After sweeping Hamilton in the opening round of the playoffs, the Huron Perth Lakers AAA Bantam team had the opportunity to complete a 2nd round sweep of the Kitchener Jr Rangers on Tuesday night.
In the previous 2 games, the Festival Inn Lakers had outscored their opponents by a total score of 9-2 & looked to be the much superior team, dominating with their powerplay & penalty kill units. Last night, however, was a different story. Kitchener was prepared to battle to the end in hopes of extending their season by at least another game. The Lakers didn't mount much of an effort in response, appearing unorganized & confused for the better part of the game.
Mac Nichol (Listowel) opened the scoring for the Lakers, with
Garrett Meurs (Ripley) assisting on the goal. The Rangers came back with 2 straight goals, the first just as a powerplay ended & the other a powerplay marker to take a 2-1 lead late into the 3rd period.
Austin Spencer (Clinton) tallied on the powerplay for the Lakers to draw even after finding the puck on his stick during a goal mouth scramble.
Jackson Martin (Listowel) assisted on the goal as the rugged winger continues his impressive play after missing a large chunk of the season due to injury.
With the teams tied at the end of regulation, a 5 minute sudden death overtime period was in store. The Lakers seemed to finally catch their stride & created several scoring opportunities in the extra frame. But the solid play of James Cameron in the Kitchener net stymied the Lakers offensive barrage. With just under a minute to go, the Lakers pulled their goalie for the extra attacker hoping to catch Kitchener on their heels & snag the golden goal. With 2 seconds left on the clock, Nichol fired a bullet off the inside of the post that somehow stayed out. Unfortunately, the final buzzer sounded & Kitchener was able to sneak out of town with a 2-2 tie, forcing Game 4 in Kitchener on Thursday night.