The Storm unleashed an offensive onslaught from the opening puck drop, cruising to a decisive 8-3 victory over the AllStars Guardians. The tone was set early when Connor Long, wearing number 86, opened the scoring for the Storm just over five minutes into the first period. The Guardians' troubles compounded when a high-sticking penalty to Grady Florian put them on the penalty kill, and Sasha Kelemen capitalized with a shorthanded goal to give the Storm a commanding 2-0 lead after the first, despite being outshot 24-16.
The second period saw the Storm's attack continue unabated. Connor Long netted his second of the game early in the frame, and after a penalty to Storm goalie Hannah Lutz-Berube, the Guardians finally found life on the power play. Ethan Burnash and Gabe Knorr scored back-to-back man-advantage goals to cut the deficit to 3-2, briefly igniting hope. However, the Storm quickly snuffed it out. Spencer MacDougall and Xavier Compri scored even-strength goals, and a late tripping penalty on the Guardians' Coltyn Redford led to another Storm tally just before the period ended, making it 6-2.
Any thought of a Guardians comeback was extinguished in the third period. Jonah Moore managed a shorthanded goal for the home side, but the Storm's Lucas Haro stole the show, completing a natural hat trick with two even-strength goals and a spectacular shorthanded marker. The Storm's special teams were a decisive factor, scoring twice shorthanded and killing off penalties effectively, while their goalie Hannah Lutz-Berube backstopped the win. For the Guardians, the lopsided shot count in the first period told a story of missed opportunities, as they could not solve Lutz-Berube enough to keep pace with the Storm's relentless and balanced scoring attack.
Raptors
