BLAINE, Minn. – Forward Jeff Makowski recorded the first hat trick of his career, goaltender Ryan Snowden turned aside 43 shots and the Topeka RoadRunners broke into the win column Wednesday night, holding off the Austin Bruins 5-4 in the opening game of the NAHL Showcase at Schwan Super Rinks.
The RoadRunners (1-3) rolled to a 3-0 lead in the first period, chasing Austin starting goaltender Robbie Goor. RoadRunner forward Andrew Hart opening the scoring with a short-handed goal seven minutes into the game, and Makowski (St. Louis, Mo.) scored twice within a minute for the three-goal cushion after the first 20 minutes.
The Bruins finally solved Snowden at the 7:06 mark of the second, but just 43 seconds later Makowski made it 4-1 with help from linemate DJ Busdeker. Austin, however, followed up with a pair of specialty team goals – a power play marker and a short-handed effort – a minute apart to make it a one-goal game.
Topeka managed to grab a two-goal lead again with 1:41 remaining in the second as captain Marshall Bowery scored his first goal of the season after a goalmouth scramble.
The Bruins managed to come within a goal by scoring a 5×3 power-play goal 1:55 into the final period, but Snowden shut the door the rest of the way, recording 16 saves in the third.
The RoadRunners continue their schedule with a Thursday afternoon (4 p.m.) game in Blaine vs. Coulee Region, followed by games Friday (10 a.m.) vs. Minnesota Wilderness and Saturday (noon) vs. Northeast Generals.
