Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos
On Friday, January 17th, the Soo Thunderbirds (17-17-1-2) hosted the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners (4-29-0-2) at the John Rhodes Centre in Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League action. The Thunderbirds, sitting seventh in the standings, held a 2-1 advantage in their previous three meetings with the twelfth-place Gold Miners earlier this season.
The game remained scoreless through the first period as both goaltenders, Lincoln Mellenthin for the Thunderbirds and Caleb Shuker for the Gold Miners, showcased their skill.
At 8:56 of the second period, the Thunderbirds broke the deadlock. Aiden Atkinson, stationed along the right boards at the Kirkland Lake blueline, delivered a crisp pass to veteran forward James Legler. Legler broke in alone and fired a shot under Shuker’s glove for his eighth goal of the season, giving the Soo a 1-0 lead.
The Gold Miners responded at 11:44 of the second. In a scramble in front of the Thunderbirds’ net, Soo goaltender Mellenthin was down and out, allowing Justin Angeles to bury his first goal of the season and tie the game 1-1. Jeremy Schoenborn earned the lone assist on Angeles’ tally.
Early in the third period, the Thunderbirds regained their lead. At 1:50, veteran forward Jacob Smith capitalized on a power play, firing a shot from the left faceoff circle over Shuker’s glove for his 13th goal of the season. Nate Dugwell notched the assist on the play, making it 2-1 for the Soo.
However, Kirkland Lake wouldn’t back down. At 6:55, Jeremy Schoenborn found a loose puck in front of the Soo net and lifted it over Mellenthin to tie the game once again, 2-2. Zachary Machoian and Aaron Leenaars picked up assists on Schoenborn’s third goal of the season.
Overtime heroics in the extra frame, the Thunderbirds delivered the final blow. Aiden Atkinson, positioned at the top of the right faceoff circle, sent a cross-ice pass to Bryan Fenlon. Fenlon, stationed at the top of the left circle, unleashed a powerful slapshot that beat Shuker, securing a 3-2 overtime victory for the Soo.
The win improved the Thunderbirds’ record to 18-17-1-2, while the Gold Miners fell to 4-29-0-3.
Thunderbird coach Jamie Henderson told Saultsports that “I think we have to have the mindset that every night will be a battle in this league. We’ve played two games in almost a month with the layover, so we new rust would be a factor, but I thought for the most part we took the play to them, we just didn’t finish when we had opportunities.”
“Tomorrow is another tough opponent they are playing their best hockey of the season, so we’ll need to be ready and execute a bit better,” added Henderson.
Visit Freeze Frame Photos by Bob Davies photo gallery of the Gold Miners versus Thunderbirds in NOJHL action.
The Thunderbirds will return to action on Saturday, January 18th, as they host the Iroquois Falls Storm at 7:00 p.m. at the John Rhodes Centre.