The Coquitlam Adanacs scored four goals in less than three minutes early in the third period to erase a 6-5 deficit and take the first game of their best-of-five Minto Cup final over the Brampton Excelsiors, 11-9.
John Hofseth sparked the comeback when he tied the game 2:15 into the final frame, then Dylan Foulds put the Adanacs in front for the first time since Colin Munro scored the game’s opening goal 2:16 after the opening face-off. Just over a minute after that, Chase Scanlan’s second goal of the game extended Coquitlam lead to two and 23 seconds later they were up by three on a goal by William Clayton.
Brampton battled their way back into the game with a pair of goals, but 1:05 after Tyler McKay’s power play goal, Munro’s second goal of the night restored some breathing room for Coquitlam.
Jake Boudreau got the Excelsiors close again with just over a minute left in regulation time. But Reid Bowering sealed the victory for the Adanacs with a goal into the empty Brampton net with just two seconds left on the clock.
After finishing the first period down 4-2 to the Ontario champions, the Adanacs fell behind 5-2 four minutes after the break when Jeffrey Teat, the tournament’s leading scorer, netted his third of the game. But Ethan Ticehurst and Dennon Armstrong got Coquitlam back in it before Brampton’s Clarke Patterson and the Adanacs’ Larson Sundown exchanged goals 19 seconds apart late in the frame.
Sundown added four assists to his lone goal to lead Coquitlam’s attack. Scanlan and Jalen Chester each chipped in four points. Christian Del Bianco made 37 saves in the Adanacs’ net while his teammates fired 53 shots at Brampton’s Steven Orleman.
The series continues Wednesday night in Calgary with game three scheduled for Thursday.
