THUNDER BAY – Easton Mikus is one of the youngest players in the Superior International Junior Hockey League.
He’s also one of the best.
The 16-year-old scored the power-play equalizer on Saturday night, with 1:31 to go in regulation, then needed all of 13 seconds in overtime to slam the game-winner home, as the Thunder Bay North Stars (16-9-3) rallied from a 3-0 deficit to stun the first-place Kam River Fighting Walleye 4-3 at Fort William Gardens.
Mikus, a graduate of the Thunder Bay Kings program, has 19 goals in his freshman Junior A season, tied for second in the league with Dryden’s McLaren Paulsen, five behind Sioux Lookout’s Owen Riffel, who leads all scorers with 24.
“It was a good team effort from all the boys and I just happened to get the opportunities and luckily enough, finished the opportunities,” Mikus said.
He didn’t really have time to think – just react – on the winning tally.
The Stars won the opening draw and raced into the Fighting Walleye zone, all eyes on Kam River goaltender Travis VannderZwaag.
“(Tyler) Jordan had a good forecheck and he put the puck out for me and I got the job done,” said Mikus, who isn’t really feeling the pressure to produce, an expectation that could start to weigh on a lot of rookies.
Not this one.
“Not so much the pressure. If anyone gets (the goal), it’s the same as me getting it, as long as the team wins,” he said, his interview interrupted by North Stars defenceman Drew Caddo, whose third-period goal, 51 seconds into the final frame, cut the Kam River lead to 3-2.
“Best 16-year-old in the SI right here,” he howled into the television camera, hugging his teammate in celebration.
He does have a six-goal game to his credit this season, so a two-goal effort is almost par for the course.
Still, Matt Valley, who took the reins of the Stars for the night, with coach Rob DeGagne out of town, was impressed.
“For Easton to step up as a 16-year-old and score two big goals, at home, just before Christmas, in an OT game in front of a bunch of friends and family, that’s a big game, so I’m proud of him too,” Valley said.
Valley, who is coaching the Junior B Northern Hawks this season, had plenty of incentive to guide the Stars to the come-from-behind win, having been fired by the Fighting Walleye midway through last season, the team wanting a full-time commitment from their bench boss.
“It has nothing to do with last year,” he said, diplomatically. “It’s more about this year. The way we’ve played against these guys this year has been subpar. All we asked these guys was to have an effort tonight. At the end of the day, I know everyone wants me to say it felt good, I’ve been thinking about it for a long time,” Valley said.
“But truth be told, whatever happened last year, happened. Things happen for a reason, and here we are.”
The first period was all Kam River. Braeden Duchene got the Fighting Walleye (19-4-1) going early, beating Keenan Marks just 3:47 into the game. Liam Bell doubled the lead at 13:57 and Jett Mintenko made it 3-0 18 seconds into the second, the visitors looking like they were about to repeat Friday night’s 6-1 win at the Norwest Arena.
But Jordan got the Stars on the board, beating VanderZwaag from a near impossible angle with 4:25 to go in the middle stanza.
Down 3-2, the Stars were awarded a power play with 2:25 to go in the third. Valley lifted Marks for an extra attacker and, standing in a crowd in front of the Kam River net, the puck landed at Mikus’ feet. He pounced and fired it home, sending the game to overtime.
The two teams will take the next three weeks off for the Christmas break.
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1. Kam River, Duchesne 12 (Fagnilli) 3:47. 2. Bell 3 (Mintenko, Labelle) 13:57. Penalties: Paddington TB (boarding) 0:21, Labelle KRW (holding) 6:59, Wright KRW, Glousher TB (fighting, game misconduct) 12:30. O’Brien TB, Nailen KRW (roughing, unsportsmanlike conduct) 18:45, Poddubny KRW (unsportsmanlike conduct) 19:43.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 3. Kam River, Mintekno 15 (Debray) 0:18. 4. Thunder Bay, Jordan 14 (unassisted) 15:35. Penalties: Goodwin KRW (interference) 7:47, Tangedal TB (head contact) 13:48,
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 5. Thunder Bay, Caddo (Voisey) 0:51. 6. Thunder Bay, Mikus (Caddo) 18:29 pp. Penalties: Helmeczi TB (tripping) 6:16, Paddington TB (roughing 12:57, Goodwin KRW (tripping) 17:35.
OVERTIME
Scoring: 7. Thunder Bay, Mikus (Jordan) 0:13. Penalties: None
GAME DATA – SOG – Kam River 9-9-10-0-28, Thunder Bay 5-10-11-1-27; Power plays (goals-chances) – Kam River (0-4), Thunder Bay (1-4); Goaltenders: Kam River: Travis VanderZwaag, Thunder Bay: Keenan Marks; A: 912.
