BROOKINGS – The Blizzard used two sheets of ice to down Austin, 4-2, on Saturday night at the Larson Ice Center.
The two teams skated to a 1-1 draw on the Red Rink, before moving to the Blue Rink for the final two periods after the Zamboni said, “No more!” seconds into the first intermission.
The move to the other rink didn’t bother the Blizzard as they hammered three home in the second stanza for a 4-1 advantage en route to the Central Division win.
The Bruins got on the scoreboard first on Valdemar Ahlberg’s unassisted goal two minutes into the game but Brookings answered 90 seconds later to tie the game as Vince Marino found the back of the net.
And then the party started.
With 7 minutes left in the first intermission, the Zamboni pulled a Roberto Duran and said, “No mas!”
After a lengthy delay, the game moved over to the Blue Rink and the Blizzard proceeded to pound the Bruins into oblivion with three straight goals.
Cameron Teamor tickled the twine midway through the second with a power-play goal set up by Doug Larson and Josh Boyer before Griffen Sanom lit the lamp two minutes later off an assist by Ryan Dickinson.
Connor Koviak’s goal with 4:21 on the clock gave the Blizzard a 4-1 edge heading into the final 20 minutes.
The Bruins capitalized on a power-play chance less than a minute into the final frame but that finished off the scoring as the Blizzard picked up the 4-2 win.
“Never, ever have I seen something like that,” said Blizzard head coach Mo Mantha of the Zamboni meltdown. “I just told the guys to focus on the game.”
Brookings made its shots count as the Bruins held a 50-22 edge in shots with Zachary Borgiel and Benjamin Beck combining to stop 50 of the Bruins’ shots for the win in goal.
Each team cashed in on a power-play chance.
Borgiel saved 29 of 30 shots and Beck stopped 19 of 20 as the Blizzard improved to 9-6 and moved into a tie with Bismarck atop the Central Division with 18 points.
“We’ve won three in a row (before) so I so told them not to get complacent,” Mantha said to his team after the game.
Brookings travels to Green Island Ice Arena this weekend to face the Coulee Region Chill for a pair of games.
The puck drops at 7 p.m. both nights.
BROOKINGS 4, AUSTIN 2
Austin 1 0 1 – 2
Brookings 1 3 0 – 4
First Period
Scoring: 1. Austin – Valdemar Ahlberg (unassisted), 17:57. 1. Brookings – Vince Marino (unassisted). Penalties: A, Devon Fields (Head Contact), 14:38; A, Valdemar Ahlberg (Boarding), 8:45; B, Brendan Aird (Tripping), 8:31; A, Devon Fields (Tripping), 7:20.
Second Period
Scoring: 2. Brookings – Cameron Teamor (Doug Larson, Josh Boyer), 10:13. 3. Brookings – Griffen Sampson (Ryan Dickinson), 8:07. 4. Connor Noviak, 4:23. Penalties: A, Alex Mella (Too Many Men), 10:43; A, Evan Cholak (Charging), 5:25; B, Josh Boyer (Slashing), 4:36.
Third Period
Scoring: 2. Austin – Dan Petrick (Justin Brand, Travis Kothenbeutel), pp, 0:22. Penalties: B, Andriy Denyskin (Tripping), 12:55; B, Cam Babiak (Elbowing), 11:55; A, Sviatoslov Kuchynski (Cross Checking), 10:51; A, Dan Petrick (Slashing), 6:20; A, Reggie Millette (Boarding), 5:58; A, Reggie Millette (Unsportsmanlike Conduct), 5:58; B, Cameron Teamor (Roughing), 5:58; B, Cameron Teamor (Roughing), 5:58; Cameron Teamor (Removal of helmet), 5:58; B, Oliver Turan (Roughing), 1:14.
Power Plays: A 1-6; B 1-8. Shots: A 20 16 14 – 50; B 4 12 6 – 22. Saves: A, Mads Sogard, 9/13; Alex Schilling 9/10; B, Zachary Bogiel 29/30; Benjamin Beck 19/20.
