Adelaide vs Perth

Adelaide seized control inside a devastating 59-second span midway through the first period. Julian Friederich opened the scoring at 9:00, finishing from Kolby Johnson and Nathaniel Benson. Before Perth could regroup, Kolby Johnson doubled the lead at 8:01, again set up by Benson with Coy Prevost also drawing an assist. Adelaide led 2-0 at the first intermission, with shots close at 11-12.

The second period belonged entirely to the hosts. Johnson struck again at 8:07 (assist: Benson) to make it 3-0. Nathaniel Benson then scored twice in a 5:10 span — first from Friederich and Johnson at 7:10, then on the power play at 2:00 after Peter Hrehorcak was called for slashing. Adelaide took a 5-0 lead to the second break, outshooting Perth 14-10 in the period.

Perth broke the shutout with 13:34 remaining in the third, Ville Tenosalmi finishing from Jordan Kyros and David Kudla. But Yongen Song restored the five-goal lead with an unassisted strike at 1:47, closing the scoring after a roughing exchange that also saw Song and Friederich collect penalties alongside Perth's Hrehorcak.

Adelaide's two-goal burst inside 59 seconds in the first period gave the hosts a lead they never looked like relinquishing. Perth entered having beaten Adelaide 5-1 just 24 hours earlier (22 August, IceArena Adelaide) but never recovered from the early deficit. The Thunder managed only 22 shots across the first 40 minutes before firing 24 in the third period — a volume driven entirely by the 5-0 scoreline, not territorial control.

• Nathaniel Benson (Adelaide) — 2 goals, 3 assists. A five-point night. Benson had a primary assist on three of Adelaide's first four goals before scoring two himself. The joint-highest individual points tally of any AIHL player in a single game this season.
• Kolby Johnson (Adelaide) — 2 goals, 2 assists. A four-point outing; involved in four of Adelaide's six goals. Johnson finished the season as Adelaide's leading scorer with 32 points, ranked 42nd league-wide.
• Cale Dolan (Adelaide) — 45 saves on 46 shots, .978 save percentage. The decisive factor in keeping Perth scoreless through 40 minutes and the foundation for Adelaide's 5-0 cushion.
• Ville Tenosalmi (Perth) — 1 goal. Scored Perth's lone reply in the third period.

Player of the Match: Nathaniel Benson (Adelaide Adrenaline) — 2 goals, 3 assists.

The 46-30 shot count in Perth's favour (24-5 in the third period alone) flatters the visitors. Through 40 minutes the game was effectively even (Perth 22 shots, Adelaide 25). Perth's third-period shot volume was a product of chasing a five-goal deficit, not sustained control.

Adelaide converted 1 of 2 power-play opportunities (50%), while Perth went 0-for-5 with the man advantage — a decisive special-teams gap. Cale Dolan's .978 save percentage (45 of 46) dwarfed Perth starter Charles Smart's .806 (25 of 31), the single biggest statistical difference in the game.

The result does not affect the finals picture. Perth Thunder finish the regular season in 4th place with a 13-3-2-1-11 record (48 points from 30 games), having clinched a Goodall Cup finals berth before the weekend. They advance to the 2026 Goodall Cup Finals in Melbourne (28-30 August).

Adelaide Adrenaline finish 10th and last with a 3-1-3-0-23 record (14 points from 30 games) — the league's fewest wins and lowest points total, 16 points adrift of 9th-placed Brisbane Lightning.

Perth's form into the finals is mixed at best: a 6-3 loss at Newcastle (16 August), a 5-1 win over Adelaide (22 August), and this 6-1 defeat. One win in their last three, with both losses coming against a side that won only three regulation games all season, is not the momentum any finals-bound team wants.

Adelaide delivered the kind of performance that had eluded them all season — clinical finishing, disciplined penalty killing (5-for-5), and a complete team effort against a playoff-calibre opponent. For Perth, the result is a clear warning sign ahead of the Goodall Cup Finals. Outscored 11-2 across their two games in Adelaide, the Thunder need a sharp reset before they take the ice at O'Brien Icehouse next weekend.