Eagle River, Wisconsin – The Springfield Jr. Blues traveled up to Eagle River, WI this past weekend for our first games against the Wisconsin Windigo – finishing with a weekend split that pushes our record to 12-14-0-0 for 24 points.
Friday: SPR 3 – 2 WIS (SO)
On Friday night we arrived at the Eagle River Ice Arena, affectionately referred to as “The Dome”, for our first contest with the newly formed Wisconsin Windigo. The home team came in on a four-game winning streak and started off on the right foot scoring the game’s first goal just before the intermission to lead 1-0.
The 2nd period, however, belonged to the Jr. Blues. Grant Ellings picked up his 1st goal with the Jr. Blues at the 7:40 mark on the power play to tie the game up, 1-1. A little over four minutes later Isaac Keller capitalized on a scoring opportunity at the end of a penalty kill to give us our first lead of the weekend, 2-1.
Aksel Reid turned aside shot after shot from the Windigo in the 3rd period but the home team was able to break through late and sent the game to overtime tied 2-2. Overtime wasn’t enough time to find a winner so we headed to our first shootout of the season and the outcome didn’t disappoint.
Nikita Nikora scored on the first shot of the extra-extra-frame and Reid turned aside all three Wisconsin shooters to seal a 3-2 victory. On the evening Reid stopped 42 of 44 shots and Brayden Cook, Hadley Hudak, and Tyler Borgula all had assists.
Saturday: SPR 1 – 4 WIS
Saturday night’s contest started out the way the Jr. Blues wanted it to as rookie forward Tyler Borgula potted his 9th goal of the season just before the halfway mark of the 1st period. Carson Dorfman stood tall in the 1st frame and we headed to the break leading 1-0.
In a reversal of fortunes, the Windigo used a power play goal in the 2nd period to steal the momentum away from the Jr. Blues and after 40 minutes of hockey we were tied 1-1. If the 2nd period shifted momentum, the 3rd period sealed the deal. Wisconsin found the back of the net three times in the final frame and took game two of the weekend, 4-1.
Dorfman stopped 21 of 24 in the loss. No assists were credited on Borgula’s goal in the 1st period.
By the Numbers:
- After having not gone to overtime or shootout through the first 20 games of the season, the Jr. Blues have now had at least one extra time contest in each of our last three series. We are currently 2-0 in overtime and 1-0 in shootout and are the only team in the NAHL without an extra session loss.
- Rookie forward Tyler Borgula has 11 goals and 9 assists in 26 games so far this season, most on the team and 4th most among all NAHL rookies. He has registered a point in all but one weekend this year.
- Veteran netminder Aksel Reid picked up his 6th win of the season on Friday night. His goals against average currently sits at 2.27 and his save percentage is .922 – both place him in 13th among all goaltenders.
- Grant Ellings goal on Friday was his first with the Jr. Blues, but it wasn’t his first junior hockey or NAHL goal. Ellings, a native of Bloomington, MN, played last year and the beginning of this season with the New Mexico Ice Wolves and scored 7 goals and 14 assists in 65 games.
Upcoming Games:
The Jr. Blues are back in town this weekend! That’s right – the boys are back as we welcome the Minnesota Wilderness to town for a pair of games before our Holiday Break! On Friday the 16th doors open at 6 pm with puck drop at 7:05 pm and we will have fleece scarves courtesy of CEFCU for the first 250 fans!
On Saturday the 17th we will have our annual Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest! Wear your Christmas Worst and be a part of our 1st intermission contest for a special prize! Doors open at 5 pm and puck drops at 6:05 pm.
Get your tickets in advance by visiting tickets.jrblues.com today – save some time (and money) and skip the line on game night!
