Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos
After opening the quarter-final series with a thrilling 4-3 overtime victory on March 20th, the Soo Thunderbirds returned to the McIntyre Arena on March 21st looking to build on their 1-0 series lead against the Timmins Rock. However, it was the Rock who responded in a big way, skating to a convincing 6-1 win to even the best-of-seven series at 1-1.
Timmins opened the scoring in the first period at 10:13, as Evan Katic notched his first goal of the postseason, assisted by Maxfeld Shin, giving the Rock a 1-0 lead.
The Rock carried that momentum into the second period, striking just 26 seconds in. Maxx Hamelin scored his second of the playoffs, with assists from Edan Etheridge and Lucas Lowe, to make it 2-0. The Thunderbirds answered shortly after on the powerplay at 1:53, when Issy Parsa buried his first of the postseason, assisted by Owen Murphy and Aiden Atkinson, cutting the deficit to 2-1.
Timmins regained control later in the period on the man advantage. At 14:24, Kaeden McArthur scored his second of the playoffs, assisted by Maxx Hamelin and Braedyn Cyr, restoring the Rock’s two-goal lead at 3-1 heading into the third.
The third period saw Timmins take over completely. Just 26 seconds in, McArthur struck again for his second goal of the game and third of the postseason, assisted by Hamelin, making it 4-1. The Rock continued to capitalize on the powerplay at 5:51, when Thomas Beard scored his first of the playoffs, with assists from Braedyn Cyr and Evan Katic, extending the lead to 5-1. Hamelin capped off a dominant performance at 12:59, scoring his third goal of the postseason and recording his fifth point of the game, assisted by McArthur, to seal the 6-1 victory.
In goal, Nathan Maguire faced heavy pressure for the Thunderbirds, stopping 43 of 48 shots before Ryan Hicks came on in relief, making 5 saves on 6 shots. For Timmins, Frédéric Cousineau was solid, turning aside 22 of 23 shots in the win.
With the series now tied 1-1, the action shifts to Sault Ste. Marie for games three and four. The Thunderbirds will host the Rock on Tuesday, March 24th and Wednesday, March 25th, with both games set for 7:00 p.m. puck drops.
