The shots just keep on coming

WASILLA — Goaltenders better get plenty of sleep the night before playing the Wasilla Warriors.

Following an 8-0 thumping of Bartlett on Thursday in the first round of the Curtis C. Menard II Memorial Hockey Tournament that saw the Warriors put 75 pucks on net, Wasilla picked up the pace again on Saturday. The Warriors took another 47 shots against Kenai in a 6-2 win and rebound from a lackluster 8-3 Friday loss to Dimond.

“We weren’t happy with our play (against Dimond), especially considering how we played against South and how many shots we put on Bartlett the other night,” said Wasilla head coach Bill Sturdevant. “I thought the way we played in those games we would carry that momentum over. I just don’t think mentally we were ready, and Dimond came out in the second period full-speed.”

The best remedy for a sluggish game is to pick up the pace again, Sturdevant said.

“Coming out tonight and getting a win and putting more pucks in the net — everyone’s happy,” he said.

Another good sign is that all six Wasilla goals came from different players. Dylan McRee, Michael Johnston, Trent Wholers, Brett Keene, Eric Marshall and Eric Johnson all scored.

Saturday’s win was also a good season debut for senior goaltender Adam Spencer, who stopped 11 of the 13 shots he saw.

Averaging close to 50 shots a game over the course of the tournament is a sign Wasilla is getting into a groove, the coach said.

“The way our team plays is if we have the shots, we have the energy at the other team’s end of the ice,” he said. “Our goal is to play below their dots. We knew going into the year we had a pretty balanced team, so when you see six different players with goals, that definitely makes you happy.

“It means the other team can’t just focus on shutting down any one player. That will make any coach happy.”

Contact Greg Johnson at greg.johnson@frontiersman.com or 352-2269.

Wasilla 6, Kenai Central 2

Menard Tournament third-place game

Saturday, Menard Arena

First period — 1. Wasilla- McCree (Hanson, J. Johnston) 11:32, 2. Kenai- Perkins (Cheek) 10:48, 3. Kenai- Zulkanycz (Hendricks) 9:56, 4. Wasilla- M. Johnston (Wohlers, Walker) 1:48, 5. Wasilla- E. Marshall (unassisted) 0:30.

Second period — 6. Wasilla- E. Johnson (Wohlers) 10:31, 7. Wasilla- Wohlers (unassisted) sh 4:42.

Third period — 8. Wasilla- Keene (J. Johnston, McCree) 13:32.

Shots on goal: Wasilla 22-12-13—47, Kenai 5-5-3—13; Saves: Wasilla- Spencer 3-5-3—11, Kenai- Dougherty 19-10-12—41.

Penalties: Wasilla 6-for-12, Kenai 1-for-2.