Game Report | Game-4: TRA at CRA

Yoga Berra was right, “It ain’t over till it’s over”.

Blake Cotton’s third goal of the night 1:35 into triple overtime gave the Bucks a 7-6 win over the Smokies in Cranbrook, to tie their BCHL first round playoff series at two games each.

The flood gates opened in the second period with five goals and the two Kootenay rivals lit the lamp another five times in the third period.

Cotton opened the scoring with three and a half minutes left in the opening period with the Smokies main sniper Chirstian Kim tying the game 37-seconds later for his first of two goals on the night.

The second period flurry started just 13-seconds after the opening faceoff.

Judah Makway snapped a puck misplayed behind the net by Cranbrook goalie Jaden Cholette into a wide open cage for a shorthanded goal, but the Bucks tied it just over a minute later on Shane Baker’s conversion of an odd man rush.

Gryphon Bucci restored Trail’s lead 14-seconds later with a snipe from the slot and Kim’s one-time blast of a rebound just before the 15-minute mark put Trail ahead 4-2.

Samuel Lyne’s deflection of Bryce Sookro’s screen shot found the net just over a minute later and the Smokies carried a 4-3 lead into the third period.

Trail extended the lead to 6-3 on power play goals by Jack Kennedy and Jason Stefanek before the third period was eight minutes old, with the Bucks comeback commenced less than two minutes later.

A deflected pass found the stick of Sam Ranallo who had a wide-open net, followed by Sookro’s power play goal less than six minutes later.

Cranbrook carried that momentum into the final few minutes of regulation until Cotton hit the top corner on a goal-mouth scramble with 1:45 remaining.

The next goal proved elusive for both teams.

Smokies goalie Teagan Kendrick robbed Lyne with a great glove save on a breakaway early in the first overtime, then Cholette stopped speedy Smokies winger Evan Sundar on a breakaway several minutes later.

Neither team were able to scored on power plays, nor the several opportunities at even strength before the buzzer sounded to end th second overtime period.

A blocked shot at the Cranbrook blue line was the turning point.

Matthew Gilmore raced down the right-wing on the resulting two-on-one and found Cotton breaking to the far post, who delivered the game-ending deflection.

The Bucks outshot Trail 28-10 in overtime and 77-53 during the dizzying 111:35 seconds of intense and physical action.

Trail was 2-for-5 on the power play and killed 3-of-4 Cranbrook advantages.

Game five is set for 7 p.m. Friday night at Cominco Arena, with game six in the East Kootenay on Sunday afternoon. Great seats are still available for game five. You can reserve yours at Tickets.TrailSmokeEaters.com.

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