By Gary Moskalyk
Edison Weeks scored four goals and Keenan Marks turned aside 41 shots as the Thunder Bay North Stars defeated Wisconsin 9-2 at Fort William Gardens.
Thunder Bay had a 5-2 lead after one. After a scoreless second, they added four more to send Wisconsin to their 11th game without a win. Thunder Bay improved to 9-4-2 while the ‘Jacks fell to 5-14-3. It was Thunder Bay’s first home game at the Gardens since October 15th–36 days ago.
Weeks scored two in the first and two in the third. He has 12 goals on the year, 11 helpers, and 23 points to sit 7th in league scoring. His 1.53 PPG is second to Wisconsin’s Ryder McMillen (1.77). Newcomer Colby Feist continued to make an impression, assisting on all four of Weeks’ goals. Feist has nine points in five games, including five goals.
Jamie Fuchs, Matt Halushak, Nolan Desjardins, EJ Paddington and Dylan Winsor tacked on singles. Sal Poggiali and Ryan Nutt registered goals for Wisconsin in the first. Poggiali has 13 on the year.
The game had a surprising bite to it. Wisconsin took 22 minutes in penalties while Thunder Bay had 38. The Lumberjacks were 1-7 on the power play. The Stars were 0-5.
Kyler Lowden played 49:29 of the game, absorbing all nine Thunder Bay markers. Keegan Strong stopped three the rest of the way. Marks is 55 minutes away from qualifying for league rankings for goaltenders. He’s 4-0, with a 1.96 GAA and .945 SV%.
Thunder Bay travels to Dryden next Saturday for a showdown between two of the hottest teams in the league. Wisconsin hits the ice at home December 2/3 against Fort Frances, looking to hit the win column.
The game drew 410 fans.