ELY- After a bitter six losses in a row, the Timberwolves notched two well-earned wins over the past week. They include an 8-2 victory against the WSFLG (Wis.) Blizzard on Jan. 14.
This past Saturday, they avenged their Jan. 13 loss to Lake of the Woods, edging the Bears 5-4.
Head Coach Jake Myers said his team had stuggled with three key skills last time against the Bears. “We put a lot of time into those three parts of the game at practice, and it paid off,” Myers stated. “The team really worked hard, and capitalized on their scoring chances. They also held onto a third period lead this game, and came away with a big win and our second win a row.”
Ely put three points on the board in the final four minutes of the first period, with goals by Jaksen Hegman, Kadein Zupancich (assists Chase Anderson and Kole Macho), and Hegman (assists Alex Merriman and Drew Marolt).
The Bears bit back early in the second period with two goals but Ely responded with two more goals, by Marolt (assist Deegan Richards) and Richards (assist Marolt).
A third period rally added two more goals for the Bears, but it wasn’t enough as Ely held on for the win.
In their Jan. 14 matchup with the Blizzard, the Wolves came away with a convincing 8-2 win in a highly physical game. Penalties were more of a factor for the Blizzard as numerous cat fights broke out over control of the puck. Refs dinged the Blizzard for a total of five penalties, while three Ely players spent their own time in the box, all in the second period. At one point, the Blizzard had a 5-3 advantage on the ice as two Ely penalities overlapped, but the Wolves were able to fend them off until they got back to full strength.
“We were able to keep the damage on the scoreboard to a minimum,” said Myers. “Consistency was an issue again in this game, as the first two periods we kept WSFLG within striking distance. Ultimately in the third period we found our game and put up four unanswered (goals) to finish off the much-needed win.”
Macho scored both first period goals for Ely, with assists from Ben Leeson, and Logan Loe and Jace Huntbatch on the second.
Sophomore Alex Merriman scored the first of the second period goals with an assist from sophomore Blake Schaller.
Ely notched four goals in the third period by Richard (assist Wes Sandy), Marolt, Loe (assists from Huntbatch and Macho), Macho (assist from Zupancich) and Loe (assists from Macho and Huntbatch).
Overall, the team took 43 shots at the goal vs. 27 by WSFLG.
The loss to Lake of the Woods on Jan. 13 was the last one of the Timberwolves’ losing streak. The game was notable for its clean play and only two penalties, both made by Lake of the Woods during the second period.
“We struggled with consistency in our game… We gave up two goals back-to-back late in the game because of a few mental breakdowns and that made the difference in the game.”
Overall, Ely had 42 shots at the goal vs. 34 by Lake of the Woods.
The Wolves were headed west for the weekend, with a Friday night contest at Park Rapids and a Saturday matchup at Bagley.
They’ll be home next Friday and Saturday, Feb. 3-4, hosting St. Paul Johnson.