SIOUX FALLS, S.D.— The Sioux Falls Fighting Wiener Dogs fell to the Sioux City Musketeers, 6-1, for the first time in the past five years. A record setting 11,025 fans were in attendance for the event, the largest hockey game in South Dakota history. Beckett Hendrickson was the lone dog able to find the back of Sioux City's net during the game while Michael Chambre and Caleb split time in net for the second game in a row.
Much of the first period was dominated by Sioux City. The Musketeers scored three goals on goaltender Michael Chambre, two within 20 seconds of each other at 7:38 and 7:58. Scoring the first and the third goal for the Musketeers was Brian Nicholas who led the Musketeers in goals this evening. With just 2:08 remaining, the Wiener Dogs thought they'd be able to spark something more when Beckett Hendrickson earned his 17th goal of the season with JJ Wiebusch and Chris Pelosi both marking their 25th assists of the season. Surprisingly, the Pack out shot the Musketeers 14-6 in the initial frame.
The Pack went scoreless in the second period, but allowed the Musketeers three additional goals, increasing the Sioux City lead to five goals. Once again, the Pack out shot the Musketeers 9-7 during the period but was unable to capitalize on the shots. Sioux City was given three powerplay opportunities during this period against the Wiener Dogs' one.
A scoreless final frame left the matchup with a Sioux City 6-1 win, ending the Wiener Dogs' 16-year unbeaten streak. This is the first time in the history of Wiener Dog Night that the Sioux Falls program was unable to come away with the win.
For the second game in a row, Michael Chambre and Caleb Heil split their time between the pipes for the Wiener Dogs. Chambre was given just over 35 minutes and was only able to stop four-of-ten shots on his net. He ended with a .400 save percentage, plummeting his season save percentage to .874 and marking his second game with a goals-against average of over 10.00. Heil had a better night than Chambre as he was able to stop all 13 shots on net in his 24:40 in net, a stark contrast to his .588 save percentage the previous night.
The most important part of the night, the 17th Annual Sioux Nation Pet Clinic Wiener Dog Races, were a hit for those in the PREMIER Center, watching on FloHockey, listening in via KELO radio and watching on social media. The first two heats saw a record setting total of 47 wiener dogs take the ice. Coming out on top, Indie, Letty, Lambo and Cooper all made it into the Wiener Takes All Championship round during the second intermission. Winning the back-to-back Wiener Dog Race Champion title was Letty, who also took home the trophy last season.
The Pack now heads to hibernation for a year and comes back as the Stampede next week for a series against Green Bay. Friday night is Hockey Talks Night, a night dedicated to mental health awareness and suicide prevention. On Saturday, the Herd will host throwback night with Stampede and Minnesota Wild alum Nate Prosser in attendance. More info on both games will be available next week. Tickets for all Stampede home games are available now through the KELOLAND box office, Stampede office, or any Ticketmaster outlets.
