NAHL North Iowa Bulls

Jersey Auction, Naughty & Nice Weekend Headline Bulls' 2021 Home Finale

Published on December 13, 2021 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
North Iowa Bulls News Release


IN A NUTSHELL:

One of the league's newest and youngest teams welcomes the NAHL's longest-running franchise for its final home weekend of 2021.

THIS WEEK'S PROMOTIONS:

North Iowa opens its annual "Naughty and Nice" weekend Friday, with an ugly sweater contest and an appearance by the Grinch. Friday's game is also a "Friday Night Lights" game, with selected Bulls players signing postgame autographs. The Bulls will also wear special Busch Light-themed jerseys tonight, to be auctioned live after Saturday's game. Saturday will also feature appearances by Santa Claus and other holiday characters, and fans are invited to skate with the Bulls during Saturday's postgame jersey auction.

GOOD THINGS COME IN 3s:

North Iowa forward Dylan Gajewski seems to have settled in just fine after his first weekend in a Bulls uniform, posting three goals last weekend in two losses against the Norsemen. He quickly matched his 19-game total with the Austin Bruins, with all three goals coming at the North American Hockey League Showcase at the start of the season. He posted a point per game last season in the NA3HL for the Willmar WarHawks, playing 26 regular-season games and becoming a major factor in their run to their first-ever West Division Final series.

MULTIPLYING MILESTONES:

Dylan Gajewski's huge weekend marks just one of a multitude of recent milestones that the Bulls have celebrated - two of his goals last weekend saw a debut on the NAHL score sheet for a linemate. His first Bulls goal last Friday night saw defenseman Andrew Stacey pick up his first junior assist, and Mason City Toros call-up Sota Isogai earned his first two NAHL assists on Gajewski's goals in Saturday's game. Defenseman Casey Roepke earned an assist on Michael Mesic'sTeddy Bear Toss goal last Friday. Since November 20, five Bulls have earned their first points in a North Iowa uniform and two have marked a career 100-game milestone. Jack Mesic's 100th NAHL game remains on hold as his run with the USHL's Lincoln Stars continues.

PICKING UP STEAM:

If the first portion of the season is any indication, fans at this weekend's games will have all the more reason to stay for the full game - the latter stages of a game are when these teams shine. The margins are close in every stanza of the game, but the third period is the only one where North Iowa has out-shot its opponents this season (244-239). For Springfield, the third period is by far its most efficient at the offensive end, scoring more goals (32) in the final period than in any other despite firing off fewer shots (229) than in either of the other two.

LIVING HISTORY:

There are long-tenured teams in the North American Hockey League, but no team on the circuit boasts quite the history or heritage that the Jr. Blues do - the team first entered the league in 1993, and now boasts of being the longest-operating team in Illinois's capital city. Springfield made quite a few trips to Mason City during the North Iowa Outlaws' stay in town from 2005 to 2010, going 17-14-2 against the Outlaws in the regular season and postseason. The teams met in the first round of the 2008 Robertson Cup playoffs, with the Jr. Blues sweeping North Iowa in three games.

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