NAHL 2020-2021 Thread

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End of the first period, New Jersey 3 - Maine 2. The Titans regained the lead in the closing minute on a goal by Anthony Califiore (the unfortunate Robert Morris commit).

No penalties called, and SOGs were 14-10 in favor of the home side. Crazy period, and an even crazier play-by-play guy for Maine. I thought he was gonna have a stroke before the first stoppage in play came, but he never slowed down (and probably never sat down).

 

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NJ & ME look rested after the intermission. Puck down for the 2nd ...

 

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And Maine's Stefan Owens (UMass-Lowell) ties it up with a PP goal @19:18 of the 2nd period. 3-3 early in the middle session.

 

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Four minutes in to the 2nd, Maine takes their first lead tonight on a goal from behind the end redline by Jack Strauss. 4-3 Nordiques.

 

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I can't handle the pace of the NJ-ME Game 5. Gonna switch to Minot vs. Aberdeen, a check back later.

 

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Puck down in South Dakota ...

 

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Wings awarded the man-advantage on a Minot infraction during a partial breakaway about 4 minutes in, and Nico DeVita (Ferris State) gives Aberdeen a 1-0 lead late in the 2 minute 5-on-4 play.

 

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End of 2 in Maine, Nordiques lead 5-3. Their 5th tally came from Cannon Green about 11 minutes into that period. Five minor penalties whistled,, after a penalty-free first. The pace has slowed down in the 2nd half of each period so far, so the Titans will need to strike quickly in the 3rd if they want to catch up & have a chance to advance in the East.

 

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End of one period in Aberdeen, Wings lead the Tauros 1-0. Relatively even balance of offensive play so far (especially in the first 10 minutes) with minimal stoppages, but Aberdeen has the 15-9 SOG advantage. This series has been surprisingly competitive, and Game #5 looks no different.

 

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2:13 left for NJ to score 2 goals to tie. Trying to get their extra attacker on the ice.

 

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Game #5 Final Score = Maine Nordiques 5 - New Jersey Titans 3.

Nordiques move on to face the Maryland Black Bears in the East Division Finals.

 

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Back in SD, the score is now 3-1 in favor of the Wings at 2nd intermission. Clayton Cosentino (Air Force) gave Aberdeen the 2-0 lead early in that period. Minot got on the board midway through on a tally by Damon Zimmer, but Natan Vertes (Alaska-Fairbanks) gave his team another 2-goal cushion a few minutes later.

The Minotauros had a PP late in the period on a too-many-men call against the home side, but could not capitalize. The Wings are outshooting the Minotauros 28-19 so far, and Aberdeen seems to be in the groove they established during the regular season.

 

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Play underway in the 3rd in Aberdeen. Both teams skating with energy.

 

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Tauros draw within one goal with 14:16 to go, just as a Wings minor penalty expired. Ethan Schmunk credited with the goal on a shot from above the circles. Now 3-2 Wings.

 

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Minot gets goalie Keenan Rancier (MN State) off the ice & the extra attacker out with 45 seconds left in regulation, and they tie the game 3-3 with 28 ticks to go in the 3rd. Michigan Tech commit Kyle Kukkonen gets the critical tally. Another intermission (15 minutes this time), then on to sudden death OT in Aberdeen. It ain't over 'til it's over.

 

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Period 4 of Game 5 underway ...

 

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And with 19.5 seconds left in the first OT session, the Aberdeen Wings score to shatter Minot's dreams. Final Score = Aberdeen Wings 4 -Minot Minotauros 3. Kyle Gaffney (Alaska-Fairbanks) gets the GWG, after a slow line change by a tired Minot squad gave the Wings an odd-man rush.

The Wings move on to the Central Division Finals to face the Bismarck Bobcats, the winner getting a spot in the Robertson Cup Championship Finals.



ETA: And this is how it ended. If you blinked, you missed it ...

 

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Some players on an offensive roll going into their Division Finals matchups, with assists to LeagueStat's Daily Report & the NAHL's Game Center Players database ...

• Maryland Black Bears forward Josh Nixon (Lake Superior State commit) has 3 goals & 4 assists for 7 points in 5 games played. Two of his goals were power play tallies.
• Bismarck Bobcats forward Tim Piechowski (St. Thomas) has 3 goals & 3 assists for 6 points in just 3 games. Two of his first round goals were game winners.
• Minnesota Magicians rookie forward Lleyton Roed (Bemidji State) has 2 goals & 3 assists for 5 points in 3 games played.
• Kenai River Brown Bears forward Max Helgeson (Lindenwood University Lions commit ) has 2 goals & 3 assists for 5 points in 4 games. One of those goals was on the power play.
• Aberdeen Wings forward Clayton Cosentino (Air Force Academy) recorded 2 goals & 3 assists for 5 points in 5 games played. He notched a power play goal & the GWG in one of those games.
• Maine Nordiques forward Stefan Owens (UMass-Lowell bound) also has 2 goals & 3 assists for 5 points in 5 games. He scored the GWG in Game #1 of the 1st round.
• Kenai River rookie forward Lucas Wahlin has 5 points (1 G + 4 A) in his 4 games.
• Aberdeen forward Payton Matsui (Alaska-Fairbanks) has 1 goal & 4 assists for 5 points in as many games.
• And yet another Wings forward, Cade Neilson (also an Alaska-Fairbanks commit), recorded an assist in each of his 5 games played in the opening round of the Robertson Cup playoffs.

 

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And stick taps to some of the goaltenders who have helped their teams advance ...

• Shreveport Mudbugs' Cole Hudson (Vermont commit): 3 Wins & no losses with just 5 goals against, giving him a 1.59 GAA to go with a 0.943 SV%.
• Wichita Falls Warriors' rookie Owen Bartoszkiewicz: 3 Wins without a loss, a 2.00 GAA & a 0.923 SV%.
• Aberdeen Wings' Jake Sibell (Niagara U bound): 3 Wins & 2 losses (one in OT), a 2.19 GAA & a 0.924 SV%.
• Maine Nordiques' Tyriq Outen: 3 W + 2 L, with a 2.20 GAA & 0.926 SV%.
• Minnesota Magicians' rookie Andy Beran: 3 wins with no losses, a 2.33 GAA and a 0.929 SV%.

 

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And while we're waiting for the 2nd round schedules, props to this year's NAHL Prospects Challenge champs ...

 

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Sunday night's game summaries, while still waiting for the 2nd round schedules ... Wings, Nordiques win Game 5's on Sunday to advance

 

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More time-filling media product, from the period May 24 to May 30 inclusive ...

 

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Division Finals schedules starting to trickle in ...