Wings shutout Minot 5-0 to sweep the weekend

Feb 21, 2021

The Aberdeen Wings had another successful night at the Odde Ice Center after defeating the visiting Minot Minotauros 5-0 Saturday night, completing the weekend sweep in the process.

Things started slow for both teams as neither squad scored a goal in the first period. Minot outshot Aberdeen 12-10, which was the first and only time they outshot the Wings all weekend.

Things heated up for the Wings just shy of the halfway mark in the second period when Cullen Ferguson got the momentum, scoring his third goal of the season off an assist from Payton Matsui and Thomas Manty. After a Minot penalty for head contact, Manty notched a power play goal of his own at the 17:26 mark, assisted by Nico deVita and Ferguson, and the Wings headed into the final break leading 2-0.

Penalties picked up for both teams in the third but Aberdeen managed to find three more points. The first came at the 15:09 mark when Matsui notched his 16th goal of the season off an assist from Natan Vertes, who picked up his twelfth apple, and Manty, who picked up his 16th. Just 20 seconds later, Will Arquiett scored his fourth goal of the weekend off an assist from Jackson Yee and Jake Goldowski.

After another Minot head contact penalty, the game’s final goal came with just five seconds on the clock when Clay Cosentino scored on the power play, assisted by Matsui and Trevor Russell. With that, the Wings took the 5-0 victory over the Minotauros.

“We definitely started out with a low energy level, but we responded well to start the second period,” Wings head coach and general manager Scott Langer said.

Overall, the Wings outshot Minot 45-28 and went 2-3 on the power play. Minot went 0-5.

Wings goalie Dominik Wasik, who played his first game since December, stopped all 28 shots sent his way.

“Dom was solid all night long,” Langer said. “There were times Minot pushed back, but Dom was strong.”

The Wings hit the road next weekend to travel back to Austin to take on the Bruins. Puck drops at 7:05 p.m. at Riverside Arena. Wings fans can watch the game via their HockeyTV subscription or live at Buffalo Wings & Rings in Aberdeen, or listen to the game’s audio on Hub City Radio 94.1 The Rock.