The Topeka RoadRunners completed their pre-Christmas portion of the schedule with a 3 game sweep of the Wenatchee Wild, capped by a 3-2 win on Sunday evening in the Kansas Expocentre.
Topeka got on the board first when Jasen Fernsler flipped home a puck at the side of the net, assisted by Sly Sutter and Daniel Brickley at 11:46 on the power play. The 'Runners added a second power play goal at 18:05 when Sly Sutter punched home his 11th of the year from Mike Gornall and Fernsler. Topeka led 2-0 after 1, outshooting Wenatchee 16-7.
The second period saw the opposite, as the Wild outshot Topeka 18-7 and rallied to tie the game. The first goal came just :07 seconds into the period when Chris Jones sailed a floater toward the net that dipped and eluded Matej Tomek to cut the 'Runners lead to 2-1. Wenatchee tied the game on a Dakota Raabe shot that finished off a crisp crossing pass at 5:23 and the Wild had all the momentum. But the RoadRunners power play had been on fire, hitting on 5 of 8 chances over the weekend. Their 9th power play was killed off technically, but two seconds after getting back to even strength, Wenatchee surrendered the eventual game winner when Ryan Polin ripped home a nice feed from below the goal line from Dominic Lutz at 13:18 and Topeka led 3-2 at the second intermission.
The final period saw Topeka lock down with a combination of solid forechecking, tenacious defense and solid goaltending, holding off a furious Wenatchee push to hold on for the 3-2 win. The RoadRunners head into the Christmas break going 7-1-1 in their last nine games, and in first place in the NAHL South.
Topeka (22-6-3) will return to the ice on December 27 and 28 when they face the Wichita Falls Wildcats (19-5-0) for the first time in Landon Arena this year. The 'Cats won both games in north Texas in September. The RoadRunners are now 13-1-1 in the Expocentre this season. Catch the RoadRunners Coach's Show this Tuesday night at 6pm at Blind Tiger Brewery & Restaurant. For more information, call 785-286-PUCK or visit the Expocentre Box Office.