Hockey / Brink Nets Hat Trick, Keys Eagle Rout To Complete Sweep

Brink Nets Hat Trick, Keys Eagle Rout To Complete Sweep

Date:  Source: Colorado Junior Eagles

By: Brendan Price

Another day, another hat trick, another high-scoring rout for Northern Colorado to finish off the series sweep over Idaho Falls. Greeley product Erik Brink notched his first career hat trick and Zane Pickel added two more en route to a dominating 9-2 victory to polish off the sweep.

The Eagles (3-0-0) jumped ahead 1-0 for the third consecutive game; Alexandre Bedard banged a rebound past Spud Kings netminder Carsteen Shrimpton for his second goal of the season to put NoCo up 6:14 into the first period. The Spud Kings didn’t register a shot until Ben Cesario wriggled the puck through rookie goaltender Evan Stringer and tied the game with 8:53 to go in the first period. Linemates Erik Brink and Quinn O’Reilly each added a goal in the latter stages of the first period to give the Eagles a 3-1 lead headed into the first intermission.

The Spud Kings started off the second period in grand fashion; Matt Ryan flipped a backhand shot past Stringer to get Idaho Falls back within a goal, 3-2, just nine seconds into the middle frame. Third-year Eagle Zane Pickel netted back-to-back goals in 2:40, matching his entire goal output from the previous season. His two goals stretched out the lead to 5-2; it was a lead the Eagles would expand on the rest of the afternoon. Erik Brink ripped a wrist shot past the glove of Shrimpton at the 11:16 mark of the period and Marc-Antoine Prince powered one into the net four minutes later to open up a 7-2 NoCo advantage headed into the second intermission.

The third period was an opportunity for the Eagles to add some window dressing. After serving a cross-checking penalty, Brink leapt out of the penalty box and right onto a breakaway. The forward slammed a wrister into the top half of the net to complete his first career hat trick and give the Eagles an 8-2 lead with 17:29 to play in the game. Defenseman Reece McDonald notched his first goal in a NoCo sweater on the power play; he pinched in from the right point and beat Shrimpton to the blocker side with 2:45 remaining in the game and stretched the lead to 9-2.

Northern Colorado is in action in two weeks when they travel to Ogden to take on the Mustangs on Friday, September 30th.