The Thunder Bay North Stars played with penalty-kill fire all game long.
Eight times they got away with it on Saturday night. But the ninth time they went down a man, the Stars got burned.
Bram Erickson, who joined a crowd in front of North Stars goalie Marc Nother, banged home the winner with 57 ticks left on the regulation clock, squeaking out a 2-1 win for the visiting Wisconsin Wilderness (11-2-0).
The goal sent fiery Thunder Bay coach Todd Howarth into a heated tirade against the officiating staff, leading to a game misconduct and possible suspension for the only coach the Stars (4-5-3) have known.
“I know one thing, I’m not going to let my kids get pushed around,” said Howarth, who hung a hand-drawn sign, with the words “My Space” written on it, outside the North Stars dressing room.
He completed his message with a crudely-drawn player and a helmet, a sign he made clear, without naming names, was meant for referee Lance Dysievick.
He declined comment on its meaning.
“That’s called being bullied, if you want to know that. That’s what I think of that. That’s a bully in the ... schoolyard. At the end of the day I’m going to stand up for my guys. That’s what a good coach does and that’s what I’m going to do.”
Nother, who last week told Thunder Bay Television the Stars might not lose again in 2011-12, on Saturday said there’s not much a team can do when the on-ice officials seemingly have it in for your team.
“Words can’t describe that ref,” Nother said, his team’s four-game winning streak at an end.
“The two games we’ve had him he’s sewered us. I’m speechless with how the reffing’s been with Lance, with how he’s doing it. It’s totally one-sided. I don’t know if there’s some history that I don’t know about, but it’s crazy.
“Every game that we see him we just know what we’re in for. We’re trying to do our best to stay out of the box and our best just isn’t good enough for him.”
The Wilderness were left shorthanded four times on the night.
In fairness to Dysievick, the penalty in question was deserved, a blatant boarding call on North Stars forward Matt Kaarela, whose first period goal stood up for 51 minutes until Jeremy Johnson was credited with the tying goal at the 7:59 mark of the third.
Johnson, who had seven points in Wisconsin’s 11-1 Friday-night trouncing of Iron Range, was the last Wisconsin player to touch the puck before Thunder Bay’s Brandon Wolframe backhanded the puck in his own net.
It was just that kind of night for the Stars, Nother said.
“You don’t expect a shot from your own guy. I thought he was just going to get it out on his backhand and he ended up just sweeping it in between my legs. It was just unexpected.”
Johnson had six points heading into the weekend, before exploding for nine in two nights, and said he’s not sure what sparked his hot streak.
“I just saw the ice well this weekend. My linemates were getting open and I fed them the puck and they scored for most of my points,” said the North Dakota native, who tallied three goals and six assists to put him in the running for player-of-the-week honours.
“We started off a little sloppy, but our first periods and our second periods haven’t been that great. Our third periods have really been our go-to period and that’s what happened tonight. We just came out hard in the third period and put it away.”
Officiating aside, Nother said there are still some things the Stars need to work on if they want to be considered one of the Superior International Junior Hockey League’s elite teams.
“There’s only so much you can do when you’re getting that many penalties, he said. “But overall I think everyone’s doing well on the PK. Just our power play’s got to pick it up a little bit.”
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1. Thunder Bay, Kaarela 5 (Dubchak, Mascarin) 1:04. Penalties: Calabrese WIS, Breukelman TB (roughing) 0:49, Fullum TB (high sticking) 10:35, Erickson WIS (high sticking) 12:14, WIS (hooking) 17:42, Howarth TB (slashing) 19:13.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: No scoring. Penalties: Calabrese WIS (high sticking) 1:48, Breukelman TB (boarding) 3:52, Bench minor WIS (too many men) 4:48, Prout TB (hooking) 9:01, Nother TB (delay of game) 9:58, Calabrese WIS (hooking) 14:31, Lapenskie TB (boarding) 17:46.
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 2. Wisconsin, Johnson 7 (Hughes, Hayduk) 7:59. 3. Wisconsin, Erickson (Hughes, Johnson) 19:03 pp. Penalties: Prout TB (elbowing) 1:32, Alexander TB (delay of game) 5:48, Breukelman TB, Bartkowiak WIS (roughing) 12:10, Kaarela TB (boarding) 17:30, Bench minor TB (unsportsmanlike conduct) 19:03.
GAME DATA – SOG – Wisconsin 6-6-5-17, Thunder Bay 7-7-5-19; Power plays (goals-chances) – Wisconsin (1-10), Thunder Bay (0-4); Goaltenders – Wisconsin: Zane Sampson, Thunder Bay: Marc Nother; A: 400 (estimated).
