Sauk Rapids, MN- The Mason City Toros began their chase for the 2024 Fraser Cup with a thrilling 2-0 shutout victory over the defending Fraser Cup Champion Granite City Lumberjacks.
After a first period spent adjusting to playoff hockey in the first twenty minutes, the Toros found their stride in the second period and found some open ice on a four-on-four skating sequence. Miles Berg flipped the puck from the red line to a charging Dominic Thomas who cut up the ice and deposited the Toro’s first playoff goal in the back of the net. The teams then traded power play opportunities at the back end of the second period, but neither team could capitalize on the extra skater time.
In a tense third period, the Toros found one scoring lane that made the difference on a two-on-one runout. Jax Schauer did the honors of extending the Toro’s lead to 2-0. Granite City pulled their goalie but could not get one through Devin Peck, who posted a 31 save shutout to seal the victory at 2-0 for the Mason City Toros.
Logan Schwartzhoff recorded an assist on Miles Berg’s goal. Matvey Ivanov and Luke Robertson notched assists on Jax Schauer’s goal.
Granite City goalie Ryan Lehet recorded 32 saves in the Lumberjacks’ net.
The Toros and Lumberjacks take the ice at the Mason City Arena for Game Two of the Western Division’s Opening Round Playoff series. A Toro win lands them in the Fraser Cup’s Western Division Final. A Lumberjack win forces the series to a decisive Game Three back in Sauk Rapids.
Puck drops at 7:30 PM at the Mason City Arena. Tickets are available by clicking the link here.