The Power travelled to St. Louis this weekend for the team’s first away games of the year. This is the second time the Power have played the Jr. Blues this season, with the Power sweeping them at the beginning of September. The Power were coming off a win against the Wausau Cyclones 5-2 on Oct. 3 after losing to them in a shootout the night before.
On Friday night, the Power put Austin Bartell as the starting goalie while the Jr. Blues put in Brendan Cobb. The game began with lots of puck possession for the Jr. Blues, and just under four minutes into the period Cameron Gillen represented the Blues with a goal against the Power. Gus Immken scored for the Jr. Blues just a few minutes later, extending their lead 2-0.
The second period was quiet with no goals by either team. In the third period, however, the Power decreased the Blues’ lead with a goal by Michael Dalaly, assisted by Easton Nick and Caden Severtson. With two minutes left in the game, the Power hoped to tie up the score by pulling their goalie for the extra skater. Nevertheless, the Power fell to the Jr. Blues 2-1, giving the Blues their first win of the season.
On Saturday afternoon, the Power looked to avenge their loss from the night before. The Power would start Spencer Northway in goal with the Jr. Blues starting Cobb again. The Blues had a quick, strong start to the game with Gianluca Boccardi scoring just under two minutes into the period. However, the Power didn’t give up. Compared to the night before, the Power had increased their shots on goal and had more possession of the puck. With about seven minutes left in the period, Ben Cremers scored for the Power with assists by Dalaly and Gunner Vignaroli.
With a tie game going into the second period, tensions between the two teams began to rise and things were becoming physical. The Power had a five-on-four advantage with just under seven minutes left of the period. This gave Nate Stone the perfect opportunity to score, giving the Power their first lead of the series. Stone’s goal was assisted by Connor O’Neal and Ausmus. And they didn’t stop there; less than a minute later, Ausmus scored his own goal, which was assisted by Dalaly and Jack Wojnowski. The 3-1 lead for the Power caused some physical altercations by the Jr. Blues, resulting in seven penalties between the two teams by the end of the period.
Things started to calm down a bit at the beginning of the third period. However, with three minutes left in the game, five penalties were called – four of them being fighting majors. Despite hostility from the Jr. Blues after dropping their lead, the Power pulled through all the fights and left St. Louis with a win under their belt. This is the Power’s first win in St. Louis in team history.
The team heads to Alexandria, Minnesota this Friday and Saturday for two games against the Alexandria Blizzard. Like the Power, the Blizzard are coming off of a win from this past weekend. Although this is the Blizzard’s first win of the season, this series is bound to be an exciting matchup!
-Story by Julia Woodcock
