Hockey Notebook: Eagles and Lakers pick up weekend wins

The Soo Eagles of the North American Hockey League and the Western Collegiate Hockey Association’s Lake Superior State Lakers were both in action over the weekend.

The Eagles hosted three games against the Janesville Jets that wrapped up on Monday night while the Lakers were on the road facing Bowling Green.

The Eagles opened their weekend series on Saturday night with a 4-1 win over the Jets. Scott Cuthrell and Nick Belger had two goals each for the Eagles in the win. Sandis Zolmanis, Mike Sabatini and Matt Menta had two assists each in the win. Eagles goaltender Brandon Trutt stopped 29 shots in the win.

Adam Winborg had the lone goal for Janesville in Saturday’s loss.

On Sunday afternoon, Janesville used a four-goal third period to blow open what was initially a tight game and pick up a 7-2 win. Winborg had a goal and two assists for Janesville in the win while Robin Hoglund added a pair of goals. Michael Louria, Kyle Patava and Drew Callin had a goal and an assist each in the win while Joe Laurado also scored for the Jets. Bryan Kronberger and Alex Shuchuk set up two goals each in the win. Goaltender Logan Halladay s topped 36 shots in the win.

Sault, Ont. native Michael Caruso had a goal for the Eagles in Sunday’s loss. Belger had the other goal for the Eagles.

On Monday night, Chase Matson had a goal and an assist as the Eagles capped the series off with a 3-1 victory. Belger and Denver Pierce also scored in Monday’s win. Goaltender Nathan Klebe stopped 26 shots in the win.

Shuchuk had the lone goal for Janesville in the loss. Halladay made 40 saves in Monday’s loss.

The Eagles come out of the series with a record of 20-16-7. With 47 points, they currently sit third in the NAHL’s North Division, one point behind the Michigan Warriors and six points behind division-leading Port Huron though both teams have three games in hand on the Eagles.

The Eagles are on the road for five-straight games beginning on Feb. 1 when they take on the Michigan Warriors.

In WCHA action, the Lakers split a pair of weekend games at Bowling Green.

Friday night saw the Lakers open the weekend set with a 5-3 win over the Falcons. Colin Campbell had a goal and two assists to lead the Lakers offensively. Zach Sternberg and Matt Johnson set up two goals each for Lake State. Alex Globke, Kevin Czuczman, Dan Radke and Bryce Schmitt also scored in the win. Goaltender Kevin Murdock made 20 saves.

Ryan Carpenter had a pair of goals for Bowling Green in the loss while Mark Cooper and Marcus Perrier had two assists each. Adam Berkle had the other goal for Bowling Green in Friday’s loss.

On Saturday night, the Falcons rebounded for a 6-2 win. Cooper and Berkle had two goals each for Bowling Green in the win while Bryce Williamson and Dan DeSalvo set up two goals each in the win. Ben Murphy and Matt Pohlkamp also scored for the Falcons in the win.

Murdock made 36 saves for the Lakers in Sunday’s loss. Schmitt and Ian Miller completed the scoring for the Lakers in the loss.

The split leaves the Lakers with an 8-10-0 conference record (12-13-1 overall). With 16 points, the Lakers sit tied with Michigan Tech in the WCHA standings and one point behind Northern Michigan, three points behind Bemidji State and four points behind Alaska Anchorage.

Next action for the Lakers is Feb. 7 and 8 when they host Alaska Anchorage.