Rally Falls Short As Islanders Top Eagles
NOTES FROM THE GAME
– A Cape Breton Eagles third period pushback fell short as the Charlottetown Islanders defeated the Eagles 4-2 Sunday afternoon in Sydney. Nathan Leek paced the Charlottetown attack with two goals and an assist.
– Tomas Lavoie & Lucas Romeo scored for the Eagles.
– Nicolas Ruccia picked up the win in goal for Charlottetown, stopping 36 of 38 shots. Brandon Lavoie took the loss, stopping 20 of 23 shots in addition to an empty netter.
– Eagles forward Joey Henneberry returned from his two game suspension and was in the Cape Breton lineup. For the second consecutive game, injured Eagles defenseman Brayden Schmitt took warmup.
The Eagles heavily outchanced Charlottetown in the opening 20 minutes, outshooting the visitors 19-7, but it was the Islanders leaving the period with the lead. The breakthrough came when Leek won space in front of the net and slid the puck under the pad of Lavoie.
Both teams found the back of the net in the second stanza. First it was Charlottetown doubling the lead, as Kyle Powers tipped a point shot and collected his own rebound to beat Brandon Lavoie. The Eagles countered, getting on the board when a heavy Tomas Lavoie shot ripped by Ruccia.
Charlottetown restored their two goal margin on a delayed penalty. With six attackers on the ice, Ross Campbell received a pass on the left wing and dangled his way to the front of the net and put it by Lavoie to give Charlottetown a 3-1 edge.
The chances in the third period were limited by Charlottetown’s defensive structure, but in the final five minutes the Eagles got a bit of the spark they were looking for- Luke Patterson won the draw back to Romeo who was positioned at the top of the faceoff circle, and he ripped it by Ruccia to make it 3-2.
With 1:37 to go, after the Eagles won an offensive zone faceoff, Lavoie was lifted for an extra attacker. The Eagles held the Charlottetown zone and pressed, but couldn’t find a tying goal. A Leek clearing attempt the length of the ice found its way just inside the post and Charlottetown skated away with a 4-2 victory.
The Eagles are next in action on Friday night as they visit former Eagle Olivier Houde and the Victoriaville Tigres! Puck drop is at 8 PM AST. The game is available for purchase at https://shorturl.at/jBtHF and you can also hear all the action on 1270 AM CJCB or online at www.cjcbradio.com
THREE STARS OF THE GAME
1. Nathan Leek (Charlottetown) 2 goals, 1 assist, +3
2. Tomas Lavoie (Cape Breton) 1 goal, 6 shots, +1
3. Nicolas Ruccia (Charlottetown) 36 saves on 38 shots
Scratches For Cape Breton: Brayden Schmitt (injury), Romain Litalien (World Under 17s), Aiden McCullough, Carson Griffin, Alexis Toussaint
Scratches For Charlottetown: William Shields (injury), Simon Hughes
Final Shots On Goal: 38-24 in favour of Cape Breton
Cape Breton Power Play: 0/3
Charlottetown Power Play: 1/3
