NAHL North Iowa Bulls

North Iowa Posts Five Goals in Third, Charges to 6-3 Win at Minot

Published on October 10, 2021 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
North Iowa Bulls News Release


North Iowa Bulls goaltender Hunter Garvey
North Iowa Bulls goaltender Hunter Garvey
(North Iowa Bulls, Credit: Alissha Ames)

MINOT, N.D. - The pace belonged to Minot. The scoring chances belonged to Minot.

North Iowa took extra care in the third period to make sure the game wouldn't belong to the Minotauros, too.

After heading into the locker room trailing 2-1 and behind 37-9 in the shots-on-goal count, the Bulls ripped off five goals in the third period, including four straight, to carry home a 6-3 win Saturday night at the Maysa Arena in North American Hockey League play. The victory also sealed a sweep against Minot, as well as sole possession of first place in the NAHL's Central Division with co-leader Austin sitting idle on Saturday.

After rattling off three goals in the opening period Friday night, the scoring was much slower to come on Saturday. With 4:24 remaining in the first period, Joey Potter skated into the Minot zone, took a step to his right and snapped a forehand shot past Carter Clafton from just inside the faceoff circle, giving North Iowa the 1-0 lead.

The Minotauros took the shots-on-goal count in the first period, 16-6, and tacked on another 21-3 advantage over the middle period. The second period saw the hosts grab the lead on a pair of goals just 98 seconds apart - Colby Joseph tied the game at 11:21 of the period, with his first shot clipping the shaft of Hunter Garvey's stick and knocking it out of his hand, and the rebound came out front for Joseph to put away for a five-hole tally.

With 7:01 remaining in the second, David Nesburg drove the puck down the left wing, looking to center the puck to a teammate - the pass was blocked back to him, and Garvey was able to stop the initial shot, but Nesburg scraped the second chance home for the Minotauros' only lead of the night.

The Minotauros were almost able to make it a 3-1 game, with Zack Simon finding Cole Mickel out front for a one-timer on a 4-on-4 and a delayed penalty call with 4:46 left in the period - Mickel's shot caught both posts and rode the goal line, but never fully crossed into the net, leaving the lead at a single goal going to the third.

At that point, North Iowa set to work in leaving its mark on the game - at 2:02 of the third period, Jack Mesic's toss toward the net from the right point caught Max Scott's stick in front of the net, and his re-direct briefly tied the game at 2-2.

The tie lasted less than two minutes - just 3:55 into the period, Clafton's clearing attempt was picked off by Simone Dadie in the corner, who fed the puck to Hunter Bulger out front - his first chance banked off the end boards, and the long bounce allowed him to stuff home a second-chance goal and claim the lead.

That gave North Iowa the lead it would never relinquish, but the Bulls added on less than two minutes later - at 5:39, eight seconds into a Minot power play off of a tripping call against Michael Mesic, Chris Carroll would chip the puck down the left-wing wall to Carter Rapalje, who outran the Minotauro defenders and slipped the puck underneath backup goaltender Zach Sandy for a shorthanded tally and the eventual game-winner.

The scoring binge took a brief break at 10:09 of the period after the Bulls made it 5-2, when Justin Mexico found Logan Dombrowsky across the slot, and his poke toward the net took a detour off of Zachary Cline, giving him his first goal as a Bull in his North Iowa debut.

Needing to make up three goals, Minotauros coach Cody Campbell called Sandy to the bench with four minutes remaining, and Minot's renewed push paid dividends at 16:13 of the third period, when Huston Karpman's shot from the left point snuck its way through the traffic to find the back of the net and cut the Bulls' lead to two. A toss from Byron Hartley at the blue line from the right wing with 2:32 remaining closed the scoring and sealed the victory for the Bulls.

Hartley was the only player in the game with more than one point, notching a goal and an assist, while Carroll's shorthanded assist extended his point streak to eight games. Garvey earned his third win in a row with 45 saves, while Sandy took the loss for the Minotauros, making nine saves just one night after going a perfect 18-for-18 in relief. Clafton picked up the no-decision with 13 saves, exiting after Bulger's go-ahead goal.

The penalty-killing units enjoyed another outstanding showing, with the Bulls wiping away all four Minot power plays and the Minotauros shaking off both North Iowa power plays in the game. In the end, the Minotauros would earn a 48-28 shots-on-goal advantage in the game, giving up a 19-11 margin to their visitors in the final period.

The Bulls return home to face Minot next week, with games at the Mason City Arena slated for Friday and Saturday evening. The opening puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. both nights.

North Iowa 1 0 5 - 6

Minot 0 2 1 - 3

1st Period-1, North Iowa, Potter 1 (Mesic), 15:36. Penalties-Nesburg Mnt (hooking-minor), 2:51; Dombrowsky Nio (checking from behind-minor), 5:47.

2nd Period-2, Minot, Joseph 4 (Fridén, Beahm), 11:21. 3, Minot, Nesburg 3 (Karpman, Panzer), 12:59. Penalties-Hartley Nio (tripping-minor), 2:52; Hartley Nio (roughing-minor), 13:38; Nesburg Mnt (roughing-minor), 13:38; Carroll Nio (tripping-minor), 15:14.

3rd Period-4, North Iowa, Scott 2 (Mesic, Hartley), 2:02. 5, North Iowa, Bulger 4 (Dadie), 3:55. 6, North Iowa, Rapalje 4 (Carroll), 5:39 (SH). 7, North Iowa, Cline 2 (Dombrowsky, Mexico), 10:09. 8, Minot, Karpman 6 (Arneson, Joseph), 16:13. 9, North Iowa, Hartley 3 (Carroll, Potter), 17:28 (EN). Penalties-Mesic Nio (slashing-minor), 5:31; Stachowiak Mnt (slashing-minor), 18:45.

Shots on Goal-North Iowa 6-3-19-28. Minot 16-21-11-48.

Power Play Opportunities-North Iowa 0 / 2; Minot 0 / 4.

Goalies-North Iowa, Garvey 3-0-0-1 (48 shots-45 saves). Minot, Clafton 2-3-1-0 (16 shots-13 saves); Sandy 0-3-0-0 (11 shots-9 saves).

A-1,487

Referees-Dillon Zobel.

Linesmen-Dustin Nelson, Kyle Stephens.

Check out the North Iowa Bulls Statistics

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Images from this story

North Iowa Bulls goaltender Hunter Garvey
North Iowa Bulls goaltender Hunter Garvey
(Alissha Ames)		   



North American Hockey League Stories from October 10, 2021


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