Koulalis and Giovanella’s Lift Mallards Over Sasquatch 3–1 in Salem Showdown

October 25, 2025- Salem Icenter, Salem, NH

The Norfolk Mallards came into hostile territory Saturday night and left with a statement win, riding a hat trick from Ben Giovanella and a 51-save masterpiece by goaltender Justin Koulalis to take down the Salem Sasquatch 3–1.

In a game where special teams told the story, Norfolk went 3-for-5 on the power play, while Salem’s parade to the penalty box proved costly—especially during a wild second period that saw some game changing saves from Koulalis.

The Mallards wasted no time taking advantage of early Salem penalties.

At 3:25, Giovanella opened the scoring on the power play off a pass from Kody Boyce, sneaking a wrist shot past Sasquatch goalie Keegan McLaughlin. Just seven minutes later, the same duo connected again—Giovanella put another by McLaughlin’s glove from a Boyce pass to double the Norfolk lead, both goals coming with the man advantage.

Salem couldn’t find their rhythm, with penalties to Julius Stein and Nick Newman breaking up any momentum. The Sasquatch outshot Norfolk 14–9 in the opening frame but trailed 2–0 on the scoreboard.

The middle frame saw the Sasquatch self-destruct with penalties.

At 11:11, Issac Rogers picked up a double minor and a misconduct for unsportsmanlike conduct, handing the Mallards extended power-play time. Norfolk capitalized again late in the period when Giovanella completed his hat trick at 18:27, burying a rebound for his third power-play goal of the night and a commanding 3–0 lead.

Koulalis was sharp all night, turning aside 21 second-period shots to preserve the shutout through 40 minutes.

Salem finally broke through at 16:40 when Brendan Young took a feed from John Hamilton and snapped home a low shot to make it 3–1. The goal energized the crowd, but Koulalisstood tall through a flurry of late chances—including a net front scramble in the final minute—to seal the win for the Mallards.

Tempers flared late as roughing minors piled up, with both teams combining for 38 penalty minutes on the night.

Postgame Breakdown

Shots on Goal

• Salem- 52
• Norfolk- 35

Power Plays

• Salem- 0-for-3
• Norfolk- 3-for-5

Penalty Minutes

• Salem- 28
• Norfolk-10

Goaltenders

• Norfolk Justin Koulalis – 51 saves on 52 shots, (Win)
• Salem: Keegan McLaughlin– 32 saves on 35 shots (Loss)

Coming up

• 11/1 Boston at Norfolk at5:10 @ New England Sports Village
• 11/1- Salem at Holyoke at 7:30pm @ Olympia Ice Center

Three Stars of the Game

1st Star: Justin Koulalis (Norfolk) – 51 saves, .981 SV%
2nd Star: Ben Giovanella (Norfolk) – 3 goals
3rd Star: Brendan Young (Salem) – 1 goal