By WJBC Staff
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The Cedar Rapids RoughRiders lived their own nightmare on Saturday night as the Bloomington Thunder responded in a big way 7-2 in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinal. Bloomington was on fire right from the drop of the puck, taking the lead and never letting it go in their first playoff win in team history. The power play got the game started for the Thunder, but it was their physical play and 5-on-5 pressure that finished off Cedar Rapids throughout the 60-minute game. The Thunder evened the series with the RoughRiders at one game apiece, splitting on Cedar Rapids’ home ice.
Jake Slaker (St. Lawrence University) and Alec Mehr each earned stars in the game with three point nights for the Thunder to front line the offense. In the second period, they cashed in twice during a four-goal outburst to take a 6-1 lead into the intermission. Mehr netted the eventual game-winning goal in that period, less than four minutes into the period. Slaker fed Mehr on the front of the net off a turnover in the zone and the same state-line mates connected on a one-timer.
Logan Lambdin (Michigan State University) also contributed on that line as the Thunder forward had the opening goal and an assist in the third period. Both points came on the power play as the Thunder were 3-for-4 on the man advantage and 5-for-7 over their two games in Iowa. With his second of the playoffs, Lambdin just tucked it inside the post to take an early 1-0 lead. Jake Durflinger, along with Slaker, earned a two goal night and started with a power play tip in the first period. Brogan Rafferty, who has three assists in the playoffs, shot the puck from the blue line where the Walnut Creek, CA native redirected it in.
The California natives didn’t stop there. Durflinger’s second of the game came at the midway point of the second, batting in a rebound. Patrick Curry (Boston University) wrapped the puck around the net and Durflinger was there for the second shot off Curry’s chance. After Slaker was slid his first goal of the game from Mehr three minutes later, Ethan Somoza (Bemidji State University) got in on the action. The Simi Valley, CA native was the lucky recipient of a shot that hit the glass and bounced to the front. Somoza was there for his first playoff goal, as it bounced into the net.
Ben Blacker (Western Michigan University) was yanked from the net after the second period, having made 21 saves over the two periods for the RoughRiders. His counterpart Hayden Lavigne (University of Michigan) responded with a huge performance in net. Turning aside 26 shots in the game, the third year netminders earned his first career post season win.
The physical game reached it’s peak in the third period as a pair of altercations sent Bloomington’s Tarek Baker (University of Wisconsin) and Steven Merl (University of Michigan) to the locker room. Both Luke Morgan (Lake Superior State University) and Matt Filipe (Northeastern University) were dealt fighting majors as well and sent to the RoughRiders’ dressing room to await the end of the game.
Netting the final goal for the Thunder was Slaker who capped off the night for the Thunder on the man advantage. Seeing his first post-season action in net was goaltender Zack LaRocque who made 12 saves on the night in relief but couldn’t keep the Thunder captain from beating him over the shoulder eight minutes into the final period. The team ended the game with 40 shots on net and another huge special team’s performance, killing off 4-of-5 RoughRider power play chances.
Bloomington will return home to the U.S. Cellular Coliseum with a chance to take the season series lead over the RoughRiders on Friday, April 22. The puck will drop at 7:30 p.m. for Game 3 of the best-of-5 series with Cedar Rapids.
