The River Lakes Stars boys’ hockey team split a pair of games last week. The team opened the week with a 4-3 road loss to -Alexandria on Monday, Jan. 20. The team then returned home for the start of a five-game homestand. The team began this homestand with a 7-4 victory over Becker/Big Lake on Tuesday, Jan. 21 in Richmond – ending the team’s season-long three-game losing streak.
Alexandria
In the loss to the Alexandria Cardinals, the Stars jumped out to a 3-0 lead on the back of three second-period goals, by Blake Schultz, Parker Welz, and Eli Engebretson.
The Cardinals countered with four goals in the third period, the final one breaking the 3-3 tie at the 16:57 mark.
Engebretson led the Stars in points with two behind one goal and one assist. Schultz and Welz each notched a point behind one goal, and Isaac Blaschko, Lucas
Bayer, Jaiken Mackedanz, and Eric Paulson each recorded a point behind one assist. Stars goalie William Robinson finished with a save percentage of 87.1 (27 of 31), according to numbers provided on Minnesota Hockey Hub.
Becker/Big Lake
In the victory over the Becker/Big Lake Eagles, the Stars jumped out to a 2-0 lead after one period and held off the Eagles for that 7-4 win.
In that first period, Jaiken Mackedanz and Jace Griffin recorded goals.
The Stars outscored the Eagles 3-2 in the second period, getting back-to-back goals from Blake Schultz within the first minute of the period. Schultz earned the hat trick with a goal at the 8:44 mark of that second period, giving the Stars a 5-2 lead going into the final period.
After the Eagles drew within one goal, at 5-4, just over seven minutes into the final period, Schultz earned his fourth goal of the game and Eric Paulson an empty net goal to secure the Stars win.
Schultz led the team in points with five behind four goals and one assist. Jace Griffin and Eric Paulson each earned two points behind one goal and assist, and Isaac Blaschko earned two points behind two assists to also pace the Stars. Goalie Hawken Swanstrom finished with a save percentage of 80 (16 of 20), according to numbers provided on Minnesota Hockey Hub.
The Stars’ record stands at 11-6-2 – placing the team sixth in the Section 5A standings.
Next action
After hosting Prairie Centre on Jan. 28, the Stars end the week with home games versus Little Falls on Thursday, Jan. 30, and versus Breckenridge/Wahpeton on Friday, Jan. 31. The following week, the team ends its five-game homestand versus Pine City on Tuesday, Feb. 4.