THERE was no backing off from the Newcastle North Stars in its final, record-setting game of the regular season on Sunday.
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The North Stars delivered a shut-out 14-0 win against the Sydney Ice Dogs, in which Canadian import Geordie Wudrick became the Australian Ice Hockey League’s highest goal and point scorer.
Wudrick finished the season with 91 points – seven of which came from Sunday’s game.
Overall Wudrick scored 44 goals and made 47 assists.
This exceeded the 2011 point score held by then Canberra Knights player Addison DeBoer with 85 points, and Gold Coast Bluetongues player Matt Amado’s 42-goal season in 2007.
Newcastle North Stars coach Andrew Petrie also believed import Jan Safar had become the league’s highest scoring defenseman this season with 11 goals and 45 assists.
On his record-breaking season, Wudrick was humbled and said: “I think Newcastle has made as big of an impact on me as I have on Newcastle”.
He said that he would like to return and play in Newcastle for another season.
While Sunday’s win against cellar dwellers the Ice Dogs was all but in the bag, Petrie said the side was not about to take it easy.
“Going into the game we set an expectation on how hard we would work,” Petrie said.
“We can’t afford to let up headed into finals.”
The shut-out was the first for Newcastle this season.
Goaltender Dayne Davis held out Sydney in the first period and Josh Broekman in the final two.
Together the pair saved 20 shots in comparison to the 60 shots the North Stars rained down on the Ice Dogs’ goaltender.
The North Stars next play Canberra Brave on Saturday in the first semi-final game in Melbourne.
The winner of semi-final one will face second semi-final’s winner, between Melbourne Ice and Perth Thunder, on Sunday.