The Series
For the second straight weekend, the Tomahawks and Wild meet at the Town Toyota Center in Wenatchee. The teams split last weekend’s games, with Wenatchee winning 4-3 in a shootout on Saturday night and the Tomahawks winning 3-2 on Sunday night. Overall the Tomahawks are 2-1-1 against the Wild this season.
In the first game, the Tomahawks took the early lead on a Trevor Recktenwald goal at 11:51 of the first period. Trey Bradley tied the game early in the second period, before Jordan Watt regained the Tomahawks lead later in the period. In the third period, Parker Tuomie tied the game at two, scoring at 7:51. Brandon Reinholz gave the Tomahawks the lead back, before Troy Loggins tied the game with 39 seconds remaining in regulation. In the shootout the Wild outscored the Tomahawks 3-1 to earn the 4-3 victory and the extra point.
In the weekend finale, the Tomahawks took a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Mitch Hall and Tyler Basham. Tuomie pulled the Wild within one at 15:43 of the third period, but Trevor Recktenwald scored an empty-net goal with 1:03 remaining in regulation to make it 3-1. Wenatchee got within one as Max McLain scored with nine seconds remaining in regulation, but the Tomahawks killed the final nine seconds to secure the victory.
Following this weekend’s games, Johnstown & Wenatchee will meet in February for the final two meetings this season.
The Tomahawks
Johnstown pulled within five points of division-leading Port Huron with its three-point performance last weekend. The Tomahawks hold a two-point advantage over the Michigan Warriors and a four-point advantage over Springfield. The Tomahawks are 7-2-1 in their last 10 games and their four road losses (regulation & shootout) are the fewest in the division.
The Wild
Wenatchee comes into this weekend having won seven of its last ten games. The Wild are tied with Coulee Region for last place in the Midwest Division, 10 points behind Fairbanks & the Minnesota Wilderness. Wenatchee is used to playing in close this season, as 14 of its 25 games have been decided by one goal. The Wild hold a 6-6-2 record in one-goal games.
Key Stats
· Trevor Recktenwald (3G-1A), Brandon Reinholz (2G-2A) and Josh Bowes (1G-3A) each have four points in four games against Wenatchee this season.
· The Tomahawks are 9-2-2 in one-goal games this season
· Mitch Hall’s 17 points & 14 assists are tied for fifth among defenseman.
· Wenatchee’s Parker Tuomie ranks second in the league with 110 shots, trailing only Ben Greiner of the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees.