FARGO, ND – The game started with a goal against for the Muskegon Lumberjacks (31-13-4-4, 70 pts.) after the Fargo Force (25-22-4-2) scored less than a minute from the opening faceoff. From there, it was all about the Jacks, who picked up a 6-2 win to sweep the weekend series and clinch a spot in the 2025 Clark Cup Playoffs.
 
Just :33 seconds into the game Jonah Aegerter pushed a rebound to the back of the net to give Fargo a 1-0 lead. The original shot came from the middle of the slot and former Lumberjack Cameron Aucoin, who finished the weekend with 3 points against his former team.
 
At the other end of the period the Jacks tied the game thanks to a 3-on-2 rush led by David Klee (Castle Rock, CO) as he entered the offensive zone Klee carried the puck down to the near side circle before dropping a pass back to Xavier Veilleux (L'Ancienne-Lorrette, QC, CAN), the third man high. Rather than shooting, Veilleux sent a pass across the slot to Jack Galanek (Hopkinton, MA) for a one-time goal at the 16:20 mark of the frame.
 
Starting the second period on the power play, the Jacks took full advantage of the opportunity scoring 1:04 into the middle stanza. Teddy Spitznagel (Bloomfield Hills, MI) got the puck to the near side of the ice for Ivan Ryabkin (Balakovo, RUS) at the bottom of the circle. Assessing his options, Ryabkin saw Vaclav Nestrasil (Praha, CZE) standing alone on the far side of the crease. A perfect shot pass to the back door provided an easy back door tap in goal for Nestrasil to give the Jacks a 2-1 lead.
 
Later in the frame, the Jacks added another power play goal to take a 3-1 lead into the second intermission. This time Ryabkin was the goal scorer on a play that looked similar to the last. Tynan Lawrence (Fredericton, NB, CAN) and Luka Radivojevic (Trencin, SVK) worked to get Ryabkin the puck at the bottom of the near circle. While looking towards the slot Ryabkin fired a shot between the legs of the goalie for his second point of the game, and 19^th in 18 games this season.
 
It didn't take long for the Jacks to open the scoring in the third period either. 4:55 into the period Klee held the puck on the far side of the ice and fired a tough angle shot across the crease and into the near side corner of the net for his second point of the game. Bauer Berry (Grand Forks, ND) and Galanek had the assists as the Jacks finished the game with four skaters recording multi-point scorelines.
 
Less than a minute later Fargo responded with a goal of their own to bring the game back to a 2-goal deficit. Eero Butella fired a pass to the near side of the Jacks zone for Aucoin who sent it back across the slot to Hayes Hundley. The shot mainly was stopped, but trickled across the goal line for his 4^th goal of the season.
 
Just as they did in the first period, the Jacks responded with a goal a few minutes later. Lawrence got the puck in the near side corner for Chase Stefanek (Yorba Linda, CA) and worked his way along the goal line. David Deputy (Gurnee, IL) caused havoc at the top of the crease taking away the attention of the goalie allowing Lawrence to fire a shot short side high for his 22^nd goal of the season.
 
Before the end of regulation with just over 6 minutes left, Spitznagel scored, but the goal was called off following a video review of the play. As a result, The Jacks won an offensive zone faceoff and sent the puck into the near side corner of the zone. Carter Sanderson (Pierre, SD) slid the puck to Jack Christ (Chaska, MN) who carried it towards the back of the net. As he did, he slid a pass to the slot where Drew Stewart (Minnetonka, MN) received the puck and ripped it to the back of the net.
 
Another strong showing for Stephen Peck (New York, NY) (16-5-2-3) saw him stop 21 of 23 shots for the win on his record. Dane Callaway (4-6-2-0) made 34 saves on 40 shots against and earned the loss on his record.
 
Next up for the Jacks is a lengthy nine-game homestand starting with a three-game weekend against the Green Bay Gamblers. Tickets start at just $10 for an incredible gameday experience. Get your tickets, game times, and more information by visiting muskegonlumberjacks.com