Rail Yard Dawgs Survived The Late Surge To Secure a 5-3 Victory (2-6-25)

By: Joey Raymond

Headline Photo Credit: Katie Raymond-LMS Network

Roanoke, VA –Road trips are never easy, and the Dawgs just wrapped up a tough one. Roanoke pulled off an impressive comeback win in overtime on Friday in Pensacola, but a shootout loss on Saturday and a sluggish finish in Sunday’s 4-1 defeat in Macon left them with just three out of six possible points. While their road struggles continue, reinforcements are arriving—Joe Widmar and C.J. Valerian are back in the lineup, and Carson Gallagher is on fire with an eight-game point streak.

Meanwhile, Huntsville is proving to be one of the toughest teams in the league, sitting near the top of the standings with a deep offense and one of the best goaltending tandems in the SPHL. The Havoc have been rolling under head coach Stuart Stefan, who has them playing a fast,

disciplined style on both ends of the ice. With a balanced attack and a blue line that doesn’t give up much, they’re built to be a problem for any team they face. So, with both teams coming off eventful weekends, let’s take a look at how things played out when they went head-to-head on Thursday.

First Period:

The opening period at the Berglund Center was all about Roanoke setting the tone early. Both teams spent the first few minutes feeling each other out, with plenty of big hits along the boards, but the Dawgs were the only ones generating scoring chances. After several missed opportunities, Roanoke finally broke through when Tommy Munichiello cleaned up a rebound off the Huntsville netminder, giving the home team a 1-0 lead.

However, that momentum was briefly stalled when Justin Cmunt took a cross-checking penalty almost immediately after the goal, sending the Havoc to their first power play of the night. With the small but rowdy Roanoke crowd behind them, the Dawgs’ penalty kill stood tall, keeping Huntsville off the board. Just minutes later, Roanoke struck again—Gehrig Lindberg fired a rocket that deflected off Carson Gallagher and into the net, doubling the lead to 2-0. The Dawgs weren’t done yet. Nick Ford capitalized on a breakaway opportunity, burying another shot past the Huntsville goalie to make it 3-0.

Midway through the period, controversy struck. Roanoke’s Steven Alvo was called for interference, a questionable decision that may have been a makeup call after the officials missed an earlier infraction against the Dawgs. During the stoppage, Huntsville opted to change goaltenders, pulling Mike Robinson in favor of Troy Kobryn. The move seemed to give the Havoc a spark, as Phil Elgstam capitalized on the power play with a rebound goal to cut the deficit to 3-1.

Roanoke wasted no time responding. Less than a minute later, Jason Cmunt found the back of the net, restoring the Dawgs’ three-goal advantage at 4-1. Huntsville finally found themselves on the penalty kill late in the period when Robbie Fisher was whistled for high sticking, but they managed to kill it off without much trouble. The final minutes ticked away without further damage, and after a wild first 20 minutes, Roanoke headed into the intermission with a commanding 4-1 lead. 

Second Period:

The second period picked up right where the first left off—fast, physical, and full of action. Some massive hits set the tone early, including one that left a Huntsville player crawling to the bench. The intensity only ramped up from there. With 17:27 left in the period, Huntsville was whistled for interference, giving Roanoke its second power play of the night. The Dawgs generated some quality chances, but Troy Kobryn stood tall in the net for the Havoc, making a series of outstanding saves to keep his team in the game. After the successful kill, Huntsville returned to full strength, but Roanoke wasn’t done pressing. Midway through the period, the Dawgs extended their lead. C.J. Valerian set up Andrew Harley with a slick pass, and Harley buried his shot to push Roanoke’s advantage to 5-1. After that, things got a little chaotic.

With 7:17 remaining, Huntsville’s Terry Ryder committed what can only be described as a reckless penalty—clearly out of frustration over a missed high-sticking call against Roanoke. However, instead of just sending Ryder to the box, the refs inexplicably hit Roanoke’s Austen Swankler with a diving/embellishment penalty, creating a 4-on-4 situation. Neither team found the back of the net during the sequence, and the penalties expired without further incident.

Almost immediately after the teams returned to full strength, Huntsville’s Craig McCabe was called for tripping, giving Roanoke another man-advantage opportunity. But just as the penalty was about to expire, Roanoke’s Steven Alvo was tagged for tripping as well, nullifying the final seconds of the power play and giving Huntsville a chance of their own. The Dawgs’ penalty kill remained rock solid, fending off the Havoc’s attack and keeping the score at 5-1. The final minutes of the period ticked away without any additional fireworks, sending Roanoke into the third with a comfortable four-goal lead.

Third Period:

The third period started with yet another trip to the penalty box for Huntsville. Just one minute in, Dominick Procopio was whistled for delay of the game, giving Roanoke another chance to extend its lead. The Havoc, however, played solid defense, even managing a shorthanded opportunity that Austin Roudebush turned away. The Dawgs couldn’t capitalize, and Huntsville successfully killed off the penalty. After a quiet stretch of play, Huntsville found itself back in trouble with 9:24 left in regulation.

Dylan Stewart was sent off for high sticking, putting Roanoke back on the power play. The situation quickly worsened for the Havoc when Benito Posa took a seat for too many men on the ice, briefly giving the Dawgs a two-man advantage. Somehow, Huntsville managed to kill both penalties—credit to their defense and maybe a little luck, too. With 4:24 left to play, the Havoc finally broke through. Benito Posa unloaded on a shot that rocketed past Roudebush—one of the hardest, cleanest shots of the night—to make it 5-2. 

Suddenly, all the momentum was on Huntsville’s side, and Roanoke was just trying to hold on. That task became even tougher when, with under two minutes to play, Cole Reginato found space on Roudebush’s stick side and buried a shot to bring Huntsville within two. The Berglund Center, loud all night, was now filled with tension as the Havoc pressed for more. With time running out, Huntsville pulled its goalie for an extra attacker, but there were only mere seconds left on the clock. Roanoke controlled the puck off the faceoff, and as the final seconds ticked away, the Dawgs survived the late surge to secure a 5-3 victory.

Final Thoughts:

Roanoke came out firing on all cylinders, dominating the first period with a relentless offensive attack that saw them jump out to a 4-1 lead. The Dawgs capitalized on rebounds, executed crisp passing, and took advantage of Huntsville’s early struggles. Despite multiple power play opportunities for both sides throughout the night, neither team was particularly sharp with their advantage, as most of the scoring came at even strength. Austin Roudebush was steady in net, while Roanoke’s defense held strong against Huntsville’s offensive surges—at least for the first two periods.

The third period, however, saw Huntsville battle back with two late goals, making things a bit tense down the stretch. Roanoke had to weather a furious push from the Havoc, but they held on to secure the 5-3 win. Now, the focus quickly shifts to a huge back-to-back series against their archrival, the Knoxville Ice Bears. With little time to recover, the Dawgs will need to dig deep and bring the same intensity if they want to carry this momentum into the next two, in what almost always are the most heated matchups of the season.