saultsports Photos: Helene Rancourt
BLIND RIVER, Ont. – Notching his third hat trick of the season, Owen King of the Blind River Beavers did his part in lifting his squad to a narrow 5-4 triumph over the Iroquois Falls Storm in a Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League Sunday afternoon match-up at the Blind River Community Centre.
Striking quickly, Iroquois Falls won an early face-off that led to Lucas Willoughby neatly tipping in a John Adlys left point shot past Blind River goaltender Bronx Bodnar, 29 seconds into the contest.
The Beavers came back to tie it on the day’s initial man advantage opportunity when King wired in a sharp wrister from the high slot that eluded Storm starter Justin Sullivan.
Then it was the home side’s turn to take the lead as Lucas Gunner got the last touch off a goal-mouth scramble at 9:17.
Blind River came right back and tacked on another when Wyatt Gibson roofed a shot upstairs while driving through the left circle.
Continuing the offensive outburst in the first period, Sullivan sent a long up-ice feed on a power play, that found Jordan Mayo, who went into the Beavers zone and ripped his chance high over the blocker of Bodnar to bring Iroquois Falls back to within one.
Heading to the middle stanza, the Storm knotted the score once more with another early effort when Landon Trethewey darted out of his own end with speed and led a dash that he finished off with a sizzler into the top left corner at 1:08.
A quick transition counter by the visitors put them in front once more when Adlys flew down the left wing, then sent a feed into the crease that was steered in by Mayo.
The back and forth continued into the third when King collected his second of the contest after collecting a shot block on the left dot and ripping it in at 4:49.
Completing his hat trick five minutes later, King took a pass from YiBin Yoo and zipped it over the pad of Sullivan while dashing down the right side, in what proved to be the game-winner, which was his fifth in his previous eight contests.
King has now found the back of the net 18 times in his past 11 outings, which are the most of any NOJHL player, since the end of November.
Getting their goalkeeper out on a couple of occasions late in regulation, in an effort to knot the affair and send it to overtime, the Storm’s final push failed to provide an equalizer before time expired.
Each team returns to the ice Friday when Iroquois Falls hosts French River and Blind River visits Kirkland Lake in a pair of 7:30 p.m. starts, and on FLOHockey TV.
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