Tigers Look to Down Osprey

It was the final game of the regular season for the Osprey and Tigers, and each team was working towards a goal.n the Osprey needed even a single point to keep their hopes of finishing first alive, while the Tigers sought a victory in any way, to move ahead of the Greyhounds for 6th place.

Both teams were missing dangerous players, the Tigers short Matt MacNeil, and the Osprey missing the league's leading scorer, Matt Ryder.  This was not going to be the game many had predicted.

We had a slow start to the game, there wasn't even a shot on goal until the 2 minute mark, and it wasn't a dangerous one at that.  In fact, there weren't any dangerous shots until Matt Baird made a big save on a rebound 5 minutes in.  The first glorious scoring chance however, came with 9:30 to go in the opening frame, when Glenn Boyce dangled half the Tigers while on the power-play, and got himself in alone on Nick Comeau.  Boyce deked to the backhand, cutting back to the forehand as he moved to his left, but Comeau stuck out his right leg to make a very loud pad save.

The Osprey went to the power-play for the second time with just under 4 minutes left in the 1st, but it was the Tigers with the best scoring chance.  After Dan Keays appeared to have the hockey gods on his side as he avoided a tripping call, he went up ice with Ron Beaton.  Keays made the pass at around the hash marks and Beaton one timed the puck towards Baird who had slid across and gotten his glove up to make a huge save. The Osprey would need to send their second PP unit out and when they got on the ice, they made good.  Kurt Thibault made a pass to Nathan Bessey to the right of Comeau, and he quickly stopped the puck and fired along the ice.  The shot went right through the 5-hole for the 1-0 lead at 2:03.  The Osprey would finish the period up a goal and ahead 11-9 in shots.

Early in the second, Darren Ells got the puck in the slot and took a quick shot to the open side of the net but Baird got just a toe on it.  The Osprey couldn't recover the puck as it went to the corner, and Justin Langille got it and put it on net.  Zack Harrison put the rebound in on the blocker side to tie the game at 14:20.

Osprey scoring chances kept coming.  Bobby Sacre made a beauty sauce pass up the middle to a speeding Bessey who cut through the D and got a good shot off, but Comeau was better.

At 7:30 of the 2nd, Glenn Boyce, alone with what seemed like 8 Tigers around him, managed to get the puck through at the side of the net, and it slid across the crease, between the legs of Comeau.  Boyce swung his stick to knock it in but missed, and a Tiger cleared it as Comeau went down.  The puck went to the point where a shot was quickly returned to the net.  Comeau got up to his feet quickly, and made an emphatic blocker save.

Boyce was having himself a shift, and 30 seconds later, he cut through the Tigers D, made a deke on Comeau, but was again denied.  He did draw a penalty though and the Osprey went to their 3rd power play.  They had some chances, Comeau made some saves, the game remained tied.

The clock was ticking down, a shootout looming, when with 1:34 to play, Nathan Bessey again split the D, and he fired a backhand on goal. The puck went off the inside of the far post, blocker side, and came out into the crease, where it was cleared, still tied.

Against the odds, this game was going to overtime, or um, the shootout.

Two things had happened yesterday that were now looking prophetic.  Norm Gallant asked what would happen with the tiebreaker if his team win in a shootout, and before the game, in the room, Kevin Myketyn said "let's get a good shootout win tonight".

The Osprey were up first and Bessey called his own number.  He deked and went backhand, Comeau stoned him.  Darren Ells came up for the Tigers, Baird made a glove save in close to his body.  Kurt Thibault made a deke across the net, Comeau made a big glove save.  Dan Keays came in and went glove, Baird with a big glove save of his own.  The goalies were standing on their heads.  Bobby Sacre up next for the Osprey, comes in from the right, slams on the brakes and goes backhand, Comeau gets him with the left leg. Cobee MacNaughton for the Tigers win, comes in with speed, fired slow to the five hole.  Nope.  Extra shooter time.  The Osprey sent out Taylor McKay.  He had been denied by Comeau a couple times during the game.  He skates straight to the net and takes the shot.  Goal!  He beat Comeau just past the blocker.  

It was now up to Ron Beaton to keep this thing going.  He makes a deke to the backhand, there is room, he shoots, but Baird makes the big pad save as the Osprey win and move into first place, awaiting the results of the Aurora and Lions in the final game of the regular season.  This year is coming down to the wire.