The Reading Royals and Trois-Rivieres Lions best-of-seven series shifted to Reading on Monday Night for game three, with the Lions holding the 2-0 series lead. Reading would make some changes prior to game three, two that would catch the eyes of some fans. Gianfranco Cassaro would come out of the lineup for the Royals on the blueline, and Vinnie Purpura would make his first career Kelly Cup Playoff start in place of Kieth Petruzzeli. Austin Master and Mitch Deelstra also made their Kelly Cup Playoff debuts.
It would be one of the better starts for the Royals in the series. However, the Lions would still get on the board first. Justin Ducharme found Nicolas Guay for a wide-open shot to give Tros-Rivieres a 1-0 lead. Reading’s lineup changes were starting to pay off as Mitch Deelesta threw a shot on goal as Shane Sellar put home his first of the Playoffs. The Royals would outshoot the Lions 16-14 in the opening 20 minutes of play. In the second, it would be all Reading as they killed off two penalties and held Trois-Rivieres to just five shots. The Royals outshot the Lions 13-5 in the middle frame. Reading would hope to take the momentum of the second period into the third period.
In the third, the Lions had a shaky start after being assessed two minor penalties in the first 10 minutes. Trois-Riviers would be forced to kill off three penalties in the third period. The game would get exciting at the end as Mason Primeau scored with a minute left, which appeared to be the game-winner at the time. Trois-Rivieres would pull their goalie, and with 1.6 left on the clock, Anthony Beauregard scored to send this game into OT. The Reading Royals were looking for their first Kelly Cup Playoff OT win since the first game of the 2013 Kelly Cup Finals against the Stockton Thunder.
The Trois-Rivieres Lions appeared to have won the game with a shot from Xavier Cormier on the PP. After a lengthy review, it would be ruled no goal due to goaltender interference. Trois-Riviers would get a PP in the OT frame, but it would be called back for goaltender interference. Neither team would convert on the PP as they would combine to go 0/8 on the night with the man advantage. The Lions got 11 of the 17 shots in the first OT. One OT wasn’t enough as we would see our first double OT game of the series.
In the second OT, Andrew Coxhead, found the back of the net after a scramble in front for his first of the Kelly Cup Playoffs to send the Lions home happy. Luke Cavallin made 42 saves for his third straight win for the Lions. Nicolas Guay and Andrew Coxhead finished the night with a goal and an assist. Vinnie Purpura would make 33 saves in the OT loss for the Royals. Despite the strong performances, Purpura has now lost his last three games. The Lions will look to close out the series with a win to complete the sweep on Wednesday Night at 7 pm.
ITR 43: It's Winning Time – Inside The Rink
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