ROCHESTER, Minn. – It was a night for a couple of firsts for the Rochester Grizzlies Friday evening at the Rochester Rec Center. Five different Grizzlies scored, including first career North American 3 Hockey League goals for Cole Gibson and Tommy Gordon, en route to a 5-2 win over the visiting Oregon Tradesmen. The win keeps Rochester unbeaten on the young season, sitting atop the Central Division at 7-0-0-0 (14 points).
Friday’s game marked the first meeting between the Grizzlies and the new Central Division rival, Oregon Tradesmen. Gibson started the scoring for Rochester at 4:59 of the first, with Joey Fodstad picking up the assist. The Grizzlies would hold that lead until the 12:20 mark as Carter Stobb tied it for the Tradesmen. Gordon would find the back of the net on the power play at 16:44 of the first period to make it 2-1 Rochester. Gordon was able to skate in alone and beat Oregon goalie Hunter Adams high to the glove side. Parker Severson tied the game at 2-2 just over two minutes later, beating Grizzlies goalie Shane Soderwall on the ice.
Hunter Wilmes gave the Grizzlies a 3-2 lead just two minutes into the second period, and Rochester would not rescind the lead the rest of the night. Wilmes corralled the puck off Garrett Smith’s stick and beat Adams with a backhand.
The Grizzlies would score two more times as Justin Wright and Micah Gernander added third period tallies to make it 5-2. Ten different Grizzlies were on the scoresheet, with Fodstad leading the team with two assists. Shane Soderwall picked up the win and improved to 4-0 on the season.
Rochester and Oregon are back in action Saturday evening from the Rochester Rec Center. Puck drop is set for 7:05. For information on tickets, head to the single game tickets tab on the Grizzlies website.