Contacts captain Kade Kehoe scored with a minute left in overtime to give Saskatoon a 4-3 win over the Battlefords AAA Stars Thursday night at the Schroh Arena in SMAAAHL action.
It was Kehoe's team-leading 23rd goal of the season. He is tied for eighth in SMAAAHL scoring with 49 points.
The Contacts jumped on the Stars early in the first period. Brayden Uhrich tried a wrap-around, but Battlefords goaltender Rylan Toth disrupted the play. Toth made another nice save shortly after. He slid to his right to stop Erik Climenhaga's one-timer attempt.
The Stars had a chance to break the deadlock. Josh LaFramboise dropped the puck to Spencer Bast after he crossed the blue line. Contacts goaltender Brock Hamm steered Bast's shot away with his blocker.
Toth kept up his strong play during a Battlefords penalty. With Troy Gerein in the box for slashing, Climenhaga hit the post with a backhand attempt. Toth stopped all four shots on the power play.
Just as the penalty expired, Stars forward Brandon Lesko was sent in on a break with Contacts on his heels. He managed two shots on Hamm, but the Saskatoon netminder kept the puck out of the net.
The Stars kept up the pressure with less than two minutes remaining in the period. Bryce Neufeld absorbed a check from Climenhaga and continued to the net. Neufeld's backhand attempt was stopped by Hamm.
Midway through the second, the teams traded chances with Contacts forward Jaden Baier in the box for boarding. LaFramboise beat Hamm, but he did not beat the post. During the same power play, Toth stopped Garrett Pilon, who had a couple of whacks at the puck after the save.
The Stars opened the scoring just after the power play expired. After a faceoff win in the attacking zone, the puck was worked around to Mason Benning. His shot beat Hamm from the point with 10:20 to play.
The Contacts tied the game while both teams had a man in the penalty box. Jordan Borstmayer tipped Connor Sych's shot past Toth with 7:26 remaining in the second.
Saskatoon took the lead less than two minutes later. With Toth leaning to his right, Jordan Walls snapped the puck past Toth on his left from a bad angle.
The Stars thought they tied the game on a power play with 4:35 left in the second. Bast walked in front from the corner and shot the puck on net. He thought he beat Hamm and began to celebrate. When Hamm got up after the Stars started to celebrate, the puck was in front of him. Hamm and the Contacts protested with the referees that the knob of his goal stick bulged the twine, not the puck. After the three officials discussed the goal, it was waved off.
Battlefords tied the game four minutes into the third period on a goal late in their power play. Layne Young centred the puck from behind the Contacts' net to Graham Gove, whose shot squeaked through Hamm.
Saskatoon regained the lead with a shorthanded goal with 11:28 to play. With Walls fending off two Battlefords' players in the corner, he centred the puck to Kobe Kindrachuk. His snap shot beat Toth to put the Contacts up 3-2.
The lead did not last long. About two minutes later, the Battlefords pounced on a rebound to tie the game again. Hamm stopped LaFramboise's shot, but the rebound found Young's stick. He buried it into the open net.
In the overtime period, Alex Pernitsky took an interference penalty. Kehoe had a wide-open net to shoot at after a rebound, but Corbin Schmidt tied up the Saskatoon captain's stick.
The Contacts scored with 1:03 remaining, four seconds after the penalty expired. Toth was down after making a save and Kehoe snapped the puck past him.
Toth made 43 saves en route to his third loss of the season for the Stars. Hamm stopped 42 shots to pick up his eighth win of the season for the Contacts.
Battlefords (25-7-5-2) are tied for first in the SMAAAHL with the Notre Dame Argos. Both teams have 57 points. The Stars' next game is Feb. 13 against Prince Albert at the Civic Centre. The game starts at 7 p.m.
