Thunder tame Ice Dogs

Fans were still lined up through the lobby of the Memorial Sports Centre just 15 minutes before the Thunder took to the ice against the Dryden Ice Dogs in Game 1 of their best-of-seven semi-final series.
And the large crowd on hand was rewarded as the Thunder won 3-1 in the first step of the team’s “Quest for the Dudley.”
“I was feeding off the crowd and it was a heck of a crowd out there. Definitely one of the biggest of the year,” said Tyler Gordon, who made 29 saves in his return between the pipes after missing almost a month due to health concerns.
Game 2 goes tomorrow (Saturday) at 2 p.m. at the Ice for Kids Arena before the series shifts to Dryden for Games 3 and 4 on March 23 and 26.
Although the Thunder were whistled for 38 penalty minutes compared 16 for the Ice Dogs (much to the crowd’s displeasure), the hosts did not give up a power-play goal.
“One of the things we talked about was not worrying about things we can’t control,” said Thunder head coach Dave Allison.
“We had some power plays early and they had some power plays as time went on, and our penalty killers did a really nice job,” he added.
Josh McAndrew put the Thunder on the scoreboard first when he plucked the puck out of mid-air—while tripping to the ice no less—and buried it in the back of the net on the power play at the 11:32 mark of the first period.
“We had a power play earlier in the game and I just stood in front of the net and took a beating,” noted McAndrew. “[So] Dave just told me to roll off the guy and I’ll be in a better position.
“So the next time up I rolled off of him and as I rolled off, the puck just deflected out in front to me and on my stick, so I was kind of in the right spot at the right time.
“But it felt really good when it went in,” he added.
Dennis Morrison and Kurt Hogard assisted on the goal.
Dryden tied the game in a lackluster second period, capitalizing on a giveaway behind the Thunder’s net in which Austin Helie collected the puck on Gordon’s doorstep and put it over his shoulder.
But Gordon, still suffering from a low platelet count, played exceptionally well in his first game back by making big saves at key moments.
“He was solid, and it’s great to have him back and it’s great to see him healthy,” Allison enthused of his number-one goalie, who led the Canadian Junior Hockey League in shutouts with six.
Morrison notched the eventual game-winning goal 7:25 into the third period. The Thunder, who fired 40 shots on Shaun Szachary, later iced the win with an empty-netter after the Ice Dogs had pulled their goalie.
“It felt great to score that goal, and I was surprised when it went in because before that I was just shooting muffins,” said Morrison, who pounced on a rebound after a shot from the point got through traffic.
The Thunder also did well in the face-off circle last night, winning two key ones in their own zone in the final minute, one of which came with Dryden having the extra attacker on the ice.
That gave Hogard a relatively clear look for a length-of-the-ice empty-netter with 10 seconds remaining to seal the win against a team that had knocked them out of the SIJHL playoffs in Game 7 last year.
“It was a great goal by Dennis [Morrison], and some great draws by Steven Sus at the end and a deserving goal by Hogie [Hogard],” said Allison.
“We got to look to the next game now,” said Morrison.