JANESVILLE, WI — The Jets battled for another split, this time a road variety in Cloquet, Minnesota, against the former division rival Minnesota Wilderness.
After a Cole Brady shutout led the Jets to a 3-0 win Friday, Minnesota found some seams Saturday for a 3-2 victory.
FRIDAY — W, 3-0
Janesville opened its weekend in Cloquet with another phenomenal performance from goaltender Cole Brady, who recorded his first career NAHL shutout with 37 saves. It was Brady’s fourth consecutive win, and his fourth consecutive game allowing one goal or fewer. The goal support came gradually for Brady with tallies in the second and third periods.
The Jets finally struck midway through the 2nd, on a very innocent shot, the team’s 19th of the game. Erik Bargholtz entered the zone up the right wing board and slipped a puck behind the near defenseman to Erik Palmqvist (9:16 2nd), whose backhand setup for a rebound wound up trickling past Johnson and in.
Brady made save after save, keeping his Jets in position for a win. It wasn’t until the final two minutes when the Jets got their dagger. Nick Nardella (18:37 3rd) interrupted a breakout pass, set up Jack Vincent on a 2-on-1, and tipped in Vincent’s rebound. Tommy Middleton (19:10 3rd) iced it for Janesville with the empty-netter.
Brady’s performance stole the night and improved his record to 6-2-0-0. Kaleb Johnson, a fellow ’01 committed goaltender (North Dakota), made 23 saves in his third loss of the season.
SATURDAY — L, 3-2
The Minnesota Wilderness rebounded Saturday with a shot-dominant 3-2 win over the Jets, outshooting Janesville 16-4 in the first period and 27-13 after two. Goals from Matt Hanewall and Stanislav Dosek kept Janesville alive late, but the game-tying goal didn’t come.
The teams again played a scoreless first period. The game’s first marker came early in the middle frame when Matt Hanewall (1:24 2nd) picked up speed in the neutral zone, blowing past a defender before lifting a backhand up over the shoulder of goaltender Ryan Fanti. Later, on a 5-on-3, the Wilderness cycled behind the net to set up a clear one-timer opportunity for defenseman C.J. Regula (16:57 2nd), who blasted a shot past Brady. Minnesota clicked again on the remaining power play with a slick, low slot shot from Nick Portz (18:52 2nd), bringing in the 2nd intermission with a 2-1 Minnesota advantage.
On an offensive zone possession early in the third period, a point shot from Peter Grytdahl (3:40 3rd) doubled the Wilderness lead. Later, with a power play, the Jets got one back with a similar seeing-eye shot from Stanislav Dosek (12:11 3rd), but couldn’t get their equalizer, settling for a series split in Cloquet.
In his first loss since the Alaska trip, Cole Brady made 31 saves on 34 shots. Fanti’s 18 saves were all he needed in Minnesota’s net for the win.
Around the Division
THURSDAY SCORES
Minnesota Magicians 5 @ Springfield Jr. Blues 1
FRIDAY SCORES
Minnesota Magicians 5 @ Springfield Jr. Blues 1
Austin Bruins 5 @ Chippewa Steel 4
Kenai River Brown Bears 1 @ Corpus Christi IceRays 3
Fairbanks Ice Dogs 5 @ Topeka Pilots 1
SATURDAY SCORES
Minnesota Magicians 5 @ Springfield Jr. Blues 4 (OT)
Chippewa Steel 0 @ Austin Bruins 5
Kenai River Brown Bears 2 @ Corpus Christi IceRays 5
Fairbanks Ice Dogs 2 @ Topeka Pilots 3 (OT)
STANDINGS
| Place | Team | GP | Record | Pts |
| 1 | Minnesota Magicians | 16 | 12-4-0-0 | 24 |
| 2 | Janesville Jets | 16 | 9-6-1-0 | 19 |
| 3 | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 16 | 8-6-1-1 | 18 |
| 4 | Kenai River Brown Bears | 16 | 8-7-0-1 | 17 |
| 5 | Springfield Jr. Blues | 15 | 5-7-2-1 | 13 |
| 6 | Chippewa Steel | 17 | 3-12-1-1 | 8 |
Coming Up
The Jets regroup for a week’s practice in Janesville before again hitting the road for a pair of away games. This weekend, the Jets visit the Chippewa Steel in another edition of the Battle of Wisconsin for the Blain’s Dairyland Milk Can Trophy.
The Jets swept the Steel in their first matchup, a home-and-home series at the end of September. Chippewa is looking to end a 12-game skid dating back to a Showcase win over Lone Star. They’re coming off of a home-and-home sweep at the hands of the Austin Bruins, where Saturday’s 5-0 Austin win snapped a five-game point streak for Steel forward Tomas Vochozka, countryman of Jets defenseman Stanislav Dosek.
Both games from Chippewa will be broadcast on HockeyTV.
Jets @ Steel | Fri Nov 2 | 7:10pm CDT
Jets @ Steel | Sat Nov 3 | 7:10pm CDT
