Box Score
SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. – A pair of goals in the third period, which included an extra-attacker power-play goal, were not enough to help the Alaska Nanooks overcome their hosts, as they fell 4-3 in the opening game of their best-of-three series against the Lake Superior State Lakers on Friday night at Taffy Abel Arena.
For the third straight game, junior center
Adam Henderson tickled the twine to give the Nanooks the early lead at 4:55 of the first period. Senior forward
Ron Meyers chipped the puck to his linemate
Chad Gehon in the neutral zone, who sent a perfect pass to Henderson in the high slot from the right boards. Henderson slipped through two LSSU defenders and lifted the puck past their goalie Kevin Kapalka to make it 1-0 with his sixth goal of the season.
A cross-checking minor to Henderson later in the frame set the Lakers up for their second power play of the contest, and they made the most of it, notching the game-tying goal at 17:10. Domenic Monardo got the puck on his stick in the slot and beat Greenham with a quick release to tie the game while on the power play and even the score 1-1.
Two minutes and 11 seconds later, LSSU doubled-up with an even-strength score, when Laker defenseman Zach Trotman fired a wrist shot from the right point. The shot sailed through traffic and high over Greenham's right shoulder into the back corner of the net, giving the Lakers the 2-1 edge at 19:21.
Alaska seemed to be gaining some momentum early in the second period, after a minor to Kellan Lain gave them their second man-advantage opportunity of the night. Kapalka stopped both shot attempts and helped his teammates keep the advantage.
It took just 42 seconds to convert the successful kill's momentum into a two-goal advantage, as Buddy Robinson made it 3-1 at 4:52. Ben Powers fired a shot from near the top of the left circle that hit Greenham right in the center of his chest. Unfortunately for the Nanooks the rebound escaped him, right as Robinson jumped on it and tapped it through the Nanook netiminder's pads.
Despite having to kill off two of their own penalties through the middle of the period, Alaska kept the pressure on and created momentum of their own after outshooting the Lakers 11-8 in the second frame.
Coming back from the second intermission, the Blue and Gold wasted little time chipping away at their deficit with a goal just 14 seconds into the third period. Sophomore
Colton Beck sent the puck along the boards and below the goal line to his classmate
Cody Kunyk, who held it at bay from a cluster of defenders right behind the Lakers' net. Kunyk sent a clever feed to junior
Andy Taranto, who was camped at the left post and tucked the puck past Kapalka to make it 3-2.
Things were looking up for the Nanooks as the score got them mentally and emotionally back in the game; however, Lain took the wind from their sails 46 seconds later, when he beat Greenham from a tough angle and regained LSSU's two-goal advantage. Lain's shot from the right boards and just above the goal line snuck underneath a sprawling Greenham and ricocheted off the inside corner of the left post to bounce across the goal line at 1:00 of the third period.
The teams battled back and forth for the majority of the rest of the period but it wasn't until the waning minutes that Alaska pulled Greenham in favor of an extra attacker and their efforts were rewarded. Down but not out, the Nanooks pulled within one, when Beck found the back of the net at 18:13 for his 13
th of the year. Henderson and Taranto assisted on the score that made it 4-3 and gave the visitors a chance to tie the game and force overtime.
After getting the puck deep in their offensive zone, Greenham raced to the bench for a second time as a sixth Nanook took the ice. Try as they might, Alaska could not repeat Beck's feat and came up short in their attempt to net the equalizer.
For the game, the Nanooks outshot the Lakers 39-30 and both teams finished 1-for-4 on the power play.
Greenham turned aside 26 Laker shots and Kapalka had 36 saves between the pipes at the other end.
Trailing 1-0 in the best-of-three series, the Nanooks are in a do-or-die situation and must now win tomorrow's meeting to keep their season alive and force a third and deciding game on Sunday. The teams meet Saturday night at 7:05 p.m. EST (3:05 p.m. AKST).
