OLIVER PAIPOONGE, Ont. -- Christian Veneruzzo was in on both Kam River Fighting Walleye goals on Friday night, leading them to a 2-1 home-ice win over the Dryden Ice Dogs.
Veneruzzo scored the game-winner exactly halfway through the third period, slipping the puck past Dryden goalie Jordan Belley, who made 44 stops on the night.
Kam River goaltender Austin Madge was even stronger, good on 56 of the 57 shots fired his way.
Zach Fortin, with his first of the season, had the Fighting Walleye's other goal, scoring at 3:05 of the first. Maxime Collette had the lone Ice Dogs goal, knotting the score 1-1 with 57 seconds left in the opening period.
Kam River improved to 7-2-1 with the win, pulling to within a point of second-place Thunder Bay, with two games in hand.
It was the fifth straight win for the Fighting Walleye.
The North Stars, on the other hand, are headed in the opposite direction.
Jordan Baranesky scored twice and added a helper to lead the first-place Red Lake Miners (8-2-1) to a 5-2 win over the North Stars, losers of two in a row.
Ryan Howe, Ryan Hunter and Rylin Phlpott-Way had the other Miners goals. Hunter Foreshew and Dawson Nelson replied for Thunder Bay (8-4-0).
