Staff photo by Travis Rosenau New Ulm’s Hunter Larson (21) plays the puck during the third period of a nonconference boys hockey game against Fergus Falls on Saturday afternoon at the New Ulm Civic Center.

NEW ULM — Fergus Falls scored two goals in the third period — the last one coming on an open net score with 11 seconds left in the game when the Eagles were on a six-on-four power play — and went on to top New Ulm 4-2 Saturday in a nonconference boys hockey game at the New Ulm Civic Center.

Brody Nordby and Carson Uecker scored goals for New Ulm (2-2). Talan Helget and Brecken Neuman each had an assist.

Eagles goaltender Jayden Grunst stopped 40 of 44 Otters shots in the game.

Michael Schmidt had two goals for Fergus Falls.

“I was happy with the way that we played in the third period,” New Ulm head coach Ryan Neuman said. “The first two periods were not very solid for us. We had some good positive things happen.

“We tied the game, but then they floated a couple of guys behind us when we got a little over aggressive on a rush that we had to give up that odd-man rush for their go-ahead goal.”

The Eagles, who host Fairmont on Thursday, took a 1-0 lead on Nordby’s power-play score at the 7:33 mark with Helget and Neuman getting assists.

But the Otters, who won 6-3 Friday night in Dodge County, knotted the game on Schmidt’s first goal of the game at the 15:36 mark of the opening period.

Fergus Falls would take a 2-1 lead just over a minute into the second period when Jack Welde turned the Eagles turned the puck over deep in the own zone and he beat Grunst.

Fergus Falls took that 2-1 lead into the third period, but it could have been a lot worse if not for Grunst play in the nets.

The Otters fired 25 shots at Grunst in the second 17 minutes, while New Ulm managed just four on the Otters net.

“Credit to Fergus — they threw pucks on the net,” Neuman said. “I would not say that they were all quality shots that they had, but they did get them to the net and Jayden did a very good job controlling them and keeping them out of the net.”

New Ulm tied the game up at 2-2 at the 7:30 mark of the third period when Uecker broke in on Otters goalie Holden Stenstrom and lifted the puck by him.

“He [Uecker] made a nice move on his goal. If you get him in the open, he is going to score a goal,” Neuman said about the sophomore.

But just over two minutes later, Schmidt got his second goal and lifted the Otters to a 3-2 lead with 9:26 left in the game.

Down by a goal, New Ulm went on a power play with 1:13 left in the game for a 5-on-4 advantage and then pulled Grunst with one minute for two-man advantage. However, Aiden Schake put in an empty-net score.

“We have to control the puck and not give the puck up when we are 6-on-4 knowing that, for one, they can ice it and go get it,” Neuman said. “We gave them a freebie and they got it. They are a good hockey team — they have two good lines.

“We are going to have more losses than what we have had in the past with a tougher nonconference schedule. It is OK as long as we learn from the losses.”