FAYETTEVILLE, NC. – The Rail Yard Dawgs (27-13-8) struggled to get started on Thursday morning against the Fayetteville Marksmen (26-16-6), taking a 6-2 road loss at Crown Coliseum. CJ Stubbs and Mac Jansen scored for the Dawgs in the defeat.
Fayetteville got off to a strong start in the opening period. An awkward bounce on a deflected cross-ice pass in the Roanoke zone set up a 2-on-1 chance for Fayetteville, and the centering pass was knocked home by Simon Boyko at 3:45 to open the scoring. The Dawgs killed off their first penalty, but the second power play chance led to a goal for the Marksmen. A long-range shot by Boyko was knocked down by Roanoke goaltender Tyler Roy, but just rolled under him toward the goal line before Tyler Kobryn smashed it home to give the Marksmen a 2-0 lead at 13:48. The Dawgs had a few chances late in the period, but trailed by a pair at the first break.
The second period started well for Roanoke, as an early double-minor penalty for high-sticking against the Marksmen put the Dawgs on the power play. A long-range shot by Mac Jansen led to rebound chances for Brenden Stanko and Stubbs, and Stubbs tapped the puck into the net at 3:47 to make it a 2-1 game. The Marksmen immediately answered, as a heavy bounce out of the Fayetteville zone sprung a 2-on-1 chance that ended with a Boyko goal scored from the left wing circle at 4:47. The Dawgs would outshoot Fayetteville 9-7 in the second period, but trailed 3-1 after 40 minutes of play.
A power play chance for Fayetteville early in the third period would be the decisive moment in the game. Just four seconds away from Roanoke killing the penalty, Fayetteville’s Tyler Barrow was able to rattle a shot from the high slot into the net to make it a 4-1 game at 5:12. The Dawgs struggled over the next few minutes after that, as Boyko’s hat trick-clinching goal at 6:11 made it 5-1 for the Marksmen. An off-angle shot from the right wing wall by Fayetteville’s Tyler Love caromed its way into the Roanoke net at 11:53 to put the Dawgs down by a score of 6-1. Roanoke would respond with another goal in the final minutes, as Jansen’s center point shot bounced off of the back glass, over the Fayetteville net, and off of Fayetteville goalie Brandon Perrone to make it a 6-2 game at 15:08. The Marksmen prevailed for the four-goal win, equaling Roanoke’s largest margin of defeat this year (also 2-6 at Pensacola on January 13) and marking just the third time this year that the Dawgs had allowed more than five goals in a single game.
Roy stopped 30-of-36 shots faced in net for the Dawgs, while Perrone saved 21-of-23 shots faced in net for Fayetteville. Roanoke went 1-for-1 on the power play, while Fayetteville went 2-for-4 on its chances.
The Rail Yard Dawgs will stay on the road on Friday night, March 15, to take on the Birmingham Bulls. Puck drop is slated for 8:00 P.M. EST at the Pelham Civic Complex, and you can watch the game on Flo or listen for free on Mixlr. Playoff packages are on sale now, and can be purchased by contacting the Rail Yard Dawgs office. Other season ticket packages, group tickets, and single-game tickets are on sale now by contacting the Rail Yard Dawgs office or visiting the Berglund Center box office.
Photo Credit: Weslie Rouse