Box Score

The Waterloo Warriors and Windsor Lancers played one of those instant-classic hockey games on Friday night; the kind of game that makes you utilize no more than about 15% of your seat edge, and the kind of game that makes you wish that, somehow, neither team had to lose.

But that didn't stop Chris Chappell (Pickering) from winning it for his Warriors.

Chappell scored his second goal of the night with two minutes to play in 3-on-3 double overtime, and the Warriors erased a 4-2 deficit en route to a 5-4 victory over the 6^th-ranked Lancers on Friday night in Windsor.

In addition to his pair of markers, Chappell added two assists for a four-point night. Colin Behenna (Waterloo) added three assists, and Justin Larson (Buckhorn) and Adam Bignell (Kitchener) each contributed a pair of points. The win is Waterloo's sixth in a row, as they head to their exam and holiday break with a 10-6-1 record.

Mike Morrison (Hamilton) maintained his recent hot streak with a 49-save performance to earn the victory for Waterloo. His former Kitchener Rangers teammate Parker Van Buskirk turned aside 31 shots in the loss, which drops the Lancers' record to a still-OUA-best 13-1-1.

Neither team eased into the game, as the pace was crisp immediately upon puck drop. But with so much talent on the ice, the game's opening goal was decidedly fluky – Saverio Posa tried to ring around a dump-in hard off the glass from center ice, but the puck hit a partition and ricocheted into the net that Morison had vacated to play the puck.

The Warriors didn't let the bad bounce keep them down though, as Brett Mackie (Whitby) tied the game 1-1 just 65 seconds later. Then, just past the 9-minute mark, Bignell did something he hasn't done since before he could drive a car – he scored a goal. The stay-at-home shot-blocking specialist played 256 goalless games for the OHL's Belleville Bulls, but his point shot had eyes for the back of the net to put the Warriors up 2-1.

The Lancers tied the game at 2-2 when they got a goal from Julian Luciani, and a pretty tic-tac-toe power play marker from Kenny Bradford gave the hosts a 3-2 advantage after an eventful first period.

The scoring settled down in the second, but the pace of play certainly didn't. While both teams had their chances in the middle frame – and while both goaltenders were standing tall – the Lancers extended their lead to 4-2 on a man advantage with just under 3 minutes to play in the period. But just 24 seconds before the frame ended, Chappell finished off a gorgeous passing play with Larson down low to cut the lead to one goal – the Lancers took  a 4-3 advantage into the third.

The Warriors carried the late-goal momentum into the final period, and the visitors were able to equalize when Andrew Smith (Kitchener) drove hard to the net and tipped home a Phillip Fife (Oromocto) feed. That was the last goal for over 25 minutes of game play, but those minutes were hardly wasted.

Each team had golden opportunities in game's closing periods. Windsor had back-to-pack power plays (with 18 seconds of 5-on-3 overlap) in the third, and Waterloo had a late-period power play that carried into a 4-on-3 advantage in overtime. In fact, each team killed a man advantage in the extra session, and Van Buskirk robbed Behenna on a breakaway in the 3-on-3 second overtime period.

But alas, the Lancers goaltender couldn't stop the next ten-bell opportunity. Off a turnover, Behenna broke in on a 2-on-1 and feathered a perfect saucer pass to Chappell, who one-timed it top-shelf over a sprawling Van Buskirk.

The student-athletes in black and gold will now hit the books, as exam season is just around the corner. After that, the Warriors will embark on a well-earned holiday break before returning to action on January 3 against the Laurier Golden Hawks at the Columbia Icefield Arena.

Notes: Waterloo went 0-for-4 on the power play, while Windsor went 2-for-7…Larson's second assist on the Chappell game-winner moved him into a tie with Kevin Hurley (2003-08) for 7^th all-time in Warriors scoring with 126 points…Waterloo defenceman Jeff Einhorn (Red Deer) returned from injury; he'd made only one appearance since Oct. 18.