*Photo Contributed by Kade Barkus – @momentum_by_kade on Instagram
The Wisconsin Windigo and Springfield Jr. Blues faced off for the first two of six meetings between the sides down the stretch of the regular season, and the in-game action did not disappoint. Despite losing the first contest, the Windigo scored seven goals on the weekend and wrapped up the two-game slate with a comeback win to earn three points in the highly competitive Midwest Division standings.
During the weekend series, both billet families and actual families of Windigo players this season were honored on the ice. On behalf of the entire organization, thank you for your countless hours of commitment and endless support of the team! The season couldn’t happen without you all.
Friday, Mar. 6
Final Score: Windigo 3, Jr. Blues 4 (SO)
In the first game of the weekend, the Windigo fell to the late-comeback effort from the Jr. Blues, who managed to score two goals in the final 11 minutes of regulation to tie the game before winning in a shootout. Similar to each of the prior two games, Windigo team captain Alexios Georgaklis tallied the first goal of the game to give Wisconsin an early lead. The twine finder was his 15th of the season and he was assisted by blueliner Hunter Friedrich, who would ultimately finish the game with two assists.
After Springfield leveled the score on a power play in the first period, the score remained the same until the two-minute mark in the second. Much of this stretch was characterized by physical play from both sides, resulting in 13 total penalties throughout the game. It also saw some key saves from both goaltenders, including Wisconsin’s Max Larsson, who ended the game with 40 saves on 43 attempts. The goal scored before the end of the second period was from Windigo forward AJ Bongiorno, who took off down the right wing with plenty of space before firing the puck into the near-side corner. The tally was Bongiorno’s fourth of the season and he was assisted by Windigo blueliner Henry Steele and Larsson, who recorded his first assist of the year.
With momentum in their favor, the Windigo stayed in the driver’s seat to start the third stanza. After Friedrich played the puck up the ice, Wisconsin center Jacob Miller laid the puck back to winger Peyton Mithmuangneua, who lasered the puck into the back of the net, placing the Windigo up 3-1. The tally was Mithmuangneua’s fourth goal of the season and the helper was Miller’s second with the Windigo (22nd in total between Amarillo and Wisconsin).
From that point, however, Springfield managed to turn the game around. The visitors would go on to tally a goal at the 11-minute mark before tying the game 3-3 with just under three and a half minutes remaining in regulation. The extra period saw multiple chances for both sides, but each team’s goaltender held firm to force a shootout.
The shootout consisted of five attempts for each team. Each of the first three attempts for both teams were saved before Springfield’s fourth attempt resulted in a miss. Despite the Windigo forcing a save on all five attempts, they would ultimately lose the shootout when Jr. Blues winger Lukas Wallinheimo scored the go-ahead tally.
Saturday, Mar. 7
Final Score: Windigo 4, Jr. Blues 3
After the nail-biting finish to the first game of the weekend, the Windigo battled back from two goals down heading into the third period to secure Saturday’s victory. To open the game, the Jr. Blues would tally the first two goals and outshot the Windigo 12-6 in the first period. Before the end of the first, however, the Windigo grabbed a power-play goal when blueliner Thomas Quast fed Mithmuangneua towards the left corner, which helped pull the Springfield defensemen out towards Mithmuangneua, who slid a pass inside to a wide-open Jackson Ernst to finish the play. The goal was Ernst’s 14th of the season and the assist raised Mithmuangneua’s season totals up to 26 helpers and 30 points.
The second period was misleading to those who didn’t catch the game live. While the Windigo led the Jr. Blues in shots on net and true scoring chances, it was Springfield who scored the lone goal of the period. The second period also saw a steady stream of penalties, similar to the first, resulting in the contest ending with 16 penalties between the two sides.
When the third period arrived, the Windigo turned the tide. Across seven minutes in the middle of the period, the team turned a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 lead, where the score would stay for the remainder of the contest. The first goal of the third period was scored by forward McCarthy Richardson, who forced a turnover in the neutral zone and deked past two Springfield defensemen before placing the puck top shelf. The goal was assisted by blueliner Jack Templeton, who made his team debut Saturday after serving as the team captain for the Brookfield Stars high school team, which also plays its home games at The Ponds of Brookfield.
Moments later, the Windigo earned a power play and didn’t miss their chance to tie the game. Just inside their offensive zone, Miller played the puck to assistant captain Riley Joslin, who played a sharp pass diagonally across the crease to set up Richardson’s second top-shelf goal in under three minutes. The game-tying tally was Richardson’s sixth total goal this season between his time with New Hampshire and Wisconsin.
With the game tied at three apiece, Wisconsin was gifted with another power play. After moving the puck around, Joslin found himself in the back-left corner of the attacking third with possession. He handled the puck left and faked a shot towards the Jr. Blues’ closest defenseman before lasering the puck into the top-right corner of the net to score the go-ahead goal. Joslin’s twine finder was his third of the season and he was assisted by Friedrich and Georgaklis, who each finished the weekend with multiple helpers.
In net, Larsson earned his first win of the weekend by stopping 28 of 31 shots on goal. The win moved him up to a 7-1-1 record across 11 appearances with Wisconsin this season.
Standings
With a win and shootout loss, the Windigo ended the weekend with a 29-18-2 record across 49 games on the year. They maintained their hold on third place in the Midwest Division, even gaining a point over the Jr. Blues, who fell to fifth place with a 25-19-5 across 49 games. The Anchorage Wolverines made the jump into fourth place and trail the Windigo by four points.
Up Next
Following their third consecutive homestand, the Windigo will hit the road to face their in-state rival, the Chippewa Steel. The pair of games will take place on Friday, Mar. 13 at 7:00 PM CST and Saturday, Mar. 14 2:00 PM CST. If you can’t be there in person, all Windigo home and away games can be streamed on NATV. Visit nahltv.com for more details.
