Thunder split with Bulldogs

Blowing a three-goal lead usually would devastating. But for the Borderland Thunder, it turned out to be invigorating.
The Thunder let a 3-0 margin slip away en route to a 4-3 loss in overtime to the host Thunder Bay KC Bulldogs on Friday night, but battled back to take a 5-3 decision Saturday.
Sean Councillor, new free agent acquisition Kyle Schroder, and Rob Scales had put the Thunder in good position for their third road win of the season in Friday’s opener— before Ryan Coceancic scuttled their plans.
Fresh off leading the Thunder Bay Northern Hawks Junior ‘B’ team in scoring during a European tour over the Christmas break (10 points in five games), Coceancic drilled one from the top of the face-off circle and then put a backhander over Thunder goalie Dan Hoehne’s shoulder 19 seconds later to make it 3-2.
Brady Laskowski’s power-play goal six minutes into the third tied the contest, and Bulldogs’ goalie Ryan McManus did his part by posting an amazing 50-save performance to keep his team in the game.
Coceancic paid his netminder back by collecting the winner 3:02 into overtime.
But the Thunder (12-13-1-2) regrouped to come out like a house on fire Saturday night, outshooting the Bulldogs (12-14-2-3) by a 17-5 margin and grabbing a 2-0 lead on goals by Stephen MacLeod and Dennis Morrison.
Matt Laakso trimmed the lead to 2-1 early in the second, but that marker was countered by Kurt Hogard’s power-play goal later in the period.
Laakso notched his second just nine seconds after Hogard’s tally to cut the deficit to one again, then Adam Sergerie’s goal midway through the third put the teams back on even terms.
But Nate Weossner delivered on a breakaway minutes later for the eventual game-winner, with Andrew Dault adding an emptynetter for good measure.
After the previous weekend’s sweep of Thunder Bay here, this past weekend’s efforts moved the Thunder to within two points of the third-place Bulldogs.
Borderland returns to action this Friday and Saturday night when they hit the road for a pair of games against the last-place K&A Variety Golden Hawks.
In related news, the Jan. 10 deadline for freezing SIJHL rosters at a maximum 25 players saw the Thunder usher three new players into their line-up.
Schroder, a forward with the SIJHL’s Dryden Ice Dogs last season, played with Dauphin of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League until mid-December.
He had been practising with the Thunder for a while, but only got his release from Dauphin this past week.
Borderland also picked up goalie Mike Downer from Sault Ste. Marie of the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League along with defenceman P.J. Stodgell, who was with Warroad’s Junior ‘B’ squad.
Thunder head coach Dave Allison said last night that decisions still were being made on whether any players would be let go.