JACKSON, Wyo. — It was a wild weekend for the Moose that ended with two more victories, but the journey there was not one for the faint of heart…or goaltenders.
The Moose got off to a slow start in Friday’s affair, knotted up 1-1 with the Stowe Slugs at first intermission. Jackson had difficulty finding any open passing lanes as Stowe got sticks, legs, skates—whatever was at hand—into passing lanes.
Nick Krauss again kept his team in it until they found their skating legs. The Moose goalie made 44 saves on 47 shots he faced.
The ice opened up a bit in the 2nd period, allowing the Moose to put up a 3-spot on goals on goals from Kyle Krauss (who tallied twice in the game), AJ Sanders, and Dusty Sventy. Jackson Hole hung to a two-goal lead until the final minute when the Slugs pulled the goalie for an extra skater. Sanders potted his second of the night into an empty net to make it a 6-3 win for the Moose.
Saturday’s was an old-fashioned barn burner. With both teams starting backup goalies—former Moose netminder Dan Amborski and Jackson’s #2 guy, Will Murphy—it would not be a night to keep goalie stats.
The Moose dug themselves a 4-0 hole before the opening period was half over. Then the curtain went up on the “Jason Reese Show.” The snipe forward has been quiet for a spell but he sure broke out with a bang. A natural hattrick (3 goals with no one else scoring any in between) all in the span of less than 8 minutes helped the Moose to more than climb back into it, they hit the dressing room with a 5-4 lead after the first 20 minutes.
But the game was far from over. Stowe came roaring back with a 4-goal 2nd period to make it an 8-8 tie headed into the 3rd.
But Reese wasn’t done and neither were the Moose. Four more goals in the 3rd sealed the deal with a 12-9 final. Reese finished with an 8-point night (5G, 3A). Linemate AJ Sanders racked up 8 points as well (2G, 6A). Dakota Richardson (2G, 2A), Alex Dewitz (2G), and Brian Upesleja (1G) also found their way onto the scoresheet.
The Moose are now 13-5, riding a 3-game win streak into an off weekend this weekend.
