Chad Niddery's goal 45 seconds into overtime sent the Powell River Kings to a thrilling 6-5 win over the Burnaby Express last Sunday at the Gibsons and Area Community Centre.
The back-and-forth contest in front of 657 fans was a thriller from start to finish as the Kings finished off a season series sweep of the Express and capped off a big weekend with three straight wins.
Sunday's contest was a home game for the Express and they sported their white uniforms and had their in-house announce team on hand for the game.
The two teams played Saturday night in Powell River, where the Kings skated to an easy 6-2 win, but Sunday's game was far from easy for the Kings.
The teams traded chances in the opening period with Burnaby beating Kings' goalie Michael Garteig at 5:18 on a Brad Reid goal.
Burnaby made it 2-0 on a goal Garteig probably wants back. Colby Kulhanek scored on a shot from just over the blueline that beat Garteig through the five-hole. The Kings cut the lead to 2-1 on Justin DaSilva's fifth of the season just under three minutes later.
In the second, DaSilva pulled the Kings even three seconds into a power play with a slapper on a clean faceoff win from Mitch Labreche. After the Express regained the lead on a Dylan Herold tally, Ben Schmidt tied it again with an acrobatic effort with his 15th of the year. Andrew Pettitt gave the Kings their first lead of the game with his team-leading 32nd on another power play with less than 90 seconds remaining in the period.
Burnaby tied the game up 27 seconds into the third as Garrick Perry converted on a power play. Then with less than eight minutes to play, Burnaby regained the lead as Reid scored his second of the game.
Burnaby looked poised for the upset, but Schmidt's second of the game tied it with less than four minutes to play, sending the game into overtime. Overtime didn't last long when a Mat Bodie stretch pass found a streaking Niddery down the left side who beat goalie Robin Billingham top shelf.
Kings' associate head coach Shane Luckinchuk said he was not surprised by Burnaby's strong effort.
"They're in desperation mode trying to get that last playoff spot. We knew they would come out hard," he said. "They had a good first period, and we didn't. It was a bit of a seesaw battle the whole game. We were fortunate to finish it early in overtime. We had a ferry to catch, so I think the guys had like four minutes to get off their gear and get on the bus."
Luckinchuk said it was an important weekend, and picking up three wins and six points was huge as the Kings continue to hold down second place in the Coastal Conference with five games remaining.
"We can't worry about anything. The only thing we control is how we come out and play and get the job done," he said.
Express interim head coach Darcy Rota said he was happy with the effort, despite the loss.
"It was a really well-organized event. We're disappointed in the loss, obviously, but it was a very exciting game and the response we got from the community was fantastic," Rota said.
Community torchbearer Sarah Doherty was on hand for the ceremonial faceoff before the game, and 11-year-old Madison Folkerston from West Sechelt sang a stirring rendition of O Canada. The first intermission on-ice entertainment was provided by the tyke division of the Sunshine Coast Minor Hockey Association with a fun mini-game.
