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Sunday, November 09, 2014

Dogs top Kings 5-4 in OT in another wild finish





A tight checking start to this game with not a lot in the way of offensive chances. The Kings would get the first power play of the game on a very odd situation where the back Referee made the call, but neither Referee or anyone on the ice had any clue to the penalty call was made on. In the end the Bulldogs sent Evan Tironese to the box off the bench, but I don't think it was he who was guilty. In the end the Dogs killed it off well, not allowing a shot and controlling the better of the play while down a man. The game remained scoreless through the 10 minute mark, but just 4 seconds after the media time out the Kings opened the scoring when Stephen Hiff won a draw in the Dogs end and went to the net. Jacob Pritchard would feed the puck back to Jeremy Leclerc at the blue line, where he put a quick one-timer on goal that Hiff deflected home past Christopolous to make it 1-0 at 10:08 of the first. The Bulldogs would get a power play and make the most of it, tying the game at 1-1 late in the frame when Evan Tironese walked the line and put a wrister on goal that was deflected past Stefan Wornig by Mitch Makin for his fourth goal in as many games. Scott Clark also drew an assist on the play at 18:31 for a 1-1 tie after 20 minutes and the Kings holding an 11-10 advantage in shots.

The Bulldogs took a 2-1 lead just past the five minute mark of the second on a great effort by Eric Margo to win a battle in the corner and get the puck to the slot to Drew Blackmun who put a shot on net that was stopped by Magnus. He couldn't control the rebound as it went across the crease to a wide open Marcus Russell who tapped it home for his first as a Bulldog to make it 2-1 at 5:24 of the second. The Bulldogs were penalized soon afterwards, and despite lots of pucks on net by the Kings they killed it off to protect the lead. The Kings would answer seconds later to tie the game on the rush as Hunter Findlater sent Stephen Hiff up the left wing where he got a step around the Dogs defence and drove the net and tapped one home past Christopolous to make it 2-2 at the 10:46 mark. The Dogs would answer back less than two minutes later on a great effort by Evan Tironese who went forward on a draw in the Kings end to himself, before dancing in on goal and deking out Magnus for the unassisted marker at the 12:02 mark of the second for a 3-2 lead. The Dogs connected on the power play for the second time on the game on another great effort by Eric Margo to work the puck free to Marcus Russell in the right corner. He would find Drew Blackmun on the half boards, where he set up Brett Stewart at the top of the point where he one-timed one home through the legs Magnus to make it 4-2 Dogs at 14:16 of the second. The Dogs would take that lead into the room and a 22-19 lead in shots after the out shot the Kings 12-8.

The Kings opened the third period on the period on the power play, but they couldn't connect to get within one. They would seize the momentum though, and control a good portion of the play and put plenty of pucks on Christopolous, but they couldn't beat him to make a game of it. The Bulldogs would push back and carry a good portion of the play themselves and have several good chances around Wornig, but they couldn't build on their lead. The Kings would all of a sudden score against the flow of play to make it a brand new game as Kurt Keats found a loose puck after Jarid Lukosevicius had his stick checked on a shot attempt. Billy Christopolous would go for the poke-check, but Keats showed some fantastic hands to pull it around him to make it 4-3 with 4:11 to play in the third. The Kings would push and the Dogs appeared to panic under the pressure as just 1:01 later it was 4-4 when Hunter Findlater put a wrister on goal through traffic that beat a screened Christopolous to tie the game, with Jacob Pritchard picking up the only assist at 16:51 of the third. The Dogs would steel their resolve after that, but the Kings still generated a fantastic chance to go ahead with just 24 seconds to play when Billy Christopolous somehow got over in desperation to stop a Stephen Hiff wrap-around attempt. The Bulldogs would race up ice off the ensuing draw as Kurt Gosselin drove the net only to be stopped by Worning. A crazy scramble would ensue with the Dogs having 2 or 3 chances but they were unable to find the net as the game went to OT. Much like on Friday night in Nanaimo the Dogs controlled the puck and the play off the top, but this time they got the winner as Kurt Gosselin took a pass over the line and made a pretty move to make a defender miss before skating into the slot and ripping a shot past Wornig top corner, short-side over the glove and under the bar for the 5-4 Final, with assists going to Evan Tironese and Chris Schutz at the 37 second mark of overtime.

Final shots favoured the Kings 38-35 with Billy Christopolous picking up the win while Stefan Wornig took the loss. The Dogs went 2 for 3 on the power play while the Kings went 0 for 4.

The teams meet again Tuesday afternoon in Powell River for a 2pm start.






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