Game 2, Western Conference Championship Series
(1) St. Marys Lincolns 3
(2) Chatham Maroons 4
(best-of-7 series tied 1-1)
Gillen’s late goal spoils Lincolns rally; Maroons tie series
Defenceman Carter Gillen‘s second goal of the game with 3:36 left in the third period snapped a 3-3 tie and lifted the Maroons (9-5) to the series-tying win in front of 1065 fans at Chatham Memorial Arena.
The Lincolns (9-5) had rallied from a 3-1 deficit with two third period goals before Gillen’s late game heroics.
VIDEO: Carter Gillen scores late game winner, Maroons tie series
Gannon Hunter (W, 9-5) made 36 saves for the Maroons. Nico Armellin (L, 3-4) stopped 37 of 41 shots for the Lincolns.
First period goals from Connor Hunt (3) and Brody Gillis (7) gave the Maroons a 2-0 lead before Ryan Hodkinson scored his team-leading 9th goal of the playoffs for the Lincolns as the period ended 2-1. Gillen’s first goal of the game (2nd of the playoffs) was the only goal of the second period, giving the Maroons a 3-1 lead heading into the final frame. Lincoln Moore (5) scored early in the third to cut the lead to 3-2, then Ryan Cornfield tied the game with his 3rd goal of the playoffs, setting the stage for Gillen.
Lincolns head coach Jeff Bradley pointed to his team’s slow start as the critical factor in the loss. “We knew they would have a good push with their first game back at home, but we weren’t able to match it early. I thought we showed a lot fight in the third period to get ourselves back in the game, but we put ourselves one mistake away from losing with our slow start, and unfortunately that mistake happened with four minutes left.”
The Lincolns have lost three straight on the road, with their away record dropping to 2-4 in the playoffs. The Maroons improved their home record to 7-1.
Game 3 will take place Tuesday night at the Pyramid R.C. in St. Marys. Game time is 7:30pm.
The Eastern Conference Championship Series resumes Tuesday at 7:00pm when the #1 St. Catharines Falcons host the #3 Fort Erie Meteors at the Seymour-Hannah S.E.C. in St. Catharines. That series is tied 1-1.
