The Mason City Toros take on the top team in the NA3HL, the Granite City Lumberjacks, this Friday and Saturday at the Armadillo Sports Deck Arena at 7:30 p.m. both nights.
The two teams are meeting for the first time since Oct. 30, when the Lumberjacks defeated the Toros, 2-1, in overtime. The Lumberjacks have won 27 consecutive games and that game on Halloween Eve was the only time that they have been in overtime this season.
Mason City dealt Granite City its only loss of the season on Oct. 1, when Jack Campion and Carter Newpower scored in a 2-1 win on the road.
The Toros are coming off a 6-0 win against the New Ulm Steel last Saturday. Owen Carlson stopped all 26 shots that he faced for his second shutout of the season. Shota Kaneko was one of six different Toros to find the back of the net and added three assists.
Mason City has won seven of its last eight games but Saturday’s game was the first since Dec. 22 in which the Toros outshot their opponent as they held a 33-26 advantage over the Steel. Mason City had been outshot in each of the first four games since the NA3HL Showcase, but had only lost one of those games. Mason City has been outshot in all four games against Granite City this season and have had 20-or-fewer shots in each game.
Fans can catch the action on Hockey TV with an active subscription. The Toros’ next home game is Feb. 1 against the New Ulm Steel in a makeup game that was originally scheduled for Jan. 14.
