Capitals Set Records in Franchise Opening Win
A lot of firsts tonight at Landon Arena; The first franchise goal, the first successful penalty kill, the first power play goal, the first win for first-time head coach Anthony Bohn, and the first win in franchise history. Add in the fact that the Caps set a league record for attendance with 1,502 fans and you could call this a pretty successful opener as they routed the Junior Stars 7-1.
“The people of Topeka showed tremendous support,” said Head Coach Anthony Bohn. “It was a great feeling for our players and our fans. We need to stay focused on tomorrow [morning’s 11am] game and continue to get better.”
Nick White became an instant Capitals trivia question answer when he scored the first goal in franchise history at 2:59 in the first period (assisted by Kole Hudson and Georgy Ostapchuk). Nick Rizzo doubled the score less than five minutes later when he beat Stars goaltender Link Ferch with a shot (assisted Nick Greco at 7:32) and the Caps finished their first period in existence with a 2-0 lead.
Wasting no time in the second, Nick Manney (assisted by Yu Kikosaka at 1:27) stretched the lead to three with another goal scored by a guy named Nick. All together, the Nicks tallied seven points for the Caps which factored greatly in the final score, but we’ll get to that later. The Junior Stars got onto the board at 3:21 of the second, scoring their only goal of the game (Jake Huspen assisted by Raurie Petrich and Jake Gevaart).
Topeka goalie Jude Hall had a banner night, stopping 33 of 34 shots in the win. Not that he needed to be quite that sharp as his team exploded in the third with four more goals. Hardijis Kupaks (unassisted at 4:52), Yu Kikosaka (power play goal assisted by Nick Manney and Nick Rizzo at 12:33), Kupaks again (assisted by Georgy Ostapchuk at 14:29), and Ostapchuck with an empty net short hander (assisted by Nick White at 18:06) finished the record-setting-crowd-pleaser with a score of 7-1.
Topeka and Dallas tangle again tomorrow morning at 11am at Landon Arena. The doors open at 10am, tickets are only $5, and parking is free. RoadRunners Season Ticket Holders get in the games free as well. For more information on tickets, call 785-286-PUCK or visit www.topekacapitals.com.