Knight Monsters take down Jacksonville for first win in franchise history
STATELINE, NV – The Tahoe Knight Monsters, coming off an overtime loss on Thursday against the Jacksonville Icemen, responded Friday with a 3-1 victory for their first win in franchise history.
Troy Loggins scored an early power play goal, Brandon Tabakin added a shorthanded tally in the second, and netminder Jesper Vikman made 33 saves to lead Tahoe to victory.
“We made it a little bit more interesting than we wanted to, but all the credit to the guys to stick with it and get the two points at the end of the day,” said Tahoe head coach Alex Loh. “For me, it’s more of a relief, to just get the win and now we can move forward from here.”
The Knight Monsters scored in each period Friday, with the game-sealing goal being an empty netter from Bear Hughes with less than a minute to go. There were also 18 total penalties, with the teams combined to go 2-10 on the power play.
After allowing four goals in Thursday’s loss, Vikman activated another level in this game. He allowed no goals at even strength (the Icemen scored a ppg in the third), and consistently made sprawling saves on high-quality shot attempts.
“I feel like my game is in a pretty good spot, it’s just showing up every day and every practice and doing my best out there,” said Vikman.
Tahoe next plays host to the Idaho Steelheads on Thursday, October 31 in the first of a three-game set at the Tahoe Blue Event Center. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 pm. Ticket packages for the 2024-25 season are now available. For more information, visit http://www.knightmonstershockey.com.
And don’t forget, after every Knight Monsters home game check out a postgame party at AleWorX Stateline for wood-fired pizza, self-serve beer, and great scenery.
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