Newcastle Northstars erased an early deficit with a seven-goal second period and cruised to a 10-1 regulation win over the Sydney Ice Dogs. The home side flipped a 1-0 hole into a 7-1 cushion by the second intermission and never looked back.
Sydney opened the scoring in the first period to take a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes. Newcastle answered with seven unanswered goals in the middle frame, then added three more in the third to close out the 10-1 final.
The 7-0 second period was the decisive swing, turning a tight game into a rout. Newcastle's nine-goal margin came entirely from that explosive middle frame and a steady third-period finish.