Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos

With opening the 2023 Copeland McNamara Cup championship best of seven series with a 4 – 0 shutout loss in Timmins on Thursday, April 20th, the Soo Thunderbirds returned to the ice for game two to face the Timmins Rock on Friday, April 21st at the McIntyre Arena.

Only 2:58 into the first period of game two, Thunderbird forward Wyatt Marlow fires a pass from the back right side of the Rock’s net to Tyler Boudreau to find the five hole of Timmins goaltender Patrick Boivin to give the Soo a 1 – 0 lead. Veteran forward Ethan Novello added the other helper on Boudreau’s second of the postseason. From the left faceoff circle all alone, Soo capatin fires a wrist shot over Boivin’s right shoulder at 9:16 of the third to bring the Thunderbirds lead to 2 – 0. Daniel Beaupre drew the lone assist on Santa Maria’s third of the playoffs.

With 2:24 remaining in game two and Boivin on the Rock’s bench for an extra attacker, Justin Mauro skates over the left side of the blueline to rifle a snapshot into a Timmins empty net to increase the Thunderbirds lead to 3 – 0. Novello notched his second contributor on Mauro’s fourth of the postseason. With Timmins’ net still empty with Boivin on the bench, Jackson Turchan sinks the Soo’s second empty net goal of the period with 55 seconds left in the contest to give the visitors a 4 – 0 shutout win. Veteran Thunderbird Youseff Chaouchi added the helper on Truchan’s seventh of the playoffs. Rock goaltender Patrick Boivin turned away 22 of 24 shots in the 4 – 0 loss while Thunderbird netminder Landon Miller made 24 saves in the Soo’s shutout win to even the series 1 – 1.

Thunderbird coach Cole Jarrett told Saultsports that “great effort tonight out of everyone top to bottom, start to finish. Miller made some huge saves a key points and we capitalized when we had put chances.”

The series now returns to Sault Ste Marie for game three and four on Sunday, April 23rd and Monday, April 24th at the John Rhodes Centre with game times of 7:00 p.m.