ECHL: Purpura’s Career-High 40 Saves Leads Thunder To OT Victory

The Adirondack Thunder had yet another Wednesday Night game as they headed to Trois-Rivieres for their second matchup with the Lions as Trois-Rivieres took the opening game of the season series in Glens Falls on November 12th by a score of 3-2. In the opening frame, it would be Joe Vrbetic and Vinnie Purpura who would steal the show as they would both make some incredible saves to keep the game scoreless after 20. In the second, it would be the Lions who would come out hungry, firing a ton of shots at Purpura, and after a great sequence of saves by Purpura, Zach Walker would be called for closing his hand on the puck in the crease, and Anthony Beauregard would be awarded a penalty shot, but Purpura stood tall as we would keep the Lions off the scoreboard. Trois-Rivieres would eventually get on the board at the 13:55 mark of the period as Eric Hjorth fired a shot from just above the top of the circle, and there would be traffic in front of Purpura as the puck found the back of the net to give the Lions a 1-0 lead at the 13:50 mark of the second. The Thunder would get a PP at the end of the period but couldn’t convert, but just seconds after it expired, Matt Stief would feed Yushiro Hirano on a one-timer to tie the game at one at the 18:13 mark of the second as we’d be tied at one after 20.

In the third, it was the goalies once again that would once again be in the spotlight as between the two sides, 21 shots would be fired on net, but none of them would find the back of the net, and the game and for a league-leading eighth time Adirondack would find themselves in another game that would go to OT. Both sides would have their chances in the OT period, but it would be Zach Walker who would fire a back-hander towards Vrbetic. Still, as he was trying to cover the puck, T.J. Friedmann came in and found the back of the net for his third of the season at the 3:48 mark of the period to give the Thunder the 2-1 win as Vinnie Purpura would stand tall making a career-high 40 saves for his sixth win of the season. Matt Stief, after a slow start to the season is finding his grove as he had assists on both goals for the Thunder as he now has nine points in his last eight games.