YARMOUTH, N.S. - It took three periods of overtime to determine a winner in the Truro-Yarmouth divisional playoff series. But once the dust had settled, it was the Mariners taking a 2-1 decision on home ice, to go ahead 3-2 in the best-of-seven Maritime Junior Hockey League southern division quarterfinal.
Game 6 of the series is slated for 7 p.m. Sunday night at Truro’s Rath-Eastlink Community Centre.
Each of the games in the series has been tight – with the exception of Wednesday’s Game 4 Bearcats’ 4-0 win – and Friday’s contest took it to a new level.
Kyle Bergh opened the scoring for Yarmouth just 3:26 into the opening frame and it remained 1-0 until late in the third. In the final minute, the Bearcats pulled netminder Kevin Resop in favour of an extra attacker and the move paid off when Riley Baggs scored from Campbell Pickard and Alex MacDonald to knot it at one.
Chris Goreham scored in triple overtime at 2:37 to end the near three-and-a-half hour marathon and give the Mariners the 2-1 win and a 3-2 edge in the hard fought series.
Resop stopped 38 shots for the Bearcats while Leif Hertz faced 46 Truro shots.
Game 7 of the series, as needed, will be Tuesday night in Yarmouth at 7 p.m.
In the other southern division series, the South Shore Lumberjacks lead Amherst three games to two, after the Ramblers posted a 4-3 overtime win Friday in Bridgewater. That series also resumes Sunday at 7 p.m. in Amherst.
The Eastlink North divisional semifinals have now wrapped up. The Edmundston Blizzard swept Miramichi Timberwolves four straight, and the Summerside Western Capitals downed Campbellton Tigers 2-1 Friday, to capture that series in five games.
