Janzen Stands Tall for start of Ogden Series

Welcome back to Maulers Recapped! It has been quite a while since I have posted on here and I am very glad to be back! I hope everyone and all the players had a good Thanksgiving break and are well rested! As you might know, your Missoula Maulers have headed  down to chilly Ogden, Utah for a three game series against the very aggressive Ogden Mustangs. The boys left the Zoo at about 6:30 yesterday morning and were headed off until they hit a rough patch in Butte, MT. Unfortunately, the bus' air lines froze due to extremely cold temperatures and the team had to make an emergency stop so alcohol could be poured into the lines to allow them to thaw. They were back on the road quickly and even had time to stop for lunch in Idaho Falls. I do have to admit tonight was a tad bit rough for the Maulers out there but they fought through it like the warriors they are.

I thought that the defenseman were working overtime tonight but they kept up with the flow of the game very nicely and didn't miss a beat. The forwards were great at working together as a single unit, keeping the puck in motion, and a continuous rush of offensive force. All of the boys made the Mustangs work for the puck and put up a fight through all 60 minutes. The entire squad was great out there but there is one person in particular I would like to focus on. I don't usually single out people unless they played a phenomenal game or really stood up and showed great talent. Last night that definitely was veteran Cody Janzen. I swear in the time between the Spartans series and now these three games, something has clicked inside our seasoned tendy. He stepped up to the plate, faced the challenge and showed why he is put in the cage more than the rookies are. His skills have matured exponentially and he is more focused on the shifts than ever. There is definitely change in Janzen but for the better. He was right there every time a puck came within five feet of the crease and was quick to stop it right then and there. In my opinion I think the goaltending department needs more recognition! These guys get beaten, concussed, and bruised and still willingly go in the net every game. Huge round of applause for Janzen, Gronborg, and Mcdaniel you guys are some of the biggest beautys out there!

The homegrown captain Anders Nord drew first blood during the first 20 minutes of play. He had assists from veteran Corey Schafer and rookie Max Rebholz. He netted the first goal of the game 9:28. Then at 19:11, defenseman Tyler Zandhuisen picked up some speed for the Maulers when he lit the lamp on a power play with help from Swedish defenseman Henrik Ekestahl. This was the last goal of the period.

Ogden dominated the second period by scoring 4 goals in about 4 minutes. Mustangs forward #24 Sean Haltam put Ogden on the board at 6:17 with assists from goalie Tyler Fallica and forward #12 Dusty Watt. Watt notched his own goal 50 seconds later on a power play with apples from Swedish defenseman George Babos and forward #14 Seth Giles. The Swedes kept things running when Taberg native Simon Teodorsson scored at 9:26. Assists were given to assistant captain Schuyler Seyfert and defenseman #5 Cam Russell. Exactly 1 minute later, Seth Giles recorded a point of his own. Giles had assists from Dusty Watt and Sean Haltam. To end the period, the last Maulers goal of the game was scored by none other than the sniper from Spokane rookie Erich Jaeger. He has an assist from Joey Porco at 14:25.

At 5:56, Cam Russell scored on a power play with the assistance of forward #19 Jimmy Peplinski and forward #29 Brody Decker. The last goal of the game was netted by Sean Haltam. His goal at 19:04 was assisted by Charlie Reed and Schuyler Seyfert.

I was able to talk with goaltender Cody Janzen briefly after the game. The first question I asked him was if he has changed anything to be more of a threat to offensive teams and he replied, "I just try and use my maturity to stay calm when things don't go the way we want them to." I then asked how he was going to incorporate his experience last night for the series this weekend and he responded, "We now see that we can't take shifts off because they will hurt us and we have to keep the energy up for 60 full." Thank you Cody! The Maulers play again the 7th at 7:30 pm MST and lastly on the 8th at 11 am MST before heading home to prepare for the Idaho Jr Steelheads. Good luck boys and hit 'em hard!

Warm ups in Ogden via my laptop

Statistics:

PENALTIES:

Period 1:
Ogden Mustangs - Tommy Pokorney (Butt-Ending) 2 Minutes, 16:28
Ogden Mustangs - Tommy Pokorney (Unsportsmanlike Conduct) (Misconduct) 10 Minutes, 16:28
Ogden Mustangs - Simon Teodorsson (Tripping) 2 Minutes, 18:11
Period 2:
Missoula Maulers - Tyler Zandhuisen (Head Contact) 2 Minutes, 4:58
Missoula Maulers - Connor McNally (Head Contact) 2 Minutes, 17:19
Period 3:
Missoula Maulers - Erich Jaeger (Slashing) 2 Minutes, 4:20
Missoula Maulers - Joey Porco (Hooking) 2 Minutes, 7:42
Ogden Mustangs - Jon Mencer (Roughing) (Double Minor) 4 Minutes, 8:17
Missoula Maulers - Corey Schafer (Roughing) 2 Minutes, 8:17
Ogden Mustangs - Dusty Watt (Cross Checking) 2 Minutes 18:21

SHOTS ON GOAL:

Missoula Maulers - 37 total
Ogden Mustangs - 40 total

POWER PLAYS:

Missoula Maulers - 1 for 4
Ogden Mustangs - 2 for 4

GOALTENDERS:

#31 Cody Janzen for Missoula Maulers: 60 Minutes played, 48 shots on goal 42 saves

#35 Tyler Fallica for Ogden Mustangs: 60 Minutes played, 37 shots on goal 34 saves