TROIS RIVIERES, QC — The Worcester Railers (32-30-5-3, 72 points) picked up an important two points against the Trois-Rivières Lions (29-30-5-3, 66 points) on Friday night, winning by the final score of 3-2 in front of 2,285 fans at the Colisée Vidéotron.
The Railers will play the Lions again at the Colisée Vidéotron on Saturday at 3 p.m.
The game was a back-and-forth battle, with both teams exchanging goals in the first and second periods. The Lions’ forward Jonathan Yantsis (1st) and defenseman Miguël Tourigny (9th) found the back of the net, as did the Railers’ forward Ashton Calder (23rd) and Reece Newkirk (8th).
The Railers took the lead with a screened shot from the point by defenseman Trevor Cosgrove (12th). The game ended with a flurry of saves from Railers’ goalie Henrik Tikkanen, who held off the Lions’ 6-on-5 advantage.
The Lions started strong in the first period, cycling the puck after a clearing attempt from the Railers. Forward Anthony Beauregard’s pass from behind the net found a wide-open Yantsis in the left slot, who fired a hard shot past Railers’ goalie Henrik Tikkanen’s glove side.
The Railers responded with high-danger opportunities on Lions’ goalie Strauss Mann. They evened the score after a puck battle on the far-side corner boards, with forward Ashton Calder sneaking a goal past Mann’s high glove side. The Railers led the period in shots on goal 7-4.
The second period was uneventful for the first 10 minutes despite both teams trading opportunities back and forth. The Lions regained their lead after a snipe on the rush from defenseman Miguël Tourigny that went past Tikkanen’s glove. The Railers looked to make the game even on a power play opportunity thanks to a slashing call on forward Justin Ducharme.
Railers Forward Reece Newkirk would score on a beautiful shot from the top of the left circle after faking the initial shot to freeze Mann and beat him on his glove again. The Lions would lead the period and game in shots on goal 11-6 and 15-13.
The game was heading down to the wire when defenseman Trevor Cosgrove broke the deadlock with a shot from the point and bodies out in front. The shot came after a few passes back and forth to defenseman Connor Welsh at the top of their blue line, which went by Mann’s blocker side.
Tikkanen made phenomenal saves, including a cross-ice one-timer from Tourigny. The Railers ended up with the 3-2 win and picked up two points. The Lions led the final period and game with shots on goal 19-6 and 34-19.
Notes:
Third Star: Jonathan Yantsis (1-0-1) Second Star: Justin Ducharme (0-1-1) First Star: Henrik Tikkanen (.941 SV%)… Railers Goaltender Henrik Tikkanen made 32 saves on 34 shots faced (.941 SV%)….
Lions Goaltender Strauss Mann made 16 saves on 19 shots faced (.842 SV%)… Railers Captain Anthony Repaci returned from injury…
Railers Forward Reece Newkirk played in his 100th game with the Railers… The Railers went 1-for-4 on the power play and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill.