FAIRBANKS, ALASKA- Another weekend another split. The Fairbanks Ice Dogs maintain the top spot in the NAHL Midwest Division after beating the Anchorage Wolverines 3-2 on Friday, before falling 5-4 on Saturday.
Trailing 2-0 through 20 minutes of play on Friday night, the Dogs rallied to score three consecutive goals and please the home crowd with a come-from-behind victory. Layten Liffrig and Jackson Reineke both deposited 1st period goals as the visitors jumped out to a hot start and early lead. The Ice Dogs brought the scores back to even in the 2nd period with goals from Jake Cameron and Jack Dolan, Dolan’s first of the season. McCabe Dvorak would score the eventual game winner 14:02 into the final frame with assists from Cameron Ricotta and Billy Renfrew. Kayden Hargraves was the backstop for Fairbanks, keeping out 25 of 27 shots faced in the win. Eino Rissanen made 36 saves for the Wolverines.
The Ice Dogs got out ahead in the first period Saturday night, with Cole Burke scoring his third of the season. Fairbanks added to the lead making the score 2-0 with Colin Goff. Anchorage got on the board with Mason LeBel for a 2-1 score heading into the first intermission. In the second, the Wolverines tied it up with Aiden Westin scoring. Passing the halfway mark of the period, Billy Renfew took the lead again for Fairbanks, 3-2. Nearing the end of the period, Jackson Reinke scored for the Wolverines to tie the game once again, 3-3. In the third period, Cameron Morris got the Wolverines their first lead of the game, 4-3. The Ice Dogs battled back to tie the game 4-4 with a goal from Kole Altergott. In the dying seconds of the game, David Tolan tabbed the game winning goal to send the Wolverines over the Ice Dogs, 5-4.
Despite the split, the Ice Dogs remain atop the NAHL Midwest Division with 33 points. The streaking Minnesota Wilderness hold second place, just one point back of the Dogs, with Kenai River and Janesville rounding out the top four teams in the division. The Wilderness own the top winning percentage, followed by Kenai River, Fairbanks and Janesville.
The Ice Dogs travel to play a series in Marshall, Minn, where they will face the Chippewa Steel. The series marks an homage to Marshall, which stepped up in 2020 when the Dogs were unable to play in Fairbanks due to travel restrictions related to COVID-19. Tickets for the Marshall series are available here.
