The Kelly Cup Finals switched to Colisee Videotron in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec for Game 3 Wednesday night between the Lions and Toledo Walleye.
Despite Toledo sporting a 6-1 road record and Trois-Rivieres going just 5-3 at home during the playoffs, the Lions came away with a hard-fought 3-2 win to take a 2-1 advantage in the series.
Chris Jandrick, Xavier Cormier and Anthony Beauregard each tallied a goal for the Lions, while goaltender Luke Cavallin stopped 32 of 34 Walleye shots.
The Walleye controlled most of the opening period, but it was a freak play that got the Lions on the board first.
On a turnover following a faceoff just 42 seconds in, Chris Jandric redirected a shot that bounced off Walleye goaltender Jan Bednar’s glove and went into the back of the net.
It was the Lions’ first shot of the game and Jandric’s third goal of the post-season. Trois-Rivieres has now scored first in 17 of their 19 post-season games.
The Walleye had a quality chance midway through the period when a Nick Andrews shot went through the goal mouth, but Cavallin was there to make the save.
Aside from the freak bounce, Toledo controlled possession until the 12:20 mark of the opening frame. Then, the momentum was snatched away as quickly as it came.
Xavier Cormier took advantage of a defensive breakdown, scoring on an odd-man rush off a feed from Alex Beaucage to give Trois-Rivieres a 2-0 lead. It was Cormier’s second goal of the playoffs.
Toledo got the game’s first power play when Beaucage went off for high-sticking. Cavallin stopped an initial wave of shots, including one when he was out of position.
That was all the Walleye would get, as they could not muster a goal. The Lions took their two-goal lead into the first intermission.
The second period has typically been a good one for Toledo, who was outscoring opponents 21-16 in that frame during the playoffs. The Fish had their opportunities but managed only one goal in the period.
The Lions had back-to-back chances to add to their lead five minutes in, but Bednar made a couple of spectacular saves to keep his team in the game.
Otherwise, the Fish again controlled possession in the middle frame, and it finally paid off.
Carson Bantle walked to the top of the left-wing circle all alone and fired one over Cavallin’s shoulder at the 9:08 mark to cut Trois-Rivieres’ lead to 2-1. It was Bantle’s fifth tally this post-season.
That’s when the officials got busy.
Brendon Michaelian went to the box for a five-minute major for cross-checking from behind. Toledo followed that with a slashing call on Brandon Kruse, putting them at a 5-on-3 disadvantage.
The Walleye weathered Kruse’s penalty toward the end of the period. Trois-Rivieres was then called for a penalty just after Kruse stepped back on the ice for a 4-on-4 situation.
Once Michaelian’s penalty was killed off, the Walleye went on a brief power play of their own. Despite all the special-teams activity, neither team could light the lamp as the period ended.
Colin Swoyer went off for tripping early in the third period, putting Trois-Rivieres on the power play. Fortunately for the Walleye, they spent most of the two minutes in the offensive zone and managed to kill off the penalty.
Defense was the story for most of the third period until the 15:11 mark. The Lions put a dagger in Toledo's heart when Anthony Beauregard scored from behind the net. Bednar lost his stick during the play, and Trois-Rivieres went up 3-1.
After Bednar was sent to the bench for the extra attacker, Swoyer got a power-play goal on a rocket from the high slot at 17:34 to trim the Walleye deficit to 3-2 and earn his sixth goal of the playoffs.
Tyler Spezia made two desperate attempts to tie the game in the final 20 seconds, but Cavallin slammed the door to finish the 3-2 Trois-Rivieres victory.
Cavallin earned the win with 32 saves for the Lions, who have history on their side heading into Game 4. In the previous 14 Riley/Kelly Cup Finals series that were tied 1-1, the winner of Game 3 has gone on to win the series 11 times.
The Walleye will try to regroup after a game in which they played well for the most part, but key turnovers and bad bounces were their downfall.
Puck drop for Game 4 on Friday at Colisee Videotron is set for 7 Pm ET.