Aapo Katavisto nets game-winner with 1:10 remaining
MARQUETTE, Mich. – The Northern Michigan hockey team (4-7-0, 2-3-0 CCHA) electrified the home crowd at Berry Events Center on Friday night, rallying from a two-goal third-period deficit to earn a 4-3 comeback victory over the No. 1 CCHA-ranked Bowling Green Falcons (6-5-0, 4-1-0 CCHA).
Down 3-1 in the third, the Wildcats scored three unanswered goals, capped by Aapo Katavisto’s first career goal with just 1:10 remaining in regulation to complete the comeback.
“We had really good pushback, and when we got that second goal, I thought we took it over,” said head coach Dave Shyiak. “We are a four-line team, and everyone chipped in. It was a grindy type of game, and I thought our team responded well.”
NMU found itself trailing 1-0 after the first period and 2-1 after two, with Girts Silkalns providing the Wildcats’ lone goal through 40 minutes. After Bowling Green extended its advantage to 3-1, Coster Dunn brought NMU within one before Grayden Slipec redirected a shot into the net less than two minutes later to even the score. With momentum firmly on their side, the Wildcats completed the comeback when Katavisto beat the goaltender glove side with 70 seconds left.
NMU recorded a season-high 32 shots on goal, while the Falcons put 30 on target. Each side was 1-3 on the power play. Kasavisto and Evan Depatie lead all skaters in plus-minus, with a +2 rating. Leading all skaters in shots and shots on goal was Coster Dunn, with 10 and five, respectively.
Dunn also led in faceoffs won along with teammate Reilley Kotai, with a total of 8 each. NMU was 22-30 on the faceoff dot as a team.
Holding it down between the pipes was sophomore goaltender Oliver Auyeung-Ashton, tallying 27 saves for the ‘Cats for a 0.900 SV%.
The Wildcats are now 16-15-6 overall on Friday the 13th, including 3-3 against the Falcons.
How it Happened
The Falcons scored the first goal of the game just over six minutes into the first period, catching the ‘Cats at a defensive fault. Brody Waters picked up the score for the Falcons.
BGSU dominated the ‘Cats in faceoffs throughout the opening period, winning 13 to NMU’s five. The ‘Cats fought back, but drew two penalties that left them shorthanded. They were unable to capitalize on any shot attempts.
After trailing the Falcons 1-0 after 20 minutes, the ‘Cats bounced back with a bar-down goal from senior forward Girts Silkalns at 6:13 in the second period, recording his first point of the season. The goal was assisted by freshman defenseman Darik Olson, marking his first collegiate career assist.
About three minutes later, the Falcons answered on the power play when Ben Doran collected a loose puck in front of the goalie and ushered it to the back of the net. The Falcons led 2-1 after two.
Starting off the third period, the Falcons extended their lead to 3-1. On another loose puck in front, Ty Cheveldayoff’s backhand shot went five-hole for the goal and 3-1 cushion.
The ‘Cats followed up with a fake-out goal by freshman forward Coster Dunn, who missed the puck on his initial shot attempt, but then drilled the second attempt into the back of the net. The goal was assisted by freshman forward Aapo Katavisto and sophomore forward Peter Cisar.
With less than ten minutes left in the game, the ‘Cats amped up their intensity on the ice for the remainder of the third period. After a holding penalty was called against Bowling Green, the ‘Cats used the power play to their advantage, with junior forward Grayden Slipec lighting the lamp at 12:21 and tying up the score to 3-3. The goal was assisted by Michael Burchill, marking his fourth assist of the season so far.
With only 1:10 left in the game, sophomore forward Mathew Ward dished a clean assist across the ice to a trailing Aapo Katavisto, who shot it past the Falcons’ goalie glove side, scoring his collegiate goal in heroic fashion and securing another hard-fought conference win for the Wildcats.
Up Next
The Wildcats will return to the Berry Events Center again tomorrow night, November 14th, to round out the weekend series against Bowling Green.
