Weekend Recap: In the final weekend of NAHL action prior to the holiday break, the Fairbanks Ice Dogs made the 3,206 mile trip to Eagle River to take on the Windigo. The two teams met earlier this season in a series the Ice Dogs swept, spoiling the Windigo home opening weekend. The Windigo held second place in the Midwest Division with a 15-10-3-1 (wins-losses- OT losses-shootout losses) record going into the weekend. Fairbanks held sixth place in the division with a 12-13-1-4 record.
Friday, December 8: Ice Dogs 3 at Windigo 5: Continuing his hot hand from the previous weekend against Chippewa, Windigo forward Everett Pietila opened the scoring with a power play goal 3:02 into the first period. Max Martin and Jacob Jastrzebski were credited with the assists. Martin scored two successive goals in the second period to put the Windigo up 3-0 halfway through the game. Pietila and Tyler Grahme were credited with assists on Martin’s first goal. Daniil Dolzhenko and Jastrzebski assisted on Martin’s second goal, which came on the power play. Jack Thomas put the Ice Dogs on the board with a power play goal with just 7 seconds remaining in the second period. Tyler Grahme scored his 12th goal of the season (from Pietila and Jastrzebski) four minutes into the third period. Grahme’s goal was the third power play goal of the game for the Windigo. In an effort to mount a comeback, Fairbanks answered with two goals of their own (one of them shorthanded) and found themselves trailing by only 1 goal midway through the third period. Windigo defenseman, Cashen Naeve scored a shorthanded goal (from Grahme and Martin) at 12:11 of the third to close out the scoring. Windigo goalie Max Beckford claimed his sixth victory of the season, stopping 16 of the 19 shots faced. The Windigo placed 28 shots on the Ice Dogs’ net.
Saturday, December 9: Ice Dogs 0 at Windigo 1: Saturday’s rematch was a physical and tight checking affair that featured exceptional goaltending. The first period ended scoreless with the Windigo outshooting the Ice Dogs 9 to 4. The loan goal of the game came off the power play 18:28 into the second period. With the Ice Dogs changing on the fly, Windigo defenseman Erick Comstock made a pass from deep in his zone to Everett Pietila in the far end of the neutral zone. Pietila gained the offensive zone and backhanded a pass to Max Martin coming down the right wing. Martin released a shot that missed the net and rebounded to the far left hash mark. Martin beat an Ice Dog defender to the loose puck. Martin passed the puck to Tyler Grahme, who was posted at the left faceoff dot. Grahme went forehand to backhand with the puck to elude a defender and passed the puck to Pietila parked all alone in the low slot on the right side of the net. Pietila released a quick snapshot just inside the post. The second period saw 12 minor penalties called. The Ice Dogs outshot the Windigo 13 to 12 in the second period. In a game that turned out to be a goaltending battle, Windigo netminder Linards Lipskis was perfect in net with 27 saves, for his third shutout and tenth win of the season. The Windigo had 30 shots on Tyler Krivtsov, who turned in a stellar performance in net for Fairbanks.
Coach’s Comments: Windigo head coach Blake Hietala had the following thoughts after the weekend series: “It was great to finally beat Fairbanks at home. They swept us in our home opening series this year, and in our home opener last season, as well. Our power play continues to produce. Four of our six goals this weekend came on the power play. Martin, Grahme, Pietila, Jastrzebski, Dolzhenko and the rest of the guys on the power play are really moving the puck well. We gave up a shorty against on Friday off a miscue with the puck, which was simply a lack of focus. I was pleased with our goaltending both nights. Lipskis had an outstanding game on Saturday. He deserved the shutout. I think the guys are looking forward to the holiday break. We’ve had several guys sick over the last couple of weeks. They need a break to re-charge and be ready to come back strong and healthy for the second half of the season.”
Up Next: After a two-week holiday break, the Windigo host the Kenai River Brown Bears on January 5 and 6, and the Minnesota Wilderness on January 12-13. Game time at the historic Dome in Eagle River is at 7pm Central Time. Tickets are $10 for general admission and $15 for the reserved access section. Tickets are available at the door or at www.wisconsinjuniorhockey.com/tickets.