Kenai 7, Soldotna 6
The Kenai Kardinals and Soldotna Stars kicked off the End of the Road Shootout with a bang on Thursday. Both teams combined for eight goals in the first period and 13 goals overall in a high-scoring affair that ultimately went to the Kardinals.
Kenai raced out to an early three-goal lead, scoring all three goals in two and a half minutes. After the third Kenai goal, Stars coach Anthony Zurfluh quickly called a timeout to settle his team down, a decision that worked exactly as planned, as Soldotna responded with three unanswered goals of their own. One more goal for each squad in the first frame and the game was knotted up 4-4 heading into the first break.
Scoring slowed in the second period, with each team adding one goal apiece. The Kenai goal brought the first penalty goal either team has had this season when Logan Mese was tripped on a breakaway. Mese deked SoHi goalie Brycen Clyde and flipped a backhander into the top of the net to give the Kardinals a brief lead before Stars senior defenseman Nathan Hawkins tied things back up with his second goal of the game.
With the game tied 5-5 in the third period, Logan Mese notched another hat trick, his fourth of the season, at 6:33, assisted by Braden Smith. Mese doubled the Kard’s lead with on a shorthanded goal at 8:22. Soldotna’s Noah Crabtree cut the Kenai lead to one with less than three minutes remaining, but a power play allowed the Kardinals to run out the clock and avenge a loss to Soldotna in the first meeting between the two squads in early November.
In the nets, Soldotna’s Clyde stopped 24 of Kenai’s 31 shots on goal, and for the Kardinals Evyn Witt stopped 20 of SoHi’s 26 shots on goal.