OLIVER PAIPOONGE – The Kenora Islanders kept it close for most of Game 2.
But in the end, the defending champion Kam River Fighting Walleye weren’t about to let a two-win team take them down in the playoffs.
The Fighting Walleye scored four unanswered goals in the third period on Saturday night, including three in the final 2:33 of regulation, and took a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven opening-round Superior International Junior Hockey League playoff series, getting the job done on home ice.
Brydon Bell, Jett Minktenko, Evan Lachimea and Caleb Labelle blew open a 4-3 game with their third-period tallies, earning Kam River an 8-3 win over Kenora, who put up three goals in the second period to keep the contest close.
Carter Nailen and Kaden Goodwin, continuing his hot-handed ways of late, staked the Fighting Walleye to a 2-0 lead after one, but Kenora’s Brayden Mackay scored 34 seconds into the second to cut the lead in half.
Carter Poddubny responded with Kam River’s third goal of the night, the marker coming at the 3:17 mark, but Chance Traverse got it back at 12:12 and the Kam River lead was just 3-2, coming on the heels of Friday’s 8-0 series-opening triumph.
Nickolas Fagnilli made it 4-2 Kam River with his first of the postseason at 15:28, but Jarod Lemieux once again cut the Fighting Walleye lead to a single goal, scoring with 2:01 left in the middle stanza.
Ashton Sadauskas, playing for the second straight night, made 16 saves to pick up his second win of the playoffs. Matthew Stephens stood tall for most of the night, giving up eight goals on 70 shots faced.
Game 3 will take place Monday night in Kenora.
Puck drop is 7:30 p.m. CDT.
