WATERTOWN SHAMROCKS (17-14-0-1) vs. NORTH IOWA BULLS (14-16-1-3)
PRAIRIE LAKES ICE ARENA | NAHL REGULAR SEASON | GAME #33 AND #34 | JANUARY 23 AND 24, 2026
The Watertown Shamrocks will host the North Iowa Bulls on Friday and Saturday at 7:00 p.m. in Prairie Lakes Ice Arena. It will be the Shamrocks’ thirty-third and thirty-four regular-season games of the 2025-26 season. This is the second regular-season matchup between these teams.
This weekend, the Shamrocks will be hosting their Green Out games. Fans are encouraged to wear green, and the players will be wearing the green away jerseys.
THIS SEASON:
So far this season, the Shamrocks have gone 1-1 against the Bulls in their two games.
In the first set of games, the Shamrocks and the Bulls split the series at Mason City Arena. On Friday night, Watertown came out first with a goal, and in the second period, North Iowa evened the score at one. The Shamrocks then pulled away in the third with goals from Boren, Owen Fask, and Grady Dimberio to secure a 4-1 win. On Saturday, the Bulls went up 2-0 in the second, with the Shamrocks storming back 3-2 to end the period. In the third, Owen Chartier tied the game, but the Bulls scored with 45 seconds left to take a 4-3 win.
WATERTOWN SHAMROCKS:
The Shamrocks will enter this division matchup after dropping two games against the St. Cloud Norsemen, 3-2 on Friday and 7-3 on Saturday.
On Friday, both teams were held scoreless in the first 20 minutes. In the second, the Shamrocks struck first with a goal from Edvins Berzins, with St. Cloud tying it up quickly. Zach Boren secured the Shamrocks the lead right at the end. Watertown held strong in the third, but St. Cloud scored the tying goal to send the game to overtime. After a scoreless overtime, Owen Chartier scored the Shamrocks’ lone shootout goal, but the Norsemen got two to take the win. On Saturday, the Shamrocks started the scoring, but could not keep the lead. Vincent Curasi got the first goal of the game, but the Norsemen had two to follow that. In the third, the Norsemen pulled ahead and took the game 7-3.
The Shamrocks have won three of their last five games and currently sit in fourth place in the Central Division.
NORTH IOWA BULLS:
The Bulls will enter this division matchup after splitting two home games with the Minot Minotauros, 4-3 on Friday and 2-3 on Saturday.
On Friday, the Minotauros struck on the power play in the first period. In the second, North Iowa scored two goals to pull ahead, but Minot rallied back in the third to tie the game 2-2. After an unsuccessful overtime, the game went to a shootout. Minot scored on their last two shootout attempts to take a 3-2 win. On Saturday, the Minotuaros started strong with two goals in the first period. North Iowa stormed back in the second with three goals from two different goal scorers to make it 3-2. Each team scored one more in the third period, making it a 4-3 final for North Iowa.
The Bulls have won two of their last five games and currently sit in fifth place in the Central Division.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
SHAMROCKS:
- Zach Boren currently leads the team with 19 goals and 35 points, and is second with 16 assists. He had one goal on the weekend.
- Owen Chartier has 13 goals, 8 assists, and 21 points on the season. He scored the shootout goal this weekend.
- Javok Matijevic scored a goal and had an assist this weekend.
BULLS:
- Fugi Suzuki leads the team with 38 points and 18 goals, and has 20 assists this season.
- Michael Malatino has 32 points on the season, with 14 goals and 18 assists.
- Vitaliy Korolyuk has 32 points this year, with 12 goals and 22 assists.
By Lily Schutzehofer
Photo by Sarah Cooper