EDMONTON - Five third-period goals, two third-period lead changes, one unsuccessful penalty shot, 61 combined shots, five powerplay goals, and one overtime winner; Friday night's Alberta vs Calgary game had everything.Â
After allowing three-straight Calgary goals to start the third period, the Golden Bears scored twice in the final three minutes to force overtime, with
Joel Sexsmith igniting the home crowd with an overtime winner 2:29 into the extra frame. Trailing 5-3, Alberta received goals from Daneel Lategan and Dylan Plouffe 56 seconds apart in the final three minutes to force overtime.Â
Alberta had leads of 2-0 and 3-2 earlier in the game, with the Dinos erasing both leads en route to their own two-goal lead in the final frame. Calgary held their lead for just over 13 minutes, before Alberta forced OT with two quick tallies.Â
The win for the Bears (4-2-1)Â is their fourth this season, while the loss for Calgary (5-1-1) is their second-straight after winning a Canada West record 27-straight conference games.Â
Plouffe scored a pair for Alberta, including the game-tying goal with just under two minutes left in regulation.
Eric Florchuk and
Blake Gustafson also scored for Alberta, with
Ethan Kruger making 22 saves in the win.Â
Jake Gricius scored twice for Calgary, with both of his tallies coming in the opening frame to erase an early 2-0 deficit. Brendan De Jonge, Zach Wytink, and Jaeger White also scored for the visitors on Friday. Carl Tetachuk made 38 saves in a game in which Calgary was outshot 44-27.Â
The two rivals will meet again tomorrow night in Calgary at Father David Bauer Arena.Â
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