Victoria 4, Reign 3, shootout.
This one had to sting: The Victoria Salmon Kings scored the game-tying goal with 11 seconds left in regulation, then pulled out a 4-3 win in a shootout.
Goaltender Jeff Zatkoff stopped 44 of the 47 shots he faced between regulation and overtime, but couldn't quite withstand a third-period barrage that saw the Salmon Kings (33-24-2-4) outshoot the Reign (35-23-3-2) 21-6.
In the shootout, Victoria was a perfect 3-for-3, but the Reign couldn't put one past netminder Julien Ellis. The teams conclude their four-game series tonight at the Save-On Foods Memorial Center.
Geoff Walker scored a power-play goal in the first period, and Bud Holloway and Ryan MacGregor tallied goals in the third to give the Reign a 3-2 lead. They survived a brief 5-on-3 disadvantage with three minutes left in the game, but Victoria's Aaron Brocklehurst scored past Zatkoff to tie the game 3-3 and send it to overtime.
Official scoresheet is here.
Comments
A previous post a couple of blogs ago regarding the use of Zatkoff without a 'real' back up goalie was the very same concern I had awhile back. Zats is in a shooting gallery of late and I wonder how much he'll have left in the tank come playoff time.
The goaltending scenario just a few weeks back with 3 netminders was most likely welcomed problem for coach Taylor.
Now we're down to only 1 with no one in sight to give Zats a break.
Posted by: Tom | March 15, 2009 12:47 PM