Fargo, ND – The Fargo Force are on their way to the Western Conference finals after beating the Tri-City Storm in overtime Saturday night, winning the series two games to none. Charlie Russell scored a series winning shorthanded goal 1:38 into overtime. Matej Marinov played incredibly well, stopping 27 of 29 shots on goal. Storm goalie Cameron Korpi aalso played phenomenally, stopping 29 of 31 shots on goal.
Tri-City came out in the first period torrentially, peppering Marinov with shots, but the aggressive play by the Fargo netminder kept the Storm off the board. The Storm got a breakaway opportunity, but the puck slipped off the the stick of their forward and was turned aside by Marinov. Tri-City came in with speed, and scored over top at 6:58 drawing first blood, 1-0. Owen Mehlenbacher threw his body at several Storm players trying to rev up his teammates. A potential second tally for Tri-City was waived off for a hand pass, and this seemed to energize Fargo, as the Force shifted the pressure offensively with an explosive hip check by Anthony Menghini. Stretch passes ensued for both teams to end the frame.
Fargo entered the second period with urgency as Joe Palodichuk crashed the net driving hard on a shot. Palodichuk contributed again, this time drawing a tripping penalty giving the Force their first power play at 53 seconds. Zam Plante had a one-time shot, the best of the man advantage but couldn't convert. Menghini streaked in but his attempt was poke checked by Korpi. Charlie Russell fielded a long feed and buried it at 8:06 to even things 1-1. Tri-City kept Fargo pinned in their own zone for a bit, but the Force had some outlet passes and sporadic chances. The intensity rose as the period progressed, and it boiled over at 19:24, when Russell and his Storm counterpart Sebastian Tornqvist were called for offsetting roughing penalties with 1 minute and 24 seconds of carryover 4 on 4 time to start the third period.
Bret Link immediately drew a penalty at 32 seconds of the third period, resulting in 52 seconds of 4 on 3 power play time and 1 minute and 8 seconds of 5 on 4 time. Following the 4 on 3, Verner Miettinen scored five hole on Korpi at 1:39, giving the Force their first lead of night 2-1. Leo Gruba took a holding penalty at 6:18 giving Tri-City their first power play of the game, but the Storm only got one real opportunity which hit the post and Fargo went back to full strength. The successful kill added to the Force's momentum, keeping Tri-City on their heels with a variety of chances on net. The defense also was excellent for the Force, clogging up shot lanes and blocking any leftovers. Marinov continued to stand tall, batting away and smothering an errant Storm shot. Grits Silkalns and Mehlenbacher had a 2 on 1 that was expertly turned away by Korpi. Tri-City won a draw, and on a rebound tied the game at 17:39. Fargo bounced right back, getting the puck in deep for a flurry of chances, all of which were stopped by Korpi. Korpi made a gave saving block in the final 30 seconds to send the game to overtime.
Overtime started off with a power play for Tri-City at 26 seconds from a Link tripping minor, but Charlie Russell scored a shorthanded series winning goal on his forehand at 1:38 into overtime.
Fargo will play the winner of the Waterloo Black Hawks and Lincoln Stars series, which has a winner take all game 3 tomorrow at 3:05pm CST. Dates for the upcoming Western Conference Finals series are TBD. Tickets can purchased online under the 'Tickets' tab on the Fargo Force website or by clicking HERE
