PARK RAPIDS— The Timberwolves’ recent scoring drought came to a dramatic end here on Saturday as Ely exploded for five goals in the first quarter as they routed the Panthers 6-1 in Ely’s best offensive performance of the season so far.
Jace Huntbatch heralded an impressive start for the Wolves with a goal just 1:26 into the contest. Jayden Zemke lit the lamp just over three minutes later, with an assist from Owen Marolt, to put the Wolves up 2-0.
Less than six minutes later, the Wolves put three shots past Panthers’ goalie Logan Felton in a 72-second scoring frenzy that left the Wolves in the driver’s seat. Huntbatch hit the net again, at the 10:11 mark, to put the Wolves up 3-0. Rhett Johnson made it 4-0 just seven seconds later while Hunter Halbakken capped the outburst at 11:23.
A new Panther’s goaltender helped limit the damage the rest of the way but it was already too late for Park Rapids. The Panthers scored late in the second period, while Rhett Johnson added an insurance goal for Ely early in the third.
Ely goalie Ben Leeson, who notched a .973 save percentage, kept the Wolves out front even as Park Rapids outshot them 37-22.
The game was marred by 15 penalties as virtually every Ely player spent time in the box. Zemke was called for the only major, for head contact early in the third period. Despite the penalties, all of the goals for both teams came at full strength.
Playing at Bagley last Friday, the Wolves put 34 shots on goal but lost 5-0 despite benefitting from seven power plays. Alex Merriman was the only Ely player penalized on the night, on a two-minute charge of kneeing late in the second period. The Flyers put 29 shots on goal but made them count for the win.
The Wolves were set to host Proctor Friday night in a makeup game after last week’s postponement due to weather. They stay at home to host Burnett, Wis. on Saturday.