ABERDEEN, SD – The Minotauros couldn’t snap the streak on Saturday night, as their late comeback push proved unsuccessful in a 5-4 loss to Aberdeen that marks their third straight defeat at the hands of the Wings.

Aberdeen gained the early edge by scoring a pair of goals in the opening period to take a 2-1 lead into the first intermission.

It wasn’t until the sixth minute of the second period that Kevin Ness tied the score off an assist by Patrick Choi and Levi Kleiboer, but the Wings quickly responded with another two goals to take a comfortable 4-2 lead entering the third period.

After the Minotauros allowed a fifth Aberdeen goal, Connor McGinnis tried to jumpstart a comeback in the 14th minute with a goal off an assist by Matthew Gellerman.

David Raisanen added to the cause by placing the puck into the back of the net in the 20th minute, but time ran out shortly afterwards, and the Wings escaped with the 5-4 win.

Aberdeen recorded 35 shots on goal to Minot’s 29, and Ben Garrity finished with 30 saves in the losing effort.

Next up for the Minotauros is home game against the Minnesota Wilderness on Friday at 7:35 p.m.

Minot native

Mason Morelli

signs with AHL’s Stockton Heat

Minot native Mason Morelli got called to action on Saturday as he reached an amateur tryout agreement with the Stockton Heat, a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) that’s affiliated with the Calgary Flames.

Morelli recently wrapped up his fourth season with the University of Nebraska Omaha, where the 23-year-old forward was a team captain, recorded a team-high 19 goals and tallied 34 points in his 36 appearances.

The strong showing earned him second team honors in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference.

An amateur tryout agreement (ATO) is given to players, whether they’ve played in college or junior leagues, to experience the pros without losing their amateur status.

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