The Flin Flon Bombers went persistence hunting Friday night, winning a triple-overtime epic over the Battlefords North Stars and keeping their playoff hopes alive for at least one more game.
The Stars kicked off the scoring on the powerplay, with Macgregor Sinclair scoring after Chrystopher Collin was given a two-and-ten for a hit to the head.
Battlefords extended the lead to two midway through the second, courtesy of another goal on the powerplay – with Donavan Houle-Villeneuve in the box, Quintin Loon-Stewardson beat Bomber netminder Gabriel Waked.
Facing a two-goal deficit and as little as 30 minutes left in their season, the Bomber offence woke up. After Battlefords’ Kaden Boser received a 10-minute misconduct for a hit to the head, Bomber Brandson Hein found the net with a powerplay goal of his own late in the period to halve the lead. Then, early in the third, Isaac Jackson dented the twine with his first goal of the playoffs to tie things up.
Sinclair ruined the party for the Bombers midway through the period with his second goal of the game, restoring the Battlefords lead, but the Bombers, once again on the brink of elimination, pulled their goalie in the final minute of the game, throwing six forwards on the ice in an all-out assault on Stars goalie Joel Grzybowski.
It worked. After keeping the puck away from the defenders’ snapping sticks, Nate Hooper banged the puck in with less than 30 seconds on the clock, sending the game to overtime.
The first and second overtime came and went with no heroes stepping forward. Waked stood tall through a full 100-plus minutes of hockey, saving 28 shots in overtime alone. Flin Flon was outshot 23-9 through the first two overtime periods.
Finally, at nearly 1 a.m. Flin Flon time, there was a breakthrough. After another goalmouth scramble in the Stars' end, the puck popped behind Gryzbowski. Hooper was credited with his second goal of the game, netting both the game-tying and eventual game-winning goal.
Grzybowski took the L after making 44 saves. Waked stopped 55 pucks through 107:55 of work, his highest save total since joining the Bombers in January.
Calvon Boots left the ice for the Bombers late in the second period and did not return.
Elsewhere in the SJHL, the Melfort Mustangs are the first team in for the league semifinals, eliminating Kindersley with a 3-2 Game 5 win. Estevan scored a late goal to tie their game with Humboldt at 2, then got a double-overtime winner from Tanner Manz to force their own Game 6. The Bruins are currently behind 3-2 in their series with the Broncos.
Nipawin staved off an upset against the Yorkton Terriers with a 4-1 win at the Cage, saving their season, pulling them to a 3-2 series deficit and sending their series to a Game 6 Sunday.
Game 6 of the Bombers/Stars series will be played Sunday night at the Whitney Forum.
