SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – The Sioux Falls Fighting Wiener Dogs dog-piled the goals Saturday night against the Fargo Force. Javon Moore started the night out for the Dogs, while Noah Urness and Matthew Grimes added on in the second period. Late goals from Gennadi Chaly, Alexei Vlasov, and Joe Belisle sealed the win for the Fighting Wiener Dogs. Goaltenders Aiden Wright and Waylon Esche worked together tonight to fight between the pipes and only let two goals by.
The Fighting Wiener Dogs got off to a slow start but controlled the puck throughout the first period. Early in the game, the puck hit the crossbar twice, and despite the goal lights coming on, the refs waved off the Wiener Dogs’ shot. Another opportunity came when Ethan Wyttenbach broke free on a breakaway, but after losing control of the puck, he collided with the crossbar and was called for charging at 8:43. The Wiener Dogs successfully killed the penalty and carried that momentum, generating multiple scoring chances. It wasn’t until 19:08 that the Force’s Ryan Zaremba was called for hooking. Javon Moore took advantage just before the period ended, scoring unassisted at 19:51. The Dogs maintained puck control, outshooting the Force 15-7.
The second period was not short on action, starting at 3:00 with Ben Wilmott taking a penalty for roughing. The Wiener Dogs were able to successfully kill it off and respond quickly after with a goal from Noah Urness at 6:30. The assists were credited to Reid Varkonyi and Logan Renkowski after a series of passes. Shortly after, Matthew Grimes received a pass from behind the net to score the third goal of the night for the Dogs. The rest of the period saw the Force creating more opportunities but failing to capitalize.The period ended with a brawl, sending Matt Lahey to the penalty box for the Force, while Ritter Coombs and Ben Wilmott were penalized for the Wiener Dogs. Goaltender Aiden Wright stayed strong between the pipes and despite the Dogs getting outshot, he did not let the puck pass through the first two periods.
The final period of the night carried the same momentum and delivered pure entertainment for the crowd. Right away at 1:24, goaltenders Alan Lendak and Aiden Wright met at center ice, dropping their gloves and helmets. Wright landed several solid punches before they were separated, and the crowd erupted in cheers as he headed to the locker room. This brought out Wiener Dogs goaltender Waylon Esche and Force’s Dane Callaway to the ice. The Force struck first with a goal from Kuzma Voronin. At 13:58, Cole Bumgarner of the Force was called for high sticking. For the second time tonight, the Wiener Dogs capitalized, as Gennadi Chaly found the back of the net at 15:41, with Ritter Coombs earning the assist. While this all but secured the win for the Wiener Dogs, they weren’t finished. At 19:31, Alexei Vlasov took a pass ahead from Jake Merens and buried the empty-netter. Fargo managed to add a second goal at 19:55, but Joe Belisle had the final say, scoring just before the buzzer at 19:58 to seal the four-goal victory. Waylon Esche stood tall in net after entering following the fight, adding eight more saves to his stat line in a commanding third-period performance.
Goaltenders Aiden Wright and Waylon Esche made a total of 28 saves. Wright was able to have a save percentage of 100% on the night, moving his record to 17-6-2 and GAA to 2.68.
The Wiener Dogs transform back to the Stampede next Friday when they take on the Lincoln Stars in a home-and-home series. On Saturday night, the Herd will return to the PREMIER Center for Pink in the Rink night. The team will wear special jerseys that will be raffled off throughout the game with proceeds benefiting American Cancer Society. The organization will also hold a Stomp Out Cancer pregame ceremony.
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