The first round of the 2024 Clark Cup Playoffs will conclude on Wednesday with three decisive Game 3's
Are you not entertained?
Adam Pietila scored a natural hat trick in the Youngstown Phantoms' 5-2 win over the Madison Capitols on Tuesday. Netminder Aiden Wright picked up his first postseason win, stopping 15 of 17.
Madison grabbed an early 2-0 lead in the first period despite registering only five shots on goal. Max Nagel scored his third goal of the postseason, and Andrew Kuzma followed up 54 seconds later. Both goals came on the power play.
The Phantoms returned for the second period with renewed vigor, tying the game less than six minutes into the frame. Mikey Burchill got Youngstown on the board at the 2:51 mark of the period, and Nathan Lewis followed less than three minutes later.
Approaching the mid-way point of the middle stanza, Pietila scored his first goal of the game, redirecting Luke Osburn's shot from the point. The Phantoms took a 3-2 lead into the locker room after 40 minutes.
"We were dominating the game," Phantoms head coach Ryan Ward said of the message between the first and second periods. "Five-on-five, we were dominating the game. They didn't have a whole lot outside of their special teams.
"For us, in the playoffs, you stick to it until the final whistle, and our guys did that, and that's really important this time of year."
One minute into the third period, Pietila made it a two-goal advantage. Conner de Haro found his teammate in the slot, and Pietila buried a wrister. With Madison's net empty, Pietila completed the hat trick.
"Adam (Pietila) is a heart-and-soul kid and leaves it out there every night and tonight certainly," Ward said.
"We challenged all of them this morning, and he answered the bell. He's a 21-year-old in the USHL. He's got a bright future, and he wears a letter for a reason."
The Tri-City Storm and Sioux Falls Stampede went to overtime for the second consecutive night. On Tuesday, however, the Storm came out victorious.
Owen Beckner found the back of the net at the 11:14 mark of the extra session to force a Game 3 on Wednesday. Storm netminder Cameron Korpi turned aside 21 of 23 shots on goal, including five in overtime.
The Stampede opened the scoring on Noah Eyre's first postseason goal. The tally came under nine minutes into the game, and Sioux Falls took a one-goal lead into the locker room after 20 minutes.
However, Tri-City tied the game 53 seconds into the second frame on Cameron Briere's power-play goal. The Herd regained the late late in the period on Jaksen Panzer's tally.
Into the third period, August Fallon recorded his second goal of the playoffs to knot the game at two, giving way to Beckner's heroics in overtime.
Despite playing without Michael Hage, who was suspended for Tuesday's game, the Chicago Steel staved off elimination with a 5-2 win against Green Bay.
The Steel scored three times in the third period to pull away from the Gamblers and force Game 3 on Wednesday. Chicago netminder Louka Cloutier made his first postseason start and stopped 33 of 35 shots on goal.
Tobias Ohman opened the scoring for Chicago at the 5:08 mark of the first period on a sharp-angle shot that beat Green Bay netminder Adam Gajan.
Owen Tylec doubled up the Steel's lead in the second period, scoring on a backhander through traffic.
Chicago and Green Bay combined for five goals in a wild third period.
Mykhailo Danylov ended Cloutier's shutout bid just over three minutes into the frame. Charlie Major responded for Chicago on a snipe from the slot. Joey DelGreco made it a 4-1 lead for Chicago less than five minutes later.
Julian Lutz brought the Gamblers back within two on a power-play goal from the right circle. However, with the Green Bay net empty, Chicago's Hunter Hady scored from long distance to put the game out of reach.
Hage is expected to return for Wednesday's decisive Game 3 matchup.
