Staff
It’s not possible to book the same team for an entire regular season, but the Fort Frances Lakers certainly wouldn’t turn down the chance when it comes to the Minnesota Iron Rangers.
Ryan Wagner made 40 stops as the Lakers snapped a four-game losing streak with a 4-0 win over the Iron Rangers in SIJHL action Friday night at the Ice For Kids Arena.
All three Lakers’ wins this season have come against Minnesota.
Fort Frances (3-8-1-2) is one point up on the cellar-dwelling Iron Rangers (4-9) for fifth place, with Minnesota holding a game in hand.
The Lakers also are just one point behind the fourth-place Thief River Falls Norskies (4-7-0-2).
Matt Tustin made it four goals in his past two games with a short-handed marker at 12:11 of the first against Iron Rangers’ goalie Sean Angle.
Tyler Malpass made it 2-0 just 1:47 later with a power-play marker.
Fort Frances native Josh Gouin, who played for both the Lakers and Iron Rangers last season, burned his former team with a point shot through a screen for the lone goal of the second period.
Ian Tookenay, another local product, then notched his first SIJHL goal at 13:48 of the third.
Tookenay, a regular with the Kenora Thistles of the Manitoba Midget ‘AAA’ Hockey League this season, was joined by Thistles’ teammate Hunter Buzzi in making their Junior ‘A’ debuts.
The Lakers hit the road to face the second-place English River Miners (11-4-1-0).
Fort Frances then returns home Saturday for a 7:30 p.m. showdown against the Norskies.
