INDEPENDENCE, Mo. – The Missouri Mavericks gave John-Scott Dickson his first win in front of a sold-out crowd on Saturday night at Silverstein Eye Centers Arena. The 2-1 victory over the Indy Fuel improved the Mavericks to 1-3-0 on the season.
Each of the previous five meetings between the Mavericks and Fuel in Independence had been decided by two goals or less. The first period gave every indication of a similar result as neither team was able to cash in. Josh Robinson turned away each of the 10 shots he faced while Indy’s Eric Levine was successful against all nine shots he faced. The Fuel had an apparent power play goal disallowed when it was ruled deflected in with a high stick. Things turned tense when Indy’s Raphael Corriveau collided with Robinson and knocked the Mavericks’ goalie to the ice. Robinson was uninjured but Tyler Elbrecht came to his defense and dropped the gloves with Corriveau.
Missouri carried the play for long stretches in the second period and out-shot the Fuel 12-11, but it was same song, different verse when it came to the scoring. Robinson turned in 11 saves for the Mavs while Levine stopped all of the Mavericks’ 12 attempts. Rookie forward Lukas Lofquist was a catalyst for Missouri’s offense in the frame. He had a good look from the slot on an early power play but couldn’t beat Levine through the five-hole. With just over seven minutes left in the second, Lofquist rung a shot off the crossbar while free on a partial breakaway.
Missouri’s offensive persistence paid off in the third period with two goals just over four minutes apart. Darren Nowick potted his second goal in as many nights to break the scoreless deadlock. He was fed out of the left wing corner by Reed Seckel and slammed home the shot at 4:01. Andrew Courtney also assisted for his first point of the season. Aaron Berisha followed with his first goal of the season to build the lead to 2-0. He finished off a 2-on-1 rush with a wrist shot, top corner, blocker side at 8:03 with an assist to Gus Young. That proved to be the game winner as Indy’s Matt Stanisz scored with Levine pulled for the extra attacker. Indy made a push for the tying goal in the final minute, but Robinson came through with some tough saves to ensure the win.
Robinson improved to 1-1-0 on the season with a 31-save effort. The Mavericks were 0-for-3 on the power play and 1-for-1 on the penalty kill.
Mark your calendars! The Mavericks return to home ice on Saturday, November 5 at 7:05 p.m. against the Tulsa Oilers. The Mavericks will host their annual Adopt-A-Mav night and give away magnet schedules. Groups of 15 or more receive discounted tickets and preferred seating based on availability. Call the Mavericks at 816-252-7825 to book your group. Click here to buy individual tickets.
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