After winning two games in overtime and losing one in the extra period, the CanElson Drilling Estevan Bruins had a chance to close out their wildcard series against the Flin Flon Bombers last night.
Lynnden Pastachak scored less than two minutes into overtime in Game 3 on Monday to hand the Bombers a 4-3 loss in Flin Flon.
Pastachak fired a shot over Bomber goalie Simon Hofley's blocker and right through the back of the net for his third, and biggest, goal of the series.
"It's good to get the win and put ourselves in the driver's seat. It was a lot of fun doing it in overtime. I know you'd rather do it in regulation, but in the end that was a fun hockey game to play and it'll be something for the guys to remember," Bruins head coach Chris Lewgood said of the Game 3 win.
"The game's being played at a higher tempo than it has all year and as a result there's some breakdowns, but I think our guys have handled that a little better than the Bombers have."
The Bruins took a 3-1 lead early in the third period on an Austin Daae goal, but the Bombers rallied to force overtime, with Erik Pedersen scoring 40 seconds later and Parker Evans-Campbell tying it with five minutes to go.
Estevan led 1-0 after the first period on a shorthanded goal by Chris Thorimbert, while Keegan Allison and Pedersen exchanged goals in the second.
The Bombers topped 40 shots for the third time in as many games, outshooting the Bruins 50-37.
Flin Flon had tied the series with a 4-3 overtime win on Saturday in Estevan, with Tyson Empey scoring the winner on a centring pass from Dean Allison just shy of the nine-minute mark.
The Bombers clawed back from a 3-1 deficit in the third period on a pair of controversial goals by Allison four minutes apart.
Allison jammed in a loose puck on the first and put a wraparound into an empty net on the second. Bruins goalie Matt Gibney appeared to be interfered with on both plays.
"To be honest, I don't think they should have counted. I think the goaltender's gotta have an opportunity to make a play on the puck and in both cases I think the Flin Flon guys did a good job of making it so he didn't," said Lewgood.
Shortly after that, a boarding call on David Robertson and a roughing penalty on Tanner Froese forced the Bruins to kill off a lengthy 5-on-3, which they did, in large part due to Gibney's play.
"Aside from Robertson's penalty, I don't think it affected our play on the ice. Gibney's an example of a guy who was visibly shaken by it, by his actions, and yet he maintained his play and was probably the best player on the ice before and after," Lewgood said.
Pastachak scored twice for Estevan, with the first coming early in the first as he pounded home a pass from Allison.
Empey tied the game barely a minute later, whacking his own rebound into the net.
Pastachak struck again midway through the second on a rebound.
The Bruins took a 3-1 lead six minutes into the third when defenceman Zach Douglas rushed the puck end-to-end, attempted a wraparound and put in the rebound.
Bombers head coach Mike Reagan was impressed with his team's play after going into the series as an underdog.
"It's unbelievable, just because I think these guys have been written off since Jan. 10 when we made all the deals. Even back home, a lot of our fan support hasn't been that great. I think people in town are going, 'well, they're just building for next year.' I like proving people wrong we're not saying we're (necessarily) winning the series or anything like that, but we're probably a lot further ahead than anybody gave us a chance (to be) in this series.
"It's just the will to win and that's what I like about our team. We know we don't have the first line guys like (Tanner) Froese and Daae and (Michael) Sagen, we don't have those guys, but we've got a lot of guys who just have a tremendous compete level and a will to win."
Lewgood said it was good to see rookies and linemates Pastachak, Allison and Jason Duret rewarded for their play on the scoresheet.
"They've played this well all year long. Unfortunately for them, it didn't always compute to statistics, and I think right now they're getting some bounces they hadn't been getting previously and people are starting to take notice. I think they've been there for us all year."
Duret was the overtime hero in Game 1, burying a centring pass from Allison four minutes into the extra period to give the Bruins a 3-2 win.
Gibney was the star of that game, making 50 saves, including some spectacular stops that kept his team in it when the Bombers were dominating the play.
"I thought I was pretty solid. I felt good, a little nerves at the start, but as the game went along I thought I was solid and seeing the puck pretty well. The D were doing a good job of taking away the net front traffic and that kind of stuff," Gibney said.
"It's all right for me because it keeps me in the game and it keeps me loose. That's your job as a goalie, to kind of hold down the fort in those momentum shifts when you are back on your heels a bit."
Game 5 of the series, if necessary, will be played Thursday at Affinity Place. Game time is 7:30 p.m.
If the Bruins win the series, they will go on to face the Battlefords North Stars; if the Bombers win, they will play the Yorkton Terriers.
