Panthers can’t solve Tigers goaltender Reilly Pickard, lose overtime thriller 3-2

By Thomas Becker

The third-place Dalhousie Tigers haven't been in the top half of the standings this late in the season since 2003-04 when they finished in fourth place. 

After Friday night's 3-2 overtime win over the UPEI Panthers, the Tigers (11-9-1) find themselves in sole possession of third—a point ahead of the Panthers—with three games to play. 

In a game that was largely controlled by UPEI (9-9-4), it was Tiger Reilly Pickard who stole the show. The third-year netminder made 40 saves to secure the win, while his counterpart Jonah Capriotti turned aside 16. 

"It's huge," Pickard said of the win. "You look at the standings this time of year and it's tight. We haven't been in a game like this in a long time, so it's nice to come out and get a big win in a game that means something." 

When talking about his strong performance, Pickard quickly recognized his teammates.

"It goes back to the guys in front of me," he said. "We had a short lineup today, so everyone knew they had to focus on their job. Everyone knew it would take our best effort today, and that's what we got." 

Despite outplaying the Tigers most of the first period, it was the road team that scored first. With about a minute remaining in the period, Brett Crossley skated up the left side, cut to the net and backhanded a shot past Capriotti. 

UPEI came out strong in the second and found the equalizer just four minutes into the frame. In a battle for the puck along the end boards, the Panthers got it in front to Darian Pilon where he put away the goal.

It looked like the Panthers had all the momentum, but the Tigers snatched it away 10 minutes later with a goal of their own. After Capriotti gave up a rebound off Kyle Yewchuk's shot from the point, Matt Green took the puck, skated around the net and passed it in front to Logan O'Neil, who beat the netminder and gave his team a 2-1 advantage heading into the third. 

In an otherwise spectacular night, Pickard committed a critical delay of game penalty with under six minutes to spare that proved costly. With a flurry of activity around the net, Kyle Maksimovich got the puck and slid a behind-the-back pass to the slot, where Troy Lajeunesse buried a shot in the top left corner.

Capriotti came up with a big save late in the game that ended up securing a point for his team. With a little over two minutes to play, Connor Welsh skated by a pair of defenders and went in alone but was denied in the end. 

In the final minute of overtime, Brett Crossley found Dillon Boucher on a two-on-one, and the third-year forward didn't disappoint, as he crashed hard to the net and slid a backhand by Capriotti for the dramatic finish.

"It just shows the character of our guys," Pickard said. "If you told us on this road trip that we'd be one shot away from victory, I think we'd take it."

The Panthers return to the ice March 4 when they take on the Saint Mary's Huskies.

Photo Credit: Janessa Hogan