Photos: Allyson Demers
KIRKLAND LAKE, Ont. – An Inde Abresch power play marker, 2:39 into overtime was the difference as the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners rallied for a 3-2 victory over the Iroquois Falls Storm in a tightly-contested Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League meeting Sunday at Joe Mavrinac Community Complex.
With the outcome, Iroquois Falls does pick-up a point in the setback to move two points ahead of the Espanola Paper Kings in the race for the eighth and final playoff spot, with each team having a couple of games remaining on their respective schedules.
Picking an opportune time to collect his first NOJHL goal, Storm defenceman Thomas Hudon got the puck after a face-off win by Emrick Paradis and snapped an attempt from the point through traffic that bounced off a Gold Miners’ player and got past netminder Caleb Shuker just over eight minutes into the match-up.
Iroquois Falls then added another a couple of shifts later when Jordan Mayo grabbed a chance laying in the crease and chipped in his 22nd tally of the season.
Battling back in the second stanza, Kirkland Lake notched two of their own to knot the affair at 2-2 before the session was 10 minutes in.
Aaron Leenaars put the home side on the board at 5:03 as he scooped up a loose puck after a Storm skater lost an edge and fell, which allowed him to put a shot on target that got through goalkeeper Justin Sullivan and trickled in.
Tying it up, the Gold Miners won a draw back to Colin Tinguay whose attempt to the net was neatly redirected in by Matthew Sackett, with half a game still to play.
A couple of big point-blank stops by Shuker, including one with his club down a man, in the back half of the stanza, kept the score level after two.
In the third, both teams went at it hard, but neither side converted offensively to send it to extra time.
Action in OT saw Kirkland Lake cap off the comeback while up a skater as Abresch jammed in the game-winner during a furious goal-mouth scramble to end it.
The Gold Miners will wrap-up their 2024-25 slate by hosting French River Friday and visiting Timmins next Sunday.
As for Iroquois Falls, they are on the road in Powassan Friday then meet the Rapids Saturday at Noelville Arena.
Espanola meanwhile entertains the Soo Eagles Friday night before closing out at the Voodoos Sunday night.
