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Pronghorns lose in triple OT |
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Written by Tony Clarke
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Sunday, March 08 2009, 11:53 PM |
It was like two fighters slugging it out to the very end, with one eventually landing the knockout blow.
Unfortunately for the University of Lethbridge men’s hockey team, they were not the ones standing in the end as UBC forward Brennan Sonne beat Pronghorn netminder Scott Bowles with 16:14 left in the third overtime to give the Thunderbirds a 4-3 win and a trip to the next round of the playoffs.
It would take three overtime games Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Nicholas Sheran Arena for the University of British Columbia to earn a 2-1 win in their best-of-three Canada West Conference men’s hockey playoff series against Lethbridge
For the ’Horns, it’s another season ending earlier then they hoped.
Lethbridge would hit the scoresheet first in the opening frame when Dustin Moore finished off a breakaway by beating UBC goalie Francois Thuot over the glove hand to put Lethbridge up 1-0. UBC tied the game at 1-1 before the period ended.
Ryan Pottruff gave Lethbridge a 2-1 lead early in the second period when he blasted a slapshot past Thuot.
There would be no more scoring in the second period, but the third period got wild.
UBC took a 3-2 lead when they scored two goals a minute apart, the first netted at the 7:29 mark.
But Moore evened the game at 3-3 a little more than minute after UBC took the lead when his slapshot beat Thuot.
Both clubs battled hard in the closing minutes of the third to net the winner, but both goalies shut the door.
The stellar goaltending continued throughout the first two periods overtime, as each team had their share of scoring chances, but couldn’t find the marker to send them into the next round.
The biggest stop came late in the second overtime when Bowles, while on his side after making the initial save, robbed a UBC shooter looking at an open net by getting the paddle of stick on the puck, which he received a standing ovation for.
Bowles would make several more saves of the highlight reel variety in extra time before Sonne finally ended the marathon and the ’Horns season.
UBC outshot Lethbridge 51-46. Playing their last game in a Pronghorn uniform, which many fans in the stands described as one of the best university men’s games they’ve seen, were Justin Kanigan and Tyler Stella.
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