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Late Shorthanded Goal Leads Bulls to 6-4 Victory over Peterborough
 Andrew Self scored twice in the Belleville Bulls 6-4 victory over the Peterborough Petes Thursday night in Peterborough.
Shawn Matthias scored on a shorthanded breakaway with just over a minute and a half left in the third period to break a 4-4 deadlock and lift the Belleville Bulls to a 6-4 victory over the Peterborough Petes Thursday night in Peterborough. The Bulls scored the final four goals of the game en route to their fourth consecutive victory over the Petes this season. The win also moves the Bulls into sole possession of first place in the Eastern Conference.
The Bulls got off to a terrific start to the game, opening the scoring just two minutes into the first period on the power play when Keaton Turkiewicz one-timed a perfect cross-ice pass from Shawn Lalonde past Petes goaltender Trevor Cann. Brendan Taylor also assisted on Turkiewicz’s 12th goal of the season. The Petes were quick to tie the score with a power play goal of their own just two and a half minutes later when Kenzie Sheppard tipped a Derek Holden point shot past Bulls goaltender Mike Murphy. The Bulls power play struck again midway through the period when Matt Beleskey wired a great shot over the shoulder of Cann from the faceoff circle. Matthias and P.K. Subban assisted on Beleskey’s 15th goal of the season. Peterborough again was quick to tie the score on the power play just over three minutes later when Branislav Rehus fired a loose puck in the crease past Murphy after the Bulls goaltender could only get a piece of the original John Armstrong shot. The Petes were then able to grab their first lead of the game with just over one minute remaining in the opening frame when Pat Daley fired a wicked shot over the glove of Murphy and into the top corner. Shots on goal in the first period were 14-10 Belleville, as they trailed 3-2 after twenty minutes of play.
Peterborough quickly extended their lead to 4-2 just two minutes into the second period when Daley slid a backhand between the pads of Murphy on an odd man Petes rush. Despite being down two goals, the Bulls did not panic and got themselves back into the game before the period was over. Andrew Self cut the lead to a single goal seven and a half minutes into the period when he took a great pass from Taylor and made a pretty deke before sliding the puck past Cann in front of the Petes goal. Eric Tangradi also assisted on Self’s fifth goal of the season. Self then tied the score five minutes later when he fired a quick shot from the side of the goal through the pads of Cann. Taylor and Tangradi again assisted on the goal. Taylor’s three assists in the game give him five points in three games against his old team this season. The two sides both pressed for the go ahead goal during the remainder of the middle frame but Murphy and Cann were both solid to keep the score tied 4-4 heading into the third period. Shots on goal in the second period favoured the Petes 16-9.
Both sides skated well throughout the third period, forcing both goaltenders to make some excellent stops to keep the game tied. The Petes had two great chances to take the lead when two Bulls defenders took delay of game penalties for firing the puck over the glass in their own zone in the final five minutes of the period. However, not only were the Bulls able to kill off the penalties, they also scored the game winning goal with just over minute and a half remaining in the game when Matthias beat Cann on a breakaway with a high, hard shot. Beleskey and Nick Pageau earned assists on Matthias’ team leading 16th goal of the season. Matthias then rounded out the scoring with an empty net goal with just three seconds remaining in the final frame. Beleskey earned the lone assist on the goal for his third point of the game. Shots on goal in the third period were 15-14 Peterborough and overall favoured the Petes 41-37.
Murphy stopped 37 shots to earn his 12th victory of the season while Cann made 31 saves in a losing effort for the Petes. The Bulls power play which had struggled as of late had a good game, scoring twice in four opportunities while the Petes went two for six with the man advantage. The three stars of the game were Daley, Self, and Brett Theberge. With the win, the Bulls improve their record to 16-6-2-1 while the Petes drop to 10-15-0-1 with the loss. The Bulls now return home for their first game at the Yardmen Arena in two weeks on Saturday when they host the Brampton Battalion. Game time is 7:15pm and tickets for the game are available at the Bulls Box Office.
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