Ryan Kuhn was all over the ice for the xBuffalo Jr. Sabres, as he tallied two goals and one assist in xBuffalo’s 7-3 win over the Burlington Cougars.
Kuhn’s tallies came at 15 seconds into the second period to make the score 2-0 xBuffalo and 11:32 into the second to make the score 3-2 xBuffalo.
Referees had their hands full with a major incident at 7:03 into the third period. Four fighting penalties were dished out along with four game misconducts.
The Jr. Sabres racked up the penalties in the contest, and ended with eight minors and two majors for 36 minutes in penalty time. xBuffalo surpassed its season average of 14.0 penalty minutes per game. The Jr. Sabres kept Burlington’s goalie busy throughout the game, and Jeremy Currie made 33 saves on 40 shots. xBuffalo surpassed its usual scoring output this season. This season, the Jr. Sabres average 4.8 goals per contest. xBuffalo’s defensemen played an important role in the offense, chipping in two goals.
xBuffalo also got points from Dylan Howatt, who also racked up one goal and one assist and Jason Heerdt, who also tallied one goal and one assist. Pat Egan also scored for xBuffalo. In addition, xBuffalo received assists from Ryan Schmelzer, who had two, Max Mikowski and Tim Kielich, who contributed one a piece, and Josh Gabriel and Nick Desimone, who each chipped in three.
The Cougars were often in penalty trouble, totaling seven minors and three majors for 29 minutes in penalty time. Burlington had been averaging 21.0 minutes in penalties per game. The Cougars put up an impenetrable defensive front on the penalty kill, and did not allow the Jr. Sabres to score on any of their six power plays.
Burlington was helped by Tyler Lepore, who finished with one goal and one assist. Lepore scored 9:31 into the second period to make the score 2-2. Paolo DeSousa provided the assist. Burlington additionally got points from Ryan Wilkinson, who also grabbed one goal and one assist. Burlington also got a goal from Spencer Herbst as well. More assists for Burlington came via Neil Aird, Ryan Sullivan, and Christian Burel, who contributed one a piece.
Brandon Mueller recorded 22 saves for xBuffalo. Team’s Wilson Vershay, Nico Gonzalez, and Kielich were slapped with misconducts and ejected from the game. The Cougars registered one goal on five power play opportunities. For Burlington, DeSousa, Brad Johnson, Burel, and Daniel Campbell were ejected from the contest.
