JOHNSTOWN, PA — The Johnstown Tomahawks (8-4-3) dramatically extended their season-best win streak to six games with a fifth straight home victory after a 4-3 regulation victory over the 2nd place Northeast Generals (10-4-2) on Friday night in Johnstown. The Tomahawks got two goals from Alex Gomes, a goal from Charlie Zetterkvist and one from Evan Kensey. Alex Gomes recorded his first multi-goal effort of the season, including the dramatic game-winning goal with just nine seconds to play. Matthew Wood took the crease once again for the Tomahawks and was very strong and allowed his team to hang around long enough to strike back, making 34 saves on 37 Generals shots for the victory.
The Tomahawks returned back to 1st Summit Arena for what would be their seventh straight home game looking to keep their winning streak rolling as they welcomed the Northeast Generals to Johnstown for a Friday night showdown. The opening period saw both teams trade chances, but it was Northeast that managed to find the back of the net first, as Owen O’Rear opened the scoring at the 16:13 mark with an assist from Robert Savaglio. Much of the period was played at a smooth pace with neither team finding their way to the penalty box in the period which has become a rare feat, especially in Johnstown. The Tomahawks continued to generate opportunities throughout the first but were unable to find an equalizer before the first intermission. Northeast held a slight edge in shots on goal after twenty minutes of play, outshooting Johnstown 12-9 as the Hawks looked to find an offensive rhythm heading into the second period.
The second period began and for the first portion of the period, it was much of the same. The Tomahawks still managed to earn their chances on the Northeast net minder Keagin Wilson but he stood tall keeping the Hawks off the board. Brody Peterson took the game’s first penalty a few minutes into the second but the Tomahawks were able to shutdown the Generals’ 14th ranked power play. On the brink of being shutout for two periods in a row after scoring 13 goals last weekend, the Tomahawks finally broke through as Evan Kensey finished off a 2-on-1 with Ethan Coots to tie the game at 1-1 with just over four minutes to play. Aiden MacIsaac picked up the secondary assist on the goal, which was his first assist of the season. Just as the crowd was settling down again after the goal celebration, Northeast’s Logan Poulin grabbed the lead back for his team just a minute later making it 2-1. The Tomahawks continued to push for another late equalizer in the closing minutes of the period but nothing doing, as they headed into the final frame trailing 2-1. After forty minutes of play, the Generals held a slight 28-24 advantage in shots on goal.
The third period got underway with the Tomahawks looking to erase another one-goal deficit, and Alex Gomes wasted little time doing just that, getting Johnstown back on the board to tie the game at 2-2 just 25 seconds into the third with assists from Jack Sullivan and Brody Peterson. Unfortunately it seemed that every time a positive happened for the Tomahawks, a negative followed quickly after, as Jacob Ingstrup was sent off for high-sticking just 13 seconds following the Gomes goal. Despite not scoring on the power play, Northeast answered with yet another lead-taking goal a little over three minutes later making it 3-2. The goal was shorthanded for the Generals and seemed like It was going to be a true backbreaker with the way the first 40-minutes played out and the current stage of the game but the Hawks continued to battle and found another equalizer with just over four minutes remaining. Charlie Zetterkvist came through with a huge backhand goal that squeaked through Wilson with 4:31 remaining, with Kirby Perler and Sam Esposito picking up the assists to tie the game at 3-3. Just when it looked like the two teams might be headed toward overtime, Alex Gomes came through once again with his second of the night, and moment of the season so far, finding the back of the net with just nine seconds remaining to give the Tomahawks the dramatic 4-3 late victory. Perler picked up his second assist of the night on the game-winner as he fired a shot off of Wilson’s pad which kicked over to Gomes who made no mistake as Johnstown closed out the 4-3 win in regulation. Northeast slightly edged the Tomahawks in shots on goal at 37-36, but ultimately failed to record a point as the Tomahawks stole the game with a three-goal third period.
The Tomahawks are back in action TONIGHT for what is shaping up to be another highly contested matchup between these two East division squads with big points on the line. Join us for puck drop at 7:00PM as we close out Military Appreciation Weekend in Johnstown!
BY: DREW PFEIL