Kearney, Ne. – The Tri-City Storm battered the Chicago Steel with 36 shots on net, taking the opening game of a weekend set, 6-3, Friday from the Fox Valley Ice Arena.
Six different Storm players scored goals, helping Tri-City jump out to a 2-0-0 start to its season. The Storm have 11 goals through its first pair of games.
For the second straight game, Tri-City scored the game’s opening goal and did not trail. Jake Wahlin tapped home a loose puck from the right goal crease at the 5:45 mark of the first to begin the scoring. Nolan Aibel earned his second assist of the year on the goal, and Wade Allison garnered the secondary helper.
The Storm continued to poke away at the Steel and took a 2-0 lead less than five minutes into the second. Carson Meyer deflected a pass from the right crease past Daniel Vladar, Meyer’s second of the season. Three Storm forwards – Meyer, Dan Labosky, and Alex Limoges – touched the puck.
First, Limoges feathered a backhand feed to the low left circle for Labosky. The winger immediately ripped a cross-crease feed to Meyer, who deposited the puck.
Labosky, Limoges, and Andrew Peski each finished with one goal and two assists. Labosky is a third-year Storm player who had 24 points for Tri-City last season.
Limoges, Labosky, and John Marino are tied for the team lead with four points.
Vladar took the loss, yielding six goals and making 31 saves.
The Steel scored three power-play goals, but Tri-City responded to man-up tallies with response goals.
Following Jake Jaremko’s power-play goal for the Steel in the second, Andrew Peski lit the lamp 2:33 later, at the 11:34 mark of the middle frame.
After the Storm went up, 3-1, Goaltender Matt Greenfield never let the Steel within one, stopping 16 shots. The goaltender has won his first two starts of the season.
The Steel scored with 20 seconds left in the second, but the Storm scored a pair of goals separated by 21 seconds in the third.
Marc Johnstone helped set up the Storm’s pair of goals after he was given a five-minute head contact penalty and game misconduct.
To begin the third period scoring, Nico Sturm waffled a shot from the right circle past Vladar on the power play at the 1:38 mark, assisted by Mattias Goransson and John Marino, giving the Storm a three-goal lead.
Sturm, Wahlin and Meyer each have a pair of tallies for Tri-City, leading the squad.
Dan Labosky continued the power play success, ripping a shot from the low right circle to the far post, assisted on the man advantage by Limoges and Peski.
Tri-City takes on the Steel in the second game of the weekend set Saturday at 7:00, with pregame at 6:45 on The Breeze 94.5 FM.