overall with losses to the Aberdeen Wings and Johnstown Tomahawks. Despite the mixed results, the young Windigo roster took home important lessons to prepare them for the rest of their divisional games this season.
Wednesday, Sept. 24
In the team’s opening matchup of the showcase, the Windigo lost 3-1 to the Aberdeen Wings. After a scoreless first period, the Windigo struck first as second-year forward Ronnie Hill found the back of the net for his first goal of the season. His twine finder was assisted by second-year skaters Michael Ryan and Alexios Georgaklis. Aberdeen then rallied, scoring the equalizing goal in the second period before sealing the win with an even-strength and empty-net goal in the third.
Despite the loss, Windigo goaltender Easton Cody posted another strong performance in net. He made 30 saves on the 32 shot attempts he saw and has a .954 save percentage in his first two NAHL starts.
Thursday, Sept. 25
One day later, the Windigo won 2-1 over the Corpus Christi IceRays, who entered the NAHL Showcase as the no. 2-ranked team in the league’s power rankings. All three goals scored in the contest came in the second period. After the IceRays struck first, second-year forward Teddy Richardson leveled the scoring less than two minutes later with a goal of his own. Second-year defenseman Declan Burns added an assist on the play for his fifth point of the year. In the latter portion of the second period, Hill tallied his second goal of the week on a Windigo power play. His goal would stand as the game-winner as Wisconsin kept Corpus Christi off the scoresheet the rest of the way.
Rookie netminder Max Kogler tallied his second win of the season between the pipes for the Windigo. Because of Wisconsin’s strong play in all three zones, Kogler only needed 19 saves on 20 attempts to secure the win. Offensively, Richardson finished the game with two points after he assisted Hill’s game-winning tally. Ryan also tallied an assist for his second of the showcase and 30th of his career.
Saturday, Sept. 27
In the team’s final game of the showcase, the Windigo fell to the Johnstown Tomahawks in a 4-2 battle. After a scoreless opening period, Wisconsin rookie forward Brendan Finley opened the scoring as he tallied his second goal of the season. Forwards Bjorn Bahneman and Josh Sardo registered assists on the goal. After the Tomahawks scored four goals, including forward Nick Jarmain’s eighth goal of the season, the Windigo capitalized on a power play as Hill tallied the goal off feeds from linemates Georgaklis and Richardson. Hill finished the showcase slate with three goals and currently has 19 goals in his Windigo career.
Windigo netminder Casimir Weckstrom drew the start and made 20 saves on 24 attempts. After the trio of showcase games, both Burns and Richardson actively lead the team in points with five tallies each. Hill currently leads the team in goals with three.
Standings
After the action-packed week, the Windigo are currently in fourth place in the NAHL Midwest Division standings. Their record of 3-3-1 is good for seven points, which trails the division-leading Minnesota Wilderness by four points.
Up Next
The Windigo return to their home ice at the Ponds of Brookfield to host the Fairbanks Ice Dogs for a two-game set. The series kicks off on Friday, Oct. 3 at 5:35 PM central time. Tickets can be purchased on the team’s website. If you can’t make it in person, all Windigo home games can be streamed on NATV. Visit nahltv.com for more details.
