WORCESTER, MA – December 23, 2023 – The Worcester Railers scored five unanswered goals to rally from a 3-1 deficit and defeat the Maine Mariners 6-3 on Saturday night at DCU Center. Brooklyn Kalmikov paced the Maine offense with a pair of goals in defeat.
The Mariners got off to a fast start, scoring twice in the first three and a half minutes. Brooklyn Kalmikov started it off with an unassisted goal at 2:58, outmuscling Railers defenseman Artyom Kulakov and sliding one through goaltender Henrik Tikkanen. Just 25 seconds later, Alex Kile grabbed a puck off the back boards and beat Tikkanen to the post with a wraparound to make it 2-0 Maine. The Railers got a late period goal from Jake Pivonka to cut the deficit in half.
Kalmikov’s second of the game put the Mariners back up by two at 4:32 of the second, as he one-timed home a goal line feed from Adam Mechura, making it 3-1 Maine. The Mariners maintained a two goal lead for most of the period, but Worcester’s Keegan Howdeshell deflected a Riley Piercey shot past Shane Starrett at 16:56 to close the gap back to one.
Worcester grabbed hold of the game in the third period. The Railers tied it on Daylan Kuefler’s first professional goal at 4:44 of the third, coming on the power play. Worcester then took the lead when Anthony Repaci tipped home a Jake Verrier blue line shot under an unsuspecting Starrett at 7:52. Kuefler added another at 12:44 and Trevor Cosgrove sealed the game with an empty netter at 18:12.
The Mariners (9-12-2) will play again in Worcester in the first game after Christmas, on Wednesday, December 27th at 5:05 PM. They’ll return home for a “Kids Day” matinee on Friday, December 29th at 1 PM against the Adirondack Thunder. An open skate with the players will follow the game. The Mariners are also home on Saturday, December 30th for a “Carnival on the Concourse” – a 6 PM face off against the Trois-Rivieres Lions. Single game tickets for all regular season home games are on sale at MarinersOfMaine.com or at the Ware-Butler Box Office inside the Cross Insurance Arena. More information on ticket packages and group discounts can be found by calling 833-GO-MAINE or visiting the Mariners front office at 94 Free St. in Portland. The 2023-2024 season is presented by Hannaford to Go.
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