It was a night of thrilling comebacks! On Saturday, the Halifax Thunderbirds hosted the Albany FireWolves in a game both teams were desperate to win to gain much-needed momentum. In the end, it was the Thunderbirds who emerged victorious. However, the FireWolves didn’t make it easy.
As the game began, Albany dominated on both ends of the field, holding the Thunderbirds in check offensively and defensively. It was Ethan Walker who opened the scoring, netting the first of his three goals. This marked the start of a five-goal Albany run, with Walker and Alex Simmons leading the charge and helping the FireWolves build an early lead. While the Thunderbirds managed to score three goals before halftime, Albany once again came out firing in the second half, with four different scorers extending their lead to six.
But as the third quarter wound down, the game took a dramatic turn. With five minutes remaining in the quarter and a fresh goalie in net, the Thunderbirds began their incredible comeback. Halifax embarked on a ten-goal run, fueled by contributions from eight different scorers. While the offense came alive at the right moment, the Thunderbirds’ defense also stepped up, shutting down Albany’s attack and holding them to just nine goals for the night.
Key Performers
● FireWolves
Despite the tough loss, Albany had some standout performances. Ethan Walker tallied four points, including a hat trick (3g, 1a), while Alex Simmons contributed four points of his own (2g, 2a). Rookie Dyson Williams (1g, 2a) continued his strong season with three points. Eric Fannell and Tye Kurtz each added two assists to round out the FireWolves’ offensive efforts.
● Thunderbirds
The Thunderbirds’ victory was driven by standout performances from Clarke Petterson (3g, 4a) and Randy Staats (1g, 6a), who each posted seven points. Thomas Hoggarth (2g, 2a) and Jason Knox (1g, 3a) chipped in with four points apiece, while Dawson Theede (2g, 1a) added three points to continue his impressive season. Trevor Smyth, Colton Armstrong, Cole Kirst, and Ryan Terefenko each contributed a goal, rounding out the balanced scoring effort.
Looking Ahead
Next week, the FireWolves will return home to play host to the Las Vegas Desert Dogs, who are off to a rough start and remain winless this season. Meanwhile, the Thunderbirds have earned themselves a short break and won’t be back in action until Week 7, when they travel to Rochester to take on the Knighthawks.
Caden Balint is a graduate of La Salle Institute in Troy, NY and Merrimack College in North Andover, MA and has been in love with sports forever. Whether it is watching, playing, writing, sports have always been a passion. Getting the chance to start his dream of sports journalism with Stream Punk is just the start of a long journey. In his spare time Caden enjoys playing hockey, spending time with his loved ones and playing video games but you will soon get to know him a lot more!