Up Next: Military Appreciation Weekend Featured at the Dome Next Weekend
Photos: Elliot Gulley (#21) looks to tip a shot from Felix Haibock, Teddy Richardson (#25) on the forecheck, Braydon Beahm (#11) looks for a rebound. Ronnie Hill (#13) scores during the shootout.
Weekend Recap: The home and home series with the Jets moved to Janesville last weekend. The Windigo grounded the Jets in the opening game, but lost in a shootout on Saturday.
Friday, November 8: Windigo 4 at Janesville 1: The Windigo came out roaring against the Jets in the first period, outshooting them 15 to 7. Mario DiMaggio opened the scoring for the Windigo 2:47 into the game with a wrist shot from the faceoff circle. DiMaggio’s second goal of the season was set up by Alexios Georgaklis cycling low behind the goal line, from where his perfectly placed pass found DiMaggio’s stick. Ronnie Hill scored his 3rd goal of the season in the waning seconds of the opening period. Defenseman Harper Frey cleared his zone with a pass to Georgaklis along the far boards. Georgaklis fed the puck to Hill in the neutral zone. Hill carried the puck into the offensive zone and headed towards the net. He attempted to pass the puck but back to Georgaklis, but the puck was redirected by a Janesville defender into his own net. Zach Cline’s 5th goal of the season 6:43 into the second period made it 3-0 in favor of the Windigo. Harper Frey’s clearing pass from deep in his zone sprung Cline on a breakaway. Cline’s wrister to the glove side cleanly beat the Jets goaltender Christian Kirsch. Janesville scored 2 minutes later to close the middle frame with the Windigo holding a 3-1 lead. The Windigo handily outshot Janesville 18 to 10 in the second period. A more evenly played third period saw 9 shots placed on net by each team. Janesville pulled their goalie late in the third. With the man advantage, the Jets were buzzing the Windigo net. Defenseman Cashen Naeve gained control of a loose puck and released a shot from behind his own goal line which found the center of Janesville’s net over 190 feet away. Lucas Szyszka earned his 11th win of the season, making 25 saves. Kirsch (who was drafted by San Jose’ in the 4th round of the NHL draft this past June) made 38 saves and suffered the loss in net for Janesville.
Saturday, November 9: Windigo 4 at Jets 5: The Windigo jumped out to a lead just 54 seconds into the game. Jackson Ernst picked up the puck in the neutral zone and headed up ice. Streaking towards the net to Ernst’s left was Alexios Georgaklis. Ernst passed the puck across the top of the crease and Georgaklis tipped it past Jets’ netminder Christian Kirsch. Janesville turned on the jets for the remainder of the first period, outshooting the Windigo 16 to 11. Janesville scored 3 consecutive goals to take a 3-1 lead. Cashen Naeve scored with just under 2 minutes remaining to close the first period with Janesville leading 3-2. Naeve, planted in the low slot, received a pass from Jordan Brothers and buried the puck into the far side of the net. The Jets scored 1:39 into the second period to make it 4-2 in favor of the Jets. Teddy Richardson brought the Windigo to within one goal, scoring his 6th goal of the season with 55 seconds remaining in the middle frame. Richardson received a pass from Luke Baker and skated into the zone. He released a shot from the top of the circle that beat Kirsch between the legs. The Windigo’s league leading power play took advantage of an opportunity in the middle of the third period to tie the game at 4 goals apiece. Elliot Gulley drove to the net and relinquished the puck to Beahm. Beahm released a quick shot to score his team leading 12th goal of the season. Despite the Windigo applying heavy pressure and outshooting the Jets 15 to 4 in the final frame, the game headed to overtime. The Windigo carried the shot advantage in overtime by the margin of 3 to 1, but could not solve Kirsch. The shootout featured excellent goaltending. In the second round, Ronnie Hill scored the only shootout goal for the Windigo. The Jets claimed victory in the seventh round of the shootout. Beau Altman took the loss in net for the Windigo. He relinquished 4 goals in just over 21 minutes of play. Altman was replaced by Lucas Szyszka, who stopped all 15 shots the Jets sent his way. Kirsch earned the win in net for Janesville with 35 saves.
Coach’s Comments: Windigo coach Bryce Reddick offered the following after the weekend series: “I was pleased with our effort in the first period on Friday. We did a lot of things well and maintained excellent structure. We got away from that a little in the second period but finished the game strong. We missed some shots that could have resulted in goals, but you have to give their goalie credit. He made some spectacular saves to keep them in the game. On Saturday, we were a little out of sync and the Jets seemed to step up their intensity. I was pleased with our push in the third period. That was the fourth consecutive game against them and it’s tough to win four games in a row against any team in this league. I can see why San Jose drafted Kirsch. He played well in net for Janesville all weekend long. Overall, our guys are playing well. We do have high expectations and any loss, whether it be in regulation, overtime or a shootout, does leave a bitter taste. Our guys are resilient, and we are looking forward to the Wilderness coming to the Dome. They are a much improved team from the first game we played. We expect a battle from them.”
Up Next: In collaboration with the Vilas County Veterans Service Office, the Windigo host Military Appreciation Weekend on November 15 and 16. Active duty military personnel and veterans will be admitted free. Game worn military themed jerseys will be sold, and 50/50 raffles will be held to benefit local veterans. Opening faceoff is 7pm both nights. Tickets are available online at www.wisconsinjuniorhockey.com/tickets or at the door commencing 1 hour prior to the opening faceoff.
