When the Penticton Vees scored with 19.5 seconds remaining in the third period to tie Game 3 versus the Trail Smoke Eaters, most of the air and optimism of the 2,200 fans was sucked out of the Cominco Arena.
But relinquishing a 3-2 lead in the dying seconds didn’t deter the Smoke Eaters, who came out in the first overtime period with conviction. After the two teams traded chances, Smokies forward Kyle Howarth broke over the Vees blue line, dropped the puck to Carter Jones who wired a low shot through traffic that beat Vees goalie Adam Scheel stick side for the 4-3 OT victory just 95 seconds into the extra frame.
The victory was crucial for a Trail team that was on the verge of falling behind 3-0. Instead, the Smokies cut the Vees Interior Division semifinal series lead to 2-1.
The Vees jumped out to a 1-0 lead a minute and 20 seconds into the first period. The Smokies defencemen pinched, and the Vees’ Wyatt Sloboshan chipped the puck to Owen Sillinger who broke in on a clear breakaway and beat Marcoux five hole.
Trail kept grinding and after Penticton’s Ocean Wiesblatt was sent off for tripping, Blaine Caton banged in a rebound off a Jeremy Lucchini point shot to tie it at 1-1.
Less than a minute later, Trail’s Seth Barton took a hooking penalty, putting the Vees on a power play that has been humming along at an almost a 50 per-cent clip. But the Smoke Eaters killed off the penalty, and when Vees defenceman James Miller tripped up Carter Jones in the neutral zone at 15:49 the Smokies went on another extra-man advantage. The Smokies worked the puck into the high slot and Andre Ghantous fired a shot that Levi Glasman deflected up and over Scheel for a 2-1 Trail lead with 2:42 left in the opening period.
The Smokies carried the play in the early going of the second, but Scheel was solid and the Vees found momentum midway through the period. Marcus Mitchell controlled the puck behind the Trail net, and set up Jared Nash on the doorstep to tie the game 2-2 at 12:07.
The teams traded chances, but Trail had the best opportunity in the final minute when Scheel was down and out but a Vees defender stopped an Andre Ghantous shot heading for the open net to keep the match tied. The Vees held a 24-21 edge in shots through two periods with both teams staying disciplined through the middle frame.
The teams were tentative early in the third, but Trail kept pressing, and finally capitalized just after the referees’ break. Howarth sent Braeden Tuck streaking down the left wing on a 2-on-1 with Jeremy Lucchini, and the Calgary native saucered a perfect pass that Lucchini one timed past the Vees netminder for a 3-2 Trail lead with 8:48 left in regulation.
Trail effectively neutralized the Vees attack, but a penalty to Tyler Ghirardosi for a hit-to-the-head with just under five minutes to play gave Penticton a prime opportunity to tie it. But unlike the previous game, in which the Vees capitalized on 5-of-7 power-play chances, the Smoke Eaters were resilient and killed the penalty.
However, with Scheel on the bench for an extra attacker, the Vees quick puck movement had the Smokies on their heels in their own end. Taylor Ward worked the puck down low to Massimo Rizzo behind the Trail goal and Rizzo made a quick pass to Jonny Tychonick in the circle who fired it over Marcoux’s blocker to tie the game 3-3 with less than 20 seconds on the clock.
Penticton outshot Trail 33-31. The Smokies went 2-for-4 on the power play while Penticton was 0-for-3.
Smoke Eaters forward and Bemidji commit, Jones (1G, 1A), earned the game’s first star, Lucchini (1G, 1A) was second star, and the Vees Tychonick third star.
Game 4 of the Interior Division semifinal goes tonight at 7 p.m. at the Cominco Arena.