NAHL North Iowa Bulls

Japchen Seals 3-1 Bulls Win, Scores to Cap 100th NAHL Game

February 26, 2022 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
North Iowa Bulls News Release


North Iowa Bulls defenseman Greg Japchen
North Iowa Bulls defenseman Greg Japchen
(North Iowa Bulls, Credit: Alissha Ames)

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - North Iowa defenseman Greg Japchen had quite the memorable night in Friday's North American Hockey League contest at the Nelson Center - his empty-net goal with 90 seconds remaining might not go down as one of his most memorable goals, despite coming from deep in the Bulls' defensive zone. He'll certainly remember the circumstances, though, with that goal capping off his 100th North American Hockey League contest and a 3-1 North Iowa win, a victory that keeps the Bulls right in the thick of a red-hot Central Division playoff race.

The Bulls made their first-ever contest in Springfield count, opening the night with a goal from Brett Morich at 8:47 of the first period. That goal came from high in the slot, sneaking its way past the traffic in front and beating Aksel Reid off the crossbar for the 1-0 advantage at the game's 8:47 mark. The Bulls went into the second period with the lead, but trailing 12-8 in the shots-on-goal department.

Springfield extended that margin to 25-13 after the second period, and tied the game just past the halfway point late in its first power play of the night, following a hooking call against Justin Mexico. Hunter Garvey stopped an initial shot from Cole Dubicki above the faceoff circles, but Hagen Moe won the puck out of a scramble to Garvey's left and stuffed the puck into the net for the tying marker.

A double-minor in the final minutes of the second period gave North Iowa the opening it needed to take the lead for good - Leo Bacallao picked up a four-minute slashing call with just 4:16 left on the second period clock, and with one second left on the power play, Sean Vlasich ripped a shot from the right wing over Reid's right shoulder to snap the Bulls into the lead for good.

The teams battled to a stalemate in the third period, and with Reid out of the net and the Jr. Blues' sixth attacker on the ice, Japchen attempted to clear the puck out of the North Iowa zone with a stretch pass. Instead, his pass raced out of the North Iowa zone and made a beeline for the empty net, giving him a highlight to close out his big night.

Vlasich's power play goal was his second straight on a Friday night, after his power play tally highlighted the Bulls' 6-2 loss to Bismarck last weekend. Jack Mesic enjoyed a memorable night of his own, posting a pair of assists.

Garvey made 32 saves on Springfield's 33 shots, posting one of his best showings in a North Iowa uniform and earning his 14th win of the season. It was the first time since September 17 that the Bulls have allowed only a single goal in a contest. Reid made 21 saves on 23 North Iowa shots, taking the loss for the Jr. Blues and slipping back to 5-6-0-1 for the year.

The Bulls added a nice bump to their power play percentage as well, going 1-for-3 on the power play thanks to Vlasich's second-period goal, while Springfield enjoyed its own success in a 1-for-2 showing.

North Iowa snapped a four-game winless streak and earned its 20th win of the year, bumping its season mark to 20-19-2-4. Springfield extended its skid to three games, falling to 29-13-1-2 with the loss. The teams return to action Saturday evening in the last of their four regular-season meetings, with the opening puck drop at the Nelson Center slated for 6:05 p.m.

North Iowa 1 1 1 - 3

Springfield 0 1 0 - 1

1st Period-1, North Iowa, Morich 6 (Stacey, Mesic), 8:47. Penalties-Moe Spr (holding-minor), 16:44.

2nd Period-2, Springfield, Moe 20 (Smith, Dubicki), 10:40 (PP). 3, North Iowa, Vlasich 6 (Mesic, Mesic), 19:44 (PP). Penalties-Mexico Nio (hooking-minor), 9:19; Scott Nio (slashing-minor), 10:48; Marino Spr (roughing-minor), 10:48; Campion Nio (roughing-minor), 11:06; Bade Spr (roughing-minor), 11:06; Bacallao Spr (slashing-minor, slashing-minor, abuse of official-10 misc), 15:46.

3rd Period-4, North Iowa, Japchen 9 (Mexico, LaRusso), 18:33 (EN). Penalties-Potter Nio (tripping-minor), 0:54; LaRusso Nio (unsportsmanlike conduct-minor), 18:59; Dubicki Spr (unsportsmanlike conduct-minor), 18:59; Moe Spr (cross checking-minor), 18:59.

Shots on Goal-North Iowa 8-5-11-24. Springfield 12-13-8-33.

Power Play Opportunities-North Iowa 1 / 0; Springfield 1 / 0.

Goalies-North Iowa, Garvey 14-14-1-4 (33 shots-32 saves). Springfield, Reid 5-6-0-1 (23 shots-21 saves).

A-617

Referees-Quentin Gabriel.

Linesmen-Craig Ford, Kevin Haller.

Check out the North Iowa Bulls Statistics




Images from this story

North Iowa Bulls defenseman Greg Japchen
North Iowa Bulls defenseman Greg Japchen
(Alissha Ames)		   



North American Hockey League Stories from February 26, 2022


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central