October 4th, 2022
By Justin Yuroff
Friday, September 30th, 2022 – Fairbanks Ice Dogs 4 – Springfield Jr. Blues 1
Saturday, October 1st, 2022 – Fairbanks Ice Dogs 2 – Springfield Jr. Blues 5
The Springfield Jr. Blues moved to 3-3-0 to begin their 30th season in the North American Hockey League (NAHL) with a series split against the Fairbanks Ice Dogs at the Nelson Center over the weekend. Offense was difficult to come by on Friday night despite the Blues putting up 43 shots against Fairbanks goaltender Kayden Hargraves. Hargraves would stop 42 of 43 on the way to a 4-1 Fairbanks win. The Blues’ lone goal of the evening came in the second period when Mississauga, Ontario native Johnny Mead redirected an Alex Fendler shot from the point. The goal was Mead’s first as a Jr. Blue and first in the NAHL.
Mead got the scoring started in the first period for the Blues on Saturday night – a game in which the Springfield offense came to life on its way to a 5-2 win over Fairbanks. Fellow Mississauga native Cole Lonsdale and St. Petersburg, Russia’s Nikita Nikora each put up a second period goal, and Tyler Borgula sealed the game with 2 goals in the third. Borgula, from Livonia, Michigan, leads the Blues in scoring with 7 points (5G, 2A) through 6 games so far this season. His 7 points also tie him for the league lead in scoring among rookies.
The Blues will be back in action at the Nelson Center this weekend as they host the Kenai River Brown Bears for 3 games. The puck drops at 7:05 p.m. Friday, 6:05 p.m. Saturday, and 4:05 p.m. on Sunday. Doors open one hour prior to puck drop – get there early to enjoy the pre-game happy hour! Tickets are available at the door, and you can also order them ahead of time at tickets.jrblues.com.
