East Grand Rapids had no problem producing power play shots tonight in Big Rapids. They just had a problem getting the puck by Cardinal goaltender Bob Butterfield as he turned away 16 power play shots through the first two periods and 27 total shots on the night to get 3 to 2 OT win at home.
Each team look to control the momentum in the first period, but it was East Grand Rapids who dominated, firing 13 shots (7 of those were power play shots). It was Big Rapids who got on the board first though, as Jordan Defever skated through the crease and deflected a Billy McMullen shot to light the lamp at the 7:12 mark. EGR continued to pressure Big Rapids, firing power play shot after power play shot and finally at the 4:13 mark Pioneer senior defenseman Cory Domin got a power play goal with the assist coming from Joe Glendening. Big Rapids took two penalties in the first and after a fast paced first period it was all even BR 1 – EGR 1.
There was no letup in the 2nd period as EGR fired 9 more power play shots, 12 total shots for the period to Big Rapid's 9 shots, 3 of which were on the power play. Defensive efforts by both teams remained aggressive and created a few excellent scoring opportunities, but it was Cardinal Michael Hickson's pass to Tom Hancock on a "give-n-go" that gave the Cardinals a 2 to 1 lead. Big Rapids took two more penalties in the period to East's one but took a 2 to 1 lead into the locker room.
The third period was much different than the first two, as the shot count was down (EGR 4 and BR1). Play stayed aggressive as both teams were hungry for a goal. EGR kept the pressure on and at the 7:51 mark, sophomore Drew O'Brien found the back of the net on a nice feed from senior Ekco Morgan and junior Brandon Hughes to tie the game at two each. The next 7 minutes wasn't pretty as both teams tired and looked for one last goal to get the win. East Grand Rapids had an excellent scoring opportunity taken away on a nice defensive effort by BR's Hickson but to the delight of Pioneer fans, a EGR player returned the favor at the 1:30 mark as BR's Hancock streaked to the net all alone but was unable to get a shot off. Aggressive play continued, but after 3 periods it was BR 2 – EGR 2.
After a very short break, eight minutes showed up on the clock as the teams headed into an extra period of play. OT was all Big Rapids as the Cardinals kept pressure on the Pioneer's and produced 3 to 4 quick scoring opportunities. As play continued, EGR could not manage to clear the puck from their zone as the Cardinal defensive line was just too much. Midway through the OT at the 4:20 mark, Brandon Madaj got the game winner as Pioneer goalie Ian McDonald scrambled to make the save. McMullen and Defever both assisted on the goal. EGR goalie McDonald turned away 18 shots but it was Cardinal Bob Butterfield who got the OT win.
Each team look to control the momentum in the first period, but it was East Grand Rapids who dominated, firing 13 shots (7 of those were power play shots). It was Big Rapids who got on the board first though, as Jordan Defever skated through the crease and deflected a Billy McMullen shot to light the lamp at the 7:12 mark. EGR continued to pressure Big Rapids, firing power play shot after power play shot and finally at the 4:13 mark Pioneer senior defenseman Cory Domin got a power play goal with the assist coming from Joe Glendening. Big Rapids took two penalties in the first and after a fast paced first period it was all even BR 1 – EGR 1.
There was no letup in the 2nd period as EGR fired 9 more power play shots, 12 total shots for the period to Big Rapid's 9 shots, 3 of which were on the power play. Defensive efforts by both teams remained aggressive and created a few excellent scoring opportunities, but it was Cardinal Michael Hickson's pass to Tom Hancock on a "give-n-go" that gave the Cardinals a 2 to 1 lead. Big Rapids took two more penalties in the period to East's one but took a 2 to 1 lead into the locker room.
The third period was much different than the first two, as the shot count was down (EGR 4 and BR1). Play stayed aggressive as both teams were hungry for a goal. EGR kept the pressure on and at the 7:51 mark, sophomore Drew O'Brien found the back of the net on a nice feed from senior Ekco Morgan and junior Brandon Hughes to tie the game at two each. The next 7 minutes wasn't pretty as both teams tired and looked for one last goal to get the win. East Grand Rapids had an excellent scoring opportunity taken away on a nice defensive effort by BR's Hickson but to the delight of Pioneer fans, a EGR player returned the favor at the 1:30 mark as BR's Hancock streaked to the net all alone but was unable to get a shot off. Aggressive play continued, but after 3 periods it was BR 2 – EGR 2.
After a very short break, eight minutes showed up on the clock as the teams headed into an extra period of play. OT was all Big Rapids as the Cardinals kept pressure on the Pioneer's and produced 3 to 4 quick scoring opportunities. As play continued, EGR could not manage to clear the puck from their zone as the Cardinal defensive line was just too much. Midway through the OT at the 4:20 mark, Brandon Madaj got the game winner as Pioneer goalie Ian McDonald scrambled to make the save. McMullen and Defever both assisted on the goal. EGR goalie McDonald turned away 18 shots but it was Cardinal Bob Butterfield who got the OT win.
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