Caesar Björk scored the visiting Rebels lone goal but it wasn’t enough as they fell to the Nordiques 3 – 1 who completed the weekend sweep between the teams.
It was the Rebels fifth loss out of their last six games.
After a feisty first period filled with eleven combined penalties between the teams, there was no scoring until Björk gave the Rebels a 1 – 0 at 6:52 of the middle stanza. After Brock Jones won the draw deep inside the offensive zone, the puck went back to Björk who made a shuttle pass up to Jones at the end of the near side faceoff circle. Jones made a centering pass out front to Jackson Vaites who tried to redirect the puck past Nordiques netminder Carter Richardson but the goaler made the save and the puck went to the end wall and picked up by Vaites. Vaites sent the biscuit behind the net to Jones who made a pass out front to Björk who shot it past Richardson for Björk’s eleventh of the season which ties him for the team lead with fellow countryman Ruslan Jamaldinov.
The Rebels’ lead was short lived, however, as just forty-eight seconds later Maine’s Shane Kozlina evened the score at one. The Nordiques’ Ocean Fancy picked up the loose puck at the bottom of his own near side faceoff circle and chipped the biscuit into the offensive zone where it was retrieved by Ethan Wongus. Wongus went towards the cage and took a shot that was saved by Rebels netminder Owen Crudale but the rebound was tucked in by a trailing Kozlina past Crudale for Kozlina’s fourteenth of the season.
Michael Stenberg gave the Nordiques a 2 – 1 lead with 7:05 remaining in the contest. With less than a minute remaining in Joe Stauber’s slashing penalty, Maine pressured the offensive zone. After Crudale made an in-close save on Wongus, the rebound fell to the left of the cage and directly to Wongus who went around the net and passed the biscuit to Stenberg who was caddy corner to the far side post. Stenberg took a shot that beat Crudale for Stenberg’s sixth goal of the season. It was Maine’s first powerplay goal against the Rebels this season in 17 tries.
Maine’s Laurent Trepanier scored a shorthanded, empty net goal with forty seconds remaining in the contest to close out the scoring and make it a 3 – 1 game. Crudale turned aside 25 of 27 shots while Richardson stopped 28 of 29. Click HERE for the complete box score.
The Rebels four game road swing continues next weekend when they play a pair of games against the Rochester Jr. Americans.
