After a crucial sweep over the St. Louis Jr. Blues last weekend, the Rochester Grizzlies look to continue their winning ways against the Wisconsin Woodsmen at the Rec Center this weekend.
The Woodsmen enter this contest having been outscored 10-2 last weekend against the Minnesota Moose and are still in search of their first road win.
“We can’t take our foot off the gas,” head coach Marty Raymond said. “We know this team is going to come in here hungry for a win.”
Since beating Rochester in the season opener 6-3, the Woodsmen have struggled to find their footing, sitting at 4-14-1-1 and fifth in the Central Division.
Wisconsin has a case of being homesick this season as well, averaging just 1.7 goals per game on the road while giving up 4.7 in the process.
On the other end, the Grizzlies have stumbled at home this season, looking to get back to .500 play in front of their fans with two wins this weekend.
Raymond’s squad has dominated the Woodsmen this season since the opening night loss, outscoring the red and blue 20-13 across the three wins.
The return of Felix Wadstromer, Sawyer Zaruba and Kyle Lappi proved vital last weekend against the Jr. Blues, and Raymond and company will hope they can continue that trend this weekend.
“Felix got a huge goal in his first game back, that was great to see and Zaruba was probably our best overall player in Game 1,” Raymond said. “Getting Lappi back is great for a goalie competition between the pipes.”
With Wadstromer’s return to the top six, Raymond’s offense becomes significantly deeper, and right in the midst of a top-six firing on all cylinders.
Mason Decker, Ole Fevold and Andrew Bastian have combined for 27 goals and 60 points this season, while the second line of Cooper Johnson, Konnor Goclan and Baylor Stebbins has started to catch fire with 13 goals and 41 points.
The black and gold will look to strike while the iron is hot on the power-play, scoring three times against the Jr. Blues last weekend, and taking on a team in Wisconsin that has the 4th-most penalty minutes in the league at 416.
This weekend marks the final home stand of the 2025 calendar year for the black and gold, as the team hits the road until Jan. 2 and Jan. 3.
Saturday also marks the annual Teddy Bear Toss game for the Grizzlies, where fans can throw used or new teddy bears on the ice after Rochester’s first goal of the contest, with all stuffed animals getting donated to the Salvation Army.
With the Teddy Bear Toss and a pivotal home stand ahead, the Grizzlies hope to give their fans one last celebration before the calendar flips to 2026.