Sunday, December 13, 2009
Story last updated at 12/13/2009 – 2:41 pm
Brown Bears topple Dogs
By Staff Report | Peninsula Clarion
The Kenai River Brown Bears scored four goals in the third period to come back from a 2-0 deficit and stun the Fairbanks Ice Dogs on Saturday at the Soldotna Sports Center in front of 392 fans in North American Hockey League action.
The loss snaps a nine-game winning streak for the Ice Dogs. Five of those wins came against the Brown Bears.
Kenai River gets its second straight victory after breaking an 11-game losing streak.
Fairbanks drops to 19-12-1 and misses a chance to pass up the Alaska Avalanche of Wasilla for second place in the West Division. The Brown Bears improve to 7-23-2.
Jon Krause and Justin Kirchhevel gave the Ice Dogs a 2-0 lead with second-period goals.
In the third period, Johan Skinnars had two goals for the Brown Bears, while Brad Fusaro and Trace Strahle added tallies. Skinnars recently came to the Brown Bears from the Ice Dogs in a trade.
Dainis Vasiljevs made 20 saves to pick up the win for the Brown Bears. He has earned five of a possible six points since joining the team. Mike Taffe had 34 saves for Fairbanks.
The same two teams play at 5 p.m. today at the Soldotna Sports Center.
Brown Bears 4, Ice Dogs 2
Fairbanks 0 2 0 –2
Kenai River 0 0 4 –4
First period — none. Penalties — Kenai River 1 for 2:00.
Second period — 1. Fairbanks, Krause (Kirchhevel, Voight), 10:01; 2. Fairbanks, Kirchhevel (Politz, Larson), 10:51. Penalties — Fairbanks 1 for 2:00.
Third period — 3. Kenai River, Skinnars (Royston), pp, 5:40; 4. Kenai River, Fusaro (Bennett, Royston), 11:11; 5. Kenai River, Skinnars (Lubanski, Royston), pp, 12:28; 6. Kenai River, Strahle (Kinnebrew), en, 19:34. Penalties — Fairbanks 3 for 6:00; Kenai River 2 for 4:00.
Shots on goal — Fairbanks 4-10-8–22; Kenai River 16-7-15–38.
Goalies — Fairbanks, Taffe (37 shots, 34 saves); Kenai River, Vasiljevs (22 shots, 20 saves).
Power plays — Fairbanks 0 for 2; Kenai River 2 for 3.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Story last updated at 12/14/2009 – 1:07 pm
Ice Dogs knock off Brown Bears
By Staff Report | Peninsula Clarion
The Fairbanks Ice Dogs defeated the Kenai River Brown Bears 5-3 on Sunday in North American Hockey League action at the Soldotna Sports Center in front of 386 fans.
The Ice Dogs were able to avenge a loss to the Brown Bears on Saturday night that snapped a nine-game winning streak.
The win gives Fairbanks a 20-12-1 record and moves the Ice Dogs into second place in the West Division. Fairbanks has the third-best record in the league.
The Brown Bears fall to 7-24-2.
\”We played OK,\” Brown Bears coach Oliver David said. \”We did not play as organized as (Saturday) night.\”
Justin Kirchhevel gave the Ice Dogs a 1-0 lead after the first period. In the second period, the explosive Fairbanks offense, which leads the league with 129 goals and has the league\’s top three scorers, finally exploded for the first time all weekend.
The Ice Dogs received goals from Jon Schreiner, Michael Juola, James Saintey and Joe Krause in the period.
\”Fairbanks did what they do best in the second period, as they have done quite often before,\” David said. \”That period turned out to be the difference.\”
The Brown Bears were able to get goals from Johan Skinnars and Brad Duwe in the period and enter the third period trailing 5-2.
Clayton Glick added a goal in the third period for the Brown Bears.
Kenai River outshot Fairbanks 36-29. David said goalie Dainis Vasiljevs had a solid game for the Brown Bears, but said Fairbanks goalie Joe Phillippi also was up to the task.
\”We got off a lot of shots and had everybody buzzing around their goal, but their goalie was very good tonight,\” David said.
The Brown Bears play at Fairbanks on Friday and Saturday before taking a break for Christmas. The team does not have another home game until Jan. 22.
David is excited about the future. He said Skinnars and Vasiljevs have had a quick impact since joining the team.
The team will also be adding some physical players over the break. Chris Rial, a 6-foot-5 defenseman, will join the team after a trade with Wichita Falls.
Shane Halaas, a 6-3, 220-pound forward, will join the team because he wants to resume his hockey career.
\”Our guys are really getting it going,\” David said. \”I see a noteworthy change. I\’m pretty happy with the way it\’s going, and the new additions should only help that.\”
Ice Dogs 5, Brown Bears 3
Fairbanks 1 4 0 –5
Kenai River 0 2 1 –3
First period — 1. Fairbanks, Kirchhevel (McGill, Krause), 15:39. Penalties — Fairbanks 2 for 7:00; Kenai River 2 for 7:00.
Second period — 2. Fairbanks, Schreiner (un.), 2:33; 3. Kenai River, Skinnards (un.), 10:43; 4. Fairbanks, Juola (Pustin), 12:17; 5. Fairbanks, Saintey (Kirchhevel, Brock), 12:54; 6. Fairbanks, Krause (un.), 13:17; 7. Kenai River, Duwe (Ramsey), 15:12. Penalties — Fairbanks 4 for 16:00; Kenai River 3 for 6:00.
Third period — 8. Kenai River, Glick (Ramsey, Duwe), 2:25. Penalties — Fairbanks 5 for 10:00; Kenai River 2 for 4:00.
Shots on goal — Fairbanks 8-15-6–29; Kenai River 6-10-20–36.
Goalies — Fairbanks, Phillippi (36 shots, 33 saves); Kenai River, Vasiljevs (29 shots, 24 saves).
Power plays — Fairbanks 0 for 2; Kenai River 0 for 5.
