Wings shut out Norsemen 6-0 Friday

Jan 16, 2021

The Aberdeen Wings outshot and outscored the visiting St. Cloud Norsemen 6-0 Friday night at the Odde Ice Arena, knocking down the one team that’s managed to defeat the Wings so far this season.

In a lopsided matchup, the Wings made 56 shots on goal while holding the Norsemen to just 25 shots — and Wings goalie Jacob Sibell turned away each one.

The score remained even through most of the first period until Payton Matsui broke away at the 17:43 mark to notch the game’s first point. Matsui, assisted by Spencer Schneider and Liam Fraser, scored his eleventh goal of the season. Just 32 seconds later, Jordan Randall put another away for the Wings, assisted by Cade Neilson and Michael Reed, and the Wings found themselves heading into the locker room with a 2-0 cushion.

At the 6:55 mark in the second period, Wings defenseman Nico deVita shot deep from the blue line to put the Wings up 3-0, assisted by Matsui. Thomas Manty scored a goal of his own at the 13:23 mark with the assist from Clayton Cosentino, who notched his 23rd assist, and Natan Vertes, who picked up his eighth. Aberdeen headed into the final break with a 4-0 lead.

The Wings outshot the Norsemen 18-7 in the first period and 21-12 in the second, and the third period echoed a similar story.

Spencer Schneider scored the game’s fifth goal at the 9:19 mark in the third, assisted by Christian Abrams and Matsui, who notched his 14th assist of the season. The game’s final goal came at the 18:31 mark with a second goal from Randall, with the assist going to Reed and Neilson. The Wings outshot St. Cloud 17-6 in the final period.

“When we get the results we’re looking for, we usually utilized the depth of our team,” Wings head coach and general manager Scott Langer said. “Tonight was four lines, seven defensemen, and a solid goalie that earned a win.”

Wings’ Sibell, the league’s top-ranked goalie, stopped all 25 shots — he boasts a 1.20 goals against average and a .953 save percentage.

“Jake is a very motivated goaltender right now,” Langer said. “He has an exceptional work ethic and prepares the right way. He earns his success.”

Norsemen goalie Paxton Geisel stopped 35 of 39 shots he faced in the first two periods before being replaced by Josh Weyandt, who stopped 15 of 17 in the third.

“The result was obviously what we were looking for,” Langer said. “Our guys were motivated for two weeks to play this series; they put the time in and prepared hard. We will have a results-driven mindset come tomorrow.”

The two teams will face each other again Saturday night at the Odde; doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the puck drops at 7:15 p.m. Fans can purchase tickets ahead of the game online at tickets.AberdeenWings.com. Saturday night is also College Night, where college students can show a valid Student ID for $2 off general admission at the door.

Fans can also watch the game via their HockeyTV subscription or listen via 94.1 The Rock.