Sarnia Sting score in OT to thwart late London Knights comeback

Article content

SARNIA – The Sarnia Sting shook off the London Knights’ late comeback to pull out a 3-2 overtime win Wednesday before 4,475 at Progressive Auto Sales Arena.

Article content

Article content

Beckham Edwards scored 3:28 into sudden-death, then sprinted almost the length of the ice to celebrate in front of Knights fans decked out in bright green outfits and wigs.

“That was kind of a funny moment, but I didn’t plan on going that far down the ice,” said a smiling Edwards.

Article content

Those Knights supporters applauded the rookie star after his power-play goal helped the Sting avenge a 9-3 loss in London one day earlier on New Year’s Eve.

“We came out hard, ready to play right from the get-go,” Edwards said.

The Sting needed Edwards’s overtime heroics after the Knights rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the third period.

The Knights’ loss was only the third in their last 28 games.

It was also their first loss in five games against the Sting this season. They won the previous four by a combined 25-9.

“They (the Sarnia coaches) knew we had more than we gave yesterday, so they just said, ‘Hey, put that behind us, it’s a new year,’” Sting forward Daylen Moses said.

“They said, ‘Battle hard. We’re finally at home, so show the fans what we’ve got.’”

After the shortest start of his OHL career Tuesday, Sting goalie Nick Surzycia bounced back to earn one of his biggest wins.

He made 29 saves and didn’t allow an even-strength goal. The Knights were 2-for-4 on the power play.

“Nicky played unreal,” Moses said. “Nicky has always played unreal. Every single game, he’s back there (as the) last line of defence. We have so much confidence in him. Guys go down on breakaways, I can start looking away sometimes. I just trust him a lot. He’s battled through all year.”

Article content

Article content

Knights goalie Aleksei Medvedev matched Surzycia nearly save for save, finishing with 28 stops. He robbed Sting defenceman Mitch Young on a two-on-none in overtime shortly before Edwards scored.

Edwards’s shot from the bottom of the right circle beat Medvedev on the short side.

“I kind of blanked out a little bit (after the goal) and forget where I was, but it felt good,” Edwards said.

Dylan Luecke’s breakaway goal in the first period staked the Sting to an early lead.

Moses doubled the advantage late in the second period by pouncing on a loose puck in front of the Knights’ net. His first goal since Nov. 1 ended a 17-game drought.

“The monkey was on my back holding on real tight,” Moses said. “I was just happy to get it off and slammed it against the glass.”

The Knights’ lethal power play went to work in the third period and provided two goals.

Sam O’Reilly struck first at 6:53 from the bottom of the left circle.

Denver Barkey took a pass from Blake Montgomery and scored the tying goal through traffic from the slot with 1:45 left in regulation. The Knights had a two-man advantage with Medvedev on the bench for an extra skater.

Article content

The Sting made sure to match the Knights’ energy when the game got chippy, Moses said.

“If they go in sticks up, you go in sticks up,” he said. “If they drop their sticks, you drop (your) sticks. You can’t do anything first or else the refs will call it.

“They try to draw penalties because they know their power play’s good, so we just have to stay really disciplined. We got in a little bit of trouble, but we battled through.”

NOTES: Both teams are back in action Friday. The Sting host the Brantford Bulldogs and the Knights welcome the Niagara IceDogs in 7 p.m. starts. … Sting forward JJ Franceschetti has been suspended indefinitely pending a review by the OHL. He received a game misconduct 57 seconds into Saturday’s game for being the aggressor in his fight with Saginaw Spirit defenceman Josh Glavin, who wasn’t penalized. In the teams’ last meeting Dec. 1, Glavin’s hard hit to Alessandro Di Iorio sidelined the Sting rookie for four games. … Ex-Sting forward Lane Sim, the younger brother of Knights forward Landon Sim, is still seeking his first Canadian Hockey League goal. He has one assist in 10 games with the Charlottetown Islanders of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League after collecting six assists in 52 games with the Sting.

Article content