SAULT STE. MARIE, Ont. – A Gavin Killoran goal on a second period man advantage held up as the game-winner as the Soo Thunderbirds went on to hold off the Timmins Rock 3-2 Tuesday evening in Game 3 of their Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League quarter-final at John Rhodes Community Centre.
That gives Sault Ste. Marie a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven match-up heading into Game 4 Wednesday back at John Rhodes at 7 p.m., and on FLOHockey.tv.
Trading tallies on a pair of power plays saw each side convert offensively in the back half of the first period.
Timmins captain Braedyn Cyr put the visitors on the board at 15:31 as he snapped a shot past Thunderbirds’ netminder Nathan Maguire from between the circles.
Answering that while on a five-on-three, the Soo’s Aiden Atkinson took a pass on the right side from Declan Gallivan and promptly hammered it by Rock netminder Frédéric Cousineau.
A solid start to the second stanza saw Owen Murphy put the home side in front when he guided in a play put to the net from the corner by Gianmarco Mastroianni.
Building on that, the T-Birds made it 3-1 thanks to Killoran, who
clicked while they were up a skater as he took a nice dish from Adam Pszeniczny and wired it upstairs on Cousineau at 8:53.
The fast-paced outing saw the Soo carry their two-goal cushion into the second intermission.
Inching closer in the third, Ryan Armitage clicked for Timmins at 7:23 as he found himself all alone on front and after taking a backhand pass from Maxx Hamelin, pumped it over the blocker of Maguire for his first of the postseason.
The Rock pushed hard to tie it in the late going with their netminder out for an extra attacker, but the Soo held firm to secure the hard-fought victory.
No. 4 Timmins Rock vs. No. 5 Soo Thunderbirds
Game 1: Thunderbirds 4, Rock 3 (OT)
Game 2: Rock 6, Thunderbirds 1
Game 3: Thunderbirds 3, Rock 2
Game 4: Wednesday, March 25 @ Soo 7 p.m. (John Rhodes Community Centre)
Game 5: Friday, March 27 @ Timmins 7 p.m. (McIntyre Arena)
Game 6*: Sunday, March 29 @ Soo 7 p.m. (John Rhodes Community Centre)
Game 7*: Tuesday, March 31 @ Timmins 7 p.m. (McIntyre Arena)
*-if necessary
Soo leads best-of-seven series 2-1
