Lions Comeback Bid Falls Agonizingly Short
March 27, 2023 - ECHL (ECHL)
Trois-Rivieres Lions News Release
Following Friday night's 5-0 victory against the Norfolk Admirals, head coach Marc-André Bergeron and his Lions were out to win a second straight game in front of their home fans. Trois-Rivières also could count on additional reinforcement with goaltender Philippe Desrosiers back with the team after a stay with the AHL's Laval Rocket.
Norfolk started on the right foot when Griffin Lunn skilfully deflected Josh McDougall's shot, making it 1-0 in favour of the visitors. While the Admirals were blanked Friday evening, it took them only 65 seconds to get on the scoreboard Saturday afternoon. Trois-Rivières then came close to tying the score, but Brendan Soucie was thwarted by Admiral netminder Tomas Vomacka. Meanwhile, the Lions' Desrosiers made several key saves to keep his team in the game. The Saint-Hyacinthe native's best stop was on Brian Bowen, when his pad save negated Norfolk from extending their lead. The Admirals' Vomacka stopped all 13 shots he faced, and Norfolk led 1-0 after 20 minutes of play.
The Admirals wasted no time to extend their lead in the second period: Ryan Foss took advantage of a neutral zone turnover, creating a two-on-one with Darren McCormick, with McCormick lighting the lamp only 14 seconds into the period to make the score 2-0. A few minutes later it was Norfolk's Nico Blachman who found himself alone in the slot, and his roofer made it 3-0. Less than three minutes later Ryan Francis gave hope to the 2,794 Colisée Vidéotron fans in attendance when he froze Vomacka to get the Lions on the board. Trois-Rivières then came close on the power play but William Lemay's rocket banged off the post. The Lions trailed by two goals, 3-1, after 40 minutes of play. The Lions continued to mount a comeback in the third period, led by their captain, Cedric Montminy. The Sherbrooke native pounced on a Ryan Francis rebound to make the score 3-2 after 3:08 of play. While
Trois-Rivières desperately tried to tie the game, Norfolk goalie Vomacka was called for tripping and the Lions went on the power play with less than seven minutes remaining. Trois-Rivières' Nicolas Guay grabbed a loose puck and fed Montminy, who beat Vomacka for his 18th goal of the season into what turned out to be an open net, making the score 3-3. Neither team scored in the waning minutes of the period, meaning it was off to overtime. Lions newcomer Zach Kaiser came oh-so-close to scoring the winner, but Vomacka made an extraordinary save. It was then left for Norfolk's Foss to settle the outcome as he grabbed his own rebound and the Admirals secured a 4-3 victory over the Lions.
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