FRENCH RIVER – A Tristan Kitchen tally 1:22 into overtime was the difference as the French River Rapids edged the Soo Eagles 3-2 Friday in a hard-fought Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League contest at Noelville Arena.
While the Eagles held the edge in shots on goal in the first period, it was the Rapids who notched the lone marker in the session.
Special teams helped the Rapids strike first as Jacob Cantin took a pass from Armando Rojo Bolton out the corner and pumped it past Eagles’ netminder Jenson Rousseau for a man advantage effort 15:26 into the contest.
Moving to the middle frame, Sault Ste. Marie tied it when Anden Marceau notched his team-leading ninth tally by finishing off a work of teammates Nolan Nemecek and Coulson Bell at 11:20.
Remaining tightly challenged into the third period, French River regained the lead six and a half minutes in when defenceman Nolan McVeigh cranked a blast in from the top of the right circle for his first NOJHL goal.
While the diligent compete levels of both clubs not necessarily being reflected in their overall records, each team battled hard throughout the matchup.
The Soo tied it with five and a half minutes remaining in regulation as Ethan Hoff broke free on the right side and took a cross-ice pass that he jammed under Rapids’ goalkeeper Keiran Caughran.
Heading to OT, a solid forecheck helped Bryson Villeneuve force a turnover behind the Eagles’ net then flip it in front where a waiting Kitchen snapped in the game-winner.
The victory gives French River their initial win of the season as they improved to 1-6-0-0 while in defeat, the Soo picked up their first point as they moved to 0-7-0-1 overall.
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