|
Bulls Fall 5-4 in Overtime to Petes
 Andrew Self had three assists in the Belleville Bulls 5-4 overtime loss to the Peterborough Petes Thursday night in Peterborough.
The Belleville Bulls were unable to complete a two goal third period comeback, falling 5-4 in overtime to the Peterborough Petes Thursday night in Peterborough. Petes forward Brett Theberge scored his second goal of the game on the power play eleven minutes into overtime to give Peterborough the victory. The Bulls loss ties the best of seven Eastern Conference quarterfinal series at one game apiece. Belleville trailed the majority of the game before tying the score in the final few minutes of the third period to send the game to overtime.
Unlike game one, it was the Petes who got off to a quick start opening the scoring less than five minutes into the game Theberge broke into the Bulls zone and snapped a shot over the blocker of goaltender Mike Murphy from the slot. Peterborough then increased their lead to 2-0 six and a half minutes into the first period on the power play when Zack Kassian picked up a loose puck in front of Murphy and made a nice move before sliding the puck past the Bulls goaltender. Despite allowing the two early goals, the Bulls seemed to pick up their play, forcing Petes goaltender Trevor Cann to make several excellent stops to keep his team ahead two goals. Belleville did get on the scoreboard with just over three minutes remaining in the period when Cory Tanaka banged a loose puck from the side of the net past Cann for his first goal of the playoffs. Eric Tangradi and Andrew Self assisted on the goal. Shots on goal in the first period were 17-12 for the Bulls, as they trailed 2-1 after twenty minutes of play.
Peterborough restored their two goal advantage just two and a half minutes into the second period when Kenzie Sheppard was able to fire his own rebound past Murphy. The Bulls did press during the second period but Cann was very strong to keep Belleville from cutting into the lead. Murphy was also excellent when called upon during the remainder of the period. The Bulls were able to cut Peterborough’s lead back to a single goal on the power play with just under two and a half minutes remaining in the period when Matt Beleskey beat a screened Cann with a hard slapshot from the high slot. Self and P.K. Subban earned assists on the goal. Shots on goal in the second period favoured the Bulls 16-8.
The Petes once again extended their lead to two goals six minutes into the third period when Justin Soryal tipped a John Armstrong shot past Murphy. Peterborough pressed to increase their lead but Murphy was outstanding to keep the score 4-2. Subban got Belleville back into the game with just under nine minutes remaining in the period when he picked up a loose puck inside his own blueline and skated it into the Petes zone before blasting a shot past Cann from the wing. Keaton Turkiewicz assisted on Subban’s second goal of the playoffs. The goal seemed to give the Bulls some life, as they began to pick up their play, hemming the Petes in their own zone for lengthy periods of time. Belleville’s pressure paid off with just over two minutes remaining in the third period when Jan Mursak’s backhand from the slot beat Cann between the pads. Self and Geoff Killing assisted on the game tying goal. The Bulls did take a late penalty but were able to kill it off and force overtime. Shots on goal in the third period were 13-12 Belleville.
In overtime, the Bulls seemed to have the better chances including a glorious opportunity for Eric Tangradi that was missed. Theberge then ended the game with nine minutes remaining in the extra stanza when he beat Murphy with a shot from the slot on the power play. Shots on goal in the overtime period were 9-6 Belleville and overall favoured the Bulls 55-38.
Murphy played a strong game despite giving up five goals, as he made 33 saves in a losing effort. Cann was also excellent stopping 51 shots in the Petes victory. The Bulls finished the game one for five on the power play while Peterborough converted twice in eight opportunities with the man advantage. The three stars of the game were Theberge, Sheppard, and Cann. The series will now shift back to Belleville for game three on Saturday night. Game time is 7:15pm at the Yardmen Arena. The Bulls loss also guarantees that game five will take place in Belleville on Tuesday, March 25. Tickets for all Bulls home games this series are available at the Bulls Box Office.
| 
