With the game tied at 2-2 early in their overtime session with the division-leading Brock Badgers on Saturday afternoon, Waterloo Warriors rookie forward Jack Scanlan (Penetanguishene/Stratford Warriors, GOJHL) missed a golden opportunity for the game-winning goal. But seconds later, he sure found a good way to make up for it.
Scanlan followed up his near-miss by walking back out in front of the net and ripping home the winner, giving the Warriors a 3-2 win and their biggest two points of the season to date. The victory extends Waterloo's recent hot streak as they push towards a playoff spot in the logjammed OUA West division, as the Warriors are now 4-1-1 in their past six contests. Their 19 points have them in 7th in the division, just three points back of fifth, and just two points ahead of 9th-place Guelph.
The fifth-ranked Badgers led by two goals late in the second period, as the Warriors trailed for a total of 55:38. But huge goals from Keigan Goetz (New Hamburg/Halfiax Mooseheads, QMJHL) and Markson Bechtold (Strathmore/Saskatoon Blades, WHL) sent the game to overtime, setting the stage for Scanlan's winner. Goetz added an assist on Bechtold's tying goal for his second consecutive multi-point game. Julian Sime (Mississauga/North Bay Battalion, OHL) made 30 saves to claim his third straight victory, avenging a loss he suffered to Brock back in November.
Meanwhile, the Badgers saw their five-game winning streak snapped, as they fell to 15-5-1 on the season. Connor Brown and Adam Berg each notched a goal and an assist for Brock, while goaltender Mario Cavaliere stopped 21 shots in defeat.
The Badgers drew first blood just 70 seconds into the contest, when Brown's wrister deflected high in the air off of Sime's glove, before bouncing in behind the rookie keeper. It was a goal that Sime would have liked to have back, but he showed no signs that it was sticking with him for the rest of the opening frame – Sime kept the contest close, as Brock outshot Waterloo 11-6 in the first period.
Sime continued his stellar play into the second, but was finally beat again with just under four minutes to play – after making a gorgeous post-to-post pad save in tight, Berg knocked the rebound over the sprawled Sime to make it 2-0 Brock.
Just over a minute after that, though, Goetz got the Warriors on the board – and got the monkey off his back – when he curled at the top of the slot and zipped a wrister to the top corner past Cavaliere. It was Goetz' first goal of the season after scoring a team-high 13 a season ago, and it narrowed the Waterloo deficit to 2-1 after 40 minutes.
The Warriors came in waves in the third period, outshooting Brock 10-7. Finally, with under four minutes on the clock, Jacob Cascagnette (Kitchener/Ottawa 67's, OHL) made a gorgeous diving feed to Bechtold in front, who went quickly to the backhand to stuff it past Cavaliere and even the score at 2-2.
In the overtime session, the Badgers nearly cashed on a designed play off the draw, but Scanlan appeared to tip the pass away and start the rush the other way. When a Brock defender sold out unsuccessfully to intercept a cross-ice pass, Cole Murphy (Cole Harbour/Pictou County Crushers, MJHL) and Scanlan were alone on a 2-on-0. Scanlan tapped the original centering feed just wide, but Murphy knocked the puck back to Scanlan, who spun back out in front and ended it.
The victory capped a successful weekend for the Warriors, who gathered three of a possible four points against the top two teams in the OUA West division. Waterloo will now turn their attention to another huge contest, as they'll face the Windsor Lancers – who sit just a point ahead of them – next Saturday night, January 19. Puck drop is slated for 7pm at the Columbia Icefield Arena.
