By Tribune Sports Staff
March 23, 2019
HELENA – Six teams will vye for the Fraser Cup, championship trophy of the North American Tier 3 Hockey League.
The Great Falls Americans will not one of them, however, after they were dispatched by the Helena Bighorns, who took the best-of-three Frontier Division Championship with a 5-1 win in Game Three Saturday night at the Helena Ice Arena.
Helena, seeded fourth in the six-team playoff series, will play their first pool match against the top-ranked Lewiston/Auburn (Maine) Nordiques Wednesday at 3 MT at the Seven Bridges Ice Arena in Woodridge, Ill. A second pool game is Friday at 3 against No. 6 North Iowa. The top two teams from each pool move to Saturday’s semifinals, with the two winners meeting Sunday in the championship.
Elliot Plourde tallied a goal and three assists for the Bighorns, and Alexander Rogers redirected 31 of 32 shots.
Ian Zaleski, Darren Donovan, Hayden Seitz and Nicholas Noel also lit the lamp for Helena.
Jens Juliussen scored off an assist from Lindros Beard in the second period after the Bighorns scored the first two in the opening stanza, but Helena kept attacking the Americans’ net and goalie Drew Scites.
The Bighorns outshot Great Falls 42-32, and converted three of 11 power play opportunites, while Great Falls when 0-for-7 with a man advantage.
Bighorns 5, Americans 1
Great Falls 0 1 0 – 1
Helena 2 2 1 – 5
First period – 1. HEL, Elliot Plourde (Mikhail Gavrilenko, Darren Donovan), 6:38. 2. HEL, Ian Zaleski (Valery Dietz, Plourde), 8:53.
Second period – 3. GF, Jens Juliussen (Lindros Beard), 3:19. 4. HEL, Donovan (Rikards Groskops, Plourde), 6:47 (PP). 5. HEL, Hayden Seitz (Justin Sullivan, Plourde), 18:21 (PP).
Third period – 6. HEL, Nicholas Noel (Luc Cross), 1:29 (PP).
Shots on goal – GF, 9-11-12 – 32. HEL, 13-16-13 – 42.
Power play opportunities – GF, 0-for-7. HEL, 3-for-11.
Goalies-saves – GF, Drew Scites (L), 37 saves-42 shots. HEL, Alexander Rogers (W), 31 saves-32 shots.
Time – 2:40. Att – 965.
Story Courtesy: Great Falls Tribune: Americans’ season over as Bighorns win series in three games (March 23, 2019)