Thunderbirds fall to Rock Lobsters 5-3

ATHENS, GA. – The Twin City Thunderbirds fell to the Athens Rock Lobsters by a final score of 5-3 Saturday night at Akins Ford Arena. Jan Salak, Roman Kraemer, and Zach White each netted a goal for Twin City in the road loss. The Thunderbirds return to action tomorrow afternoon for one final game of the weekend. Puck drop for tomorrow’s road game is scheduled for 4:05pm ET.


Jan Salak netted his seventeenth goal of the season at 12:45 of the 1st period to give the Thunderbirds a one-goal lead in the matchup. The goal was scored even-strength, and was assisted by Nate Keeley and Jon Buttitta. Roman Kraemer scored his twentieth goal of the year less than one minute later to put Twin City ahead by two goals. Kraemer’s goal was netted at 13:28 of the opening period, and was assisted by Zach White and Kayson Gallant. Twin City outshot Athens by a 15-12 margin during the 1st period, and the 2nd period began with the Thunderbirds leading by a score of 2-0.


Carter Shinkaruk netted an even-strength goal at 11:06 of the 2nd period to put Athens on the scoreboard for the first time during Saturday night’s contest. Devyn Mayea and Joe Mack each collected an assist on the scoring play. Filip Virgili tied the game with a scoring play at 15:51 of the 2nd period. Joe Mack and Luke Croucher each recorded an assist on the goal. The final goal of Saturday’s 2nd period was netted by Gus Ford at 17:47. Ford’s goal was assisted by Garrett Milan and Jesse Lowell. Each team recorded 17 shots on goal during the middle period, and the Thunderbirds trailed 3-2 entering the 3rd period.


Zach White netted a goal thirty-five seconds into Saturday’s final period to bring the score to 3-3. White’s game-tying goal was assisted by Roman Kraemer and Kayson Gallant. Gus Ford scored his second goal of the game with under six minutes to play to give Athens a 4-3 lead. Ford’s goal was the game-winning goal, and was assisted by Devyn Mayea and Carter Shinkaruk. The final goal of Saturday’s battle was scored into an empty net by Jesse Lowell. The goal was scored with less than twenty seconds remaining in the 3rd period, and was assisted by Garrett Milan and John Kaljian. Twin City outshot Athens by a 16-7 margin during the final period, and overall margin of 48-36 during the matchup.


Boris Babik dropped the game in net for the Thunderbirds in a 31-save-on-35-shot performance. Carter McPhail won the game for the Rock Lobsters by making 45 saves on 48 shots. Twin City fell to 20-25-1 on the 2025-2026 season in the two-goal road loss.


Twin City is currently offering a special ticket discount through FEVO to celebrate the historic double gold sweep in Milano Cortino for the United States Men’s and Women’s Hockey Teams. Three tiers of pricing (Gold, Silver, Bronze) are available. The Gold Tier includes two blue section tickets for $46, a nod to the United States’ Men’s team winning Gold at the Olympics for the first time in forty-six years. Silver Tier pricing includes two red section tickets for $33 in honor of United States Women’s Captain Hillary Knight’s team record of thirty-three points recorded in the Olympics. The Bronze Tier includes two white section tickets for $20.26, a nod to this year’s historic performance by each United States hockey team in the 2026 Olympic Winter Games. https://www.gofevo.com/group/Olympicdiscount


Tickets to home games at the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds Arena may be purchased online by visiting WSFairgrounds.com, Ticketmaster.com, or by calling the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds Arena Box Office at (336) 727-2236. The Thunderbirds are proud members of the Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL). #FlockTogether