ROANOKE, VA. – The Rail Yard Dawgs gave one of their best performances of the season, smashing the Knoxville Ice Bears 5-1 on Military Night in front of 5,748 fans at Berglund Center. CJ Stubbs, Travis Armstrong, Jesse Anderson, Mac Jansen, and Billy Vizzo scored for the Dawgs, while Austyn Roudebush saved 41 shots.
The first period was controlled by Roanoke, but neither team could break the deadlock. Two power play opportunities per team both expired, and the Dawgs had three or four chances to light the lamp but were just inches off each time. The opening 20 minutes ended scoreless.
The second period was wildly entertaining, with both teams earning plenty of opportunities to score. Stubbs finally opened the scoring on a beautifully worked play with the help of Nick Devito and Jeff Jones at the 11:41 mark. Just 20 seconds later, Knoxville equalized via a Jared Nash score. A Roanoke power play at the end of the period yielded a power play goal by Armstrong, whose long distance shot took a deflection into the Knoxville net to reinstate the Dawgs lead with 17 seconds left before the second intermission.
The final period was simply a showcase for Roanoke. Roudebush continued to hold down the backend for the Dawgs, until Anderson gave Roanoke some breathing room on a score at the 9:08 mark to make it 3-1. The Ice Bears shockingly emptied the net with 4:32 left to play, but the Dawgs missed a few chances for an empty-netter. A penalty by Knoxville put Roanoke back on the man advantage, and Jansen thundered a drive into the roof of the net to make it 4-1 with 1:54 left to play. Vizzo added another power play goal with eight seconds left in the game to cap off an outstanding night for the Dawgs.
Knoxville’s Kristian Stead saved 32 of 37 shots on net, compared to Roudebush’s 41 stops. Roanoke was 3-for-6 on the power play, and killed off all four penalties that were conceded to the Ice Bears.
The Dawgs will be on the road next weekend to face the Fayetteville Marksmen at Crown Coliseum on Friday and Saturday. Wisler Plumbing and Air Family Four Packs, group tickets, 2022-2023 season tickets, and single game tickets for home games are on sale now, and you can listen to the game on the Haley Toyota Rail Yard Dawgs Hockey Network via Mixlr or watch it on HockeyTV.