The Rochester Grizzlies opened the 2026-27 season in dramatic fashion Saturday night, rallying from a two-goal deficit before defeating the West Bend Power 3-2 in a shootout at the Rochester Recreation Center.
West Bend jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening period, but Rochester settled in and chipped away at the deficit over the final 40 minutes.
Defenseman Andrew Sherland put the Grizzlies on the board just 1:51 into the second period. Conrad Edlund and Jace Jordan picked up assists on the goal, cutting the West Bend lead to 2-1.
Rochester continued to push in the third, and Edlund delivered the equalizer at the 10:37 mark. Jordan earned his second assist of the night as the Grizzlies pulled even at 2-2.
Neither team found the winner before the end of regulation, sending the season opener to overtime.
The five-minute overtime period also ended scoreless, setting up a shootout to decide the night.
That’s when goaltender Cameron Patrick shut the door.
Patrick stopped all three West Bend attempts in the shootout, turning aside Armani Fisher, Adam Sexton and Ivan Schmitz. At the other end, #19 Dominic Arndt converted his opportunity for Rochester, scoring the lone goal of the shootout and ultimately the game-winner.
Patrick’s shootout performance capped an impressive night in goal. He made 32 saves on 34 shots, finishing with a .941 save percentage and earning First Star honors. Arndt was named the game’s Second Star.
Edlund also made an immediate impact in his first regular-season game with Rochester, recording a goal and an assist, while Jordan finished with two assists.
The Grizzlies had to battle through plenty of special-teams situations as well. Rochester was assessed 18 penalty minutes and faced eight West Bend power plays. The Power converted twice, while Rochester finished 0-for-4 with the man advantage. West Bend held a 34-29 advantage in shots.
The comeback victory came in front of 866 fans at the Rochester Recreation Center and gave the Grizzlies a 1-0 start to the new season.
Rochester returns to action at home Friday, September 18, when the Grizzlies welcome the Wausau Cyclones to the Rochester Recreation Center.
