They left it a little late, but it was mission accomplished for the Victoria Grizzlies on Sunday.
The Grizzlies used a last-minute goal to tie the game and then a double overtime marker to beat the Surrey Eagles 4-3 at The Q Centre. The victory on the final day of the sa国际传媒 Hockey League regular season gave the Grizzlies (32-18-4-4) top spot in the Island Division for the second year in a row.
鈥淥ne of our goals this season was to win the division and we accomplished that so the guys should be proud of that and that was a tough game to win,鈥� said Grizzlies GM and head coach Craig Didmon, whose club came into the game needing at least one point to finish ahead of second-place Nanaimo (32-20-3-3).
The Grizzlies will host the fourth-place Alberni Valley Bulldogs (17-32-5-4) in the first round of the playoffs, with Games 1 and 2 of the best-of-seven series going Friday night and Sunday afternoon at The Q Centre.
And they can thank Ethan Nother as the 20-year-old from London, Ont., provided the late-game heroics on Sunday afternoon. With 51 seconds remaining in the third period and netminder Kurtis Chapman pulled for the extra attacker, Nother pounced on a loose puck at the side of the net and buried it for his team-leading 26th goal of the season. That clinched the division for the Grizzlies but they weren鈥檛 finished there. Midway through the second overtime period, defenceman Carter Berger jumped up and swatted the puck past a busy Mario Cavaliere in the Eagles goal to send the Grizzlies to their third straight victory.
The goal also broke the hearts of the Eagles as they needed two points to jump ahead of Langley into second spot in the Mainland Division.
鈥淏oth teams had something important to play for and I know Surrey was pushing really hard and they鈥檙e a good hockey club so we鈥檙e happy to come away with two points in this one,鈥� Didmon said.
It was the Eagles who opened the scoring, with Chase Danol beating Chapman just 1:54 into the opening period. But five minutes later, it was Finn Withey, a call-up form the VIJHL鈥檚 Comox Valley Glacier Kings, getting his first BCHL goal to draw the Grizzlies even.
Aaron White tallied late in the first to send the Eagles to the break with the lead, but midway through the second the Grizzlies鈥� power play went to work with Dayne Finnson finishing off a passing play with Nother and Jamie Rome to get the Grizzlies even once more.
But with the Grizzlies buzzing around the Eagles net for most of the third period 鈥� Cavaliere finished with 57 saves 鈥� it was the Eagles who took the lead once again with Ryan Brushette scoring midway through the final period.
鈥淕reat teams find ways to win and the guys never gave up on the process and found a way to win,鈥� added Didmon. 鈥淭heir goalie decided to have a big night so it went right down to the wire.鈥�
LOOSE PUCKS: The Grizzlies and Bulldogs will move to Port Alberni for Games 3 and 4 on March 6 and 7. Game 5, if necessary, is back in Victoria on March 9, with Game 6 in Port Alberni March 10. If Game 7 is needed, it would be at The Q Centre on March 11. . . . The other Island Division first-round series will see the Clippers taking on the third-place Powell River Kings with Games 1 and 2 set for Friday and Saturday night at Frank Crane Arena.
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