Thunderbirds win 6-3 decision over River Dragons

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Twin City Thunderbirds, proud members of the Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL), won a 6-3 decision over the Columbus River Dragons Saturday night at the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds Arena during the team’s “Veterans Night” game. Jon Buttitta (2), Michael Mania (2), Jiri Pestuka, and Gus Ford scored goals for the Thunderbirds in the win. Boris Babik backstopped the team to victory in a 40-save-on-43-shot effort in net. Twin City returns to action next weekend with two games against the Blue Ridge Bobcats. Friday’s game will be played on the road at Hitachi Energy Arena, with puck drop set for 7:35pm ET. The Thunderbirds will return home on Saturday night to host the Bobcats. Puck drop for Saturday’s home game at the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds Arena is set for 6:05pm ET.  


Brodie Thorton netted a powerplay goal just over five minutes into Saturday’s battle to give the visiting River Dragons a 1-0 lead in the matchup. Lucas Texmo and Ryan Galvin each recorded an assist on the scoring play. Gus Ford netted his team-leading seventh goal of the season with under seven minutes to play in the 1st period to bring the game to a 1-1 tie. Ford’s goal was netted on the powerplay, and was assisted by Zach White and Jiri Pestuka. Michael Mania netted his first career goal in the FPHL at 16:38 of Saturday’s 1st period to give Twin City a 2-1 lead in the battle. Mania’s goal was scored on the powerplay, and was assisted by Roman Kraemer and Gus Ford. The Thunderbirds outshot the River Dragons by a 19-15 margin during the opening period, and the team carried a one-goal advantage into the 2nd period.


Ryan Hunter brought the game to a 2-2 tie with a powerplay goal for Columbus at 3:30 of Saturday’s middle period. His goal was assisted by Tyler Barrow and Lucas Texmo. Michael Mania gave Twin City a 3-2 lead in the matchup with an even-strength goal at 3:55 of the 2nd period. Noah Hippolyte-Smith and Jon Buttitta each notched an assist on the scoring play. Jiri Pestuka scored his first goal of the season, and 150th career FPHL goal, with under three minutes to play in the 2nd period to give Twin City a two-goal advantage in the matchup. Pestuka’s game-winning goal was assisted by Jan Salak and Roman Kraemer. The Thunderbirds outshot the River Dragons 16-11 during the 2nd period, and took a 4-2 lead into Saturday’s final period.


Jon Buttitta scored for the first time this season at 7:09 of the 3rd period to give the Thunderbirds a 5-2 lead in the battle. Jiri Pestuka notched an assist on Buttitta’s goal. Kevin Szabad scored Columbus’s final goal of the weekend at 12:40 of the 3rd period. The goal was netted on the powerplay, and was assisted by Chiwetin Blacksmith, and Lucas Texmo. In the final second of Saturday night’s showdown between the Thunderbirds and River Dragons, Jon Buttitta netted an empty-net goal to seal Twin City’s second win of the season. The goal was his second of the period, and was scored unassisted. The Thunderbirds outshot the River Dragons by a final margin of 44-43 during the contest. Twin City won the game by three goals, and improved to 1-1-0 in head-to-head matchups against Columbus this season.


Boris Babik’s 40-save performance gave him his second win of the season in goal for the Thunderbirds. Tyler Roy recorded the loss in goal for Columbus after making 27 saves on 32 shots in relief effort of Trevor Babin. Babin made 11 saves in just over 12 minutes of gametime during the 1st period, before being ejected from the contest following a fight with Twin City’s Jacob Schnapp.


Jiri Pestuka’s three-point performance, including scoring the game-winning goal of Saturday’s contest, earned him 1st Star honors. Jon Buttitta and Michael Mania were named 2nd and 3rd Stars, respectively.


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