It was another perfect night for Aberdeen Wings goalie Jake Sibell and the Aberdeen defense Friday as the Wings came away with another win over the Minnesota Wilderness, shutting them out 3-0 at the Odde Ice Center.
After a scoreless first period, Spencer Schneider got his 20th goal of the season — and the eventual game-winner — just over two minutes into the second, assisted by Jakob Stender and Liam Fraser. The Wings outshot the Wilderness 26 to 17 over the game’s first 40 minutes and headed into the final period leading 1-0.
Once again, Aberdeen found the back of the net quickly when Jordan Randall tipped one in for his eleventh of the season, assisted by Kyle Gaffney and Nico deVita, who notched his 26th assist on the year. Nathan Mann sealed their fate at the 14:11 mark unassisted, and while Minnesota outshot the Wings for the first time in the game, the Wings claimed the 3-0 win.
“I thought we had a slow offensive start, but defensively we were on top of our game,” Wings head coach Scott Langer said. “Add in a stellar performance by Jake Sibell and that gives you a chance to win.”
Sibell has been an absolute force to be reckoned with this season, posting an unbelievable 32-0-0-1 record and snagging his league-leading ninth shutout. He boasts a 1.12 goals-against average and a .955 save percentage. But even with the impressive stats, Langer sees a selfless goalie focused on his team.
“Jake’s all about this team winning, a humble kid that puts all his teammates before his own accolades,” Langer said. “His work ethic all week long allows him to dominate this game.”
In Friday’s matchup, he stopped all 31 pucks sent his way, while Wilderness goalie Kaleb Johnson stopped 34 of 37. Minnesota killed four Aberdeen power plays, while the Wings held the Wildnerness to 0-6.
They’ll meet again Saturday night at the Odde, with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. and the puck hitting the ice at 7:15 p.m. Bring your stuffed animals to the game for the annual Yelduz Shrine Teddy Bear Toss to throw on the ice after the Wings’ first goal, which will be collected and distributed around the area. The public is also invited to a post-game party at Buffalo Wings & Rings following the game.
Tickets can be purchased ahead of the game online at tickets.AberdeenWings.com. Fans can also purchase $10 general admission tickets ahead of the game at any of the four Aberdeen C-Xpress locations, with additional purchase. Fans can watch the game using their HockeyTV account or listen via Hub City Radio’s 94.1 The Rock.