SAULT STE. MARIE, Ont. – The soaring Soo Thunderbirds have now won eight consecutive Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League contests in a row after finishing off a home-and-home sweep of the Rayside-Balfour Canadians Friday with a 3-2 win at John Rhodes Community Centre.
After coming away victorious 5-3 in Chelmsford Thursday, the Thunderbirds continued their momentum on this night to keep their winning streak on the go.
Braden Robbin’s seventh of the season put Sault Ste. Marie in front before the Canadians countered with a James White man advantage effort to level the proceedings at 1-1.
The Thunderbirds then picked up a pivotal marker late in the first frame as Brendan Miller connected with just 10 seconds left in the session.
Skating four on three to begin the middle stanza, Rayside-Balfour knotted the affair once more as Noah Serre scored 23 seconds into the period.
Lucas Theriault then broke the deadlock with 3:45 left in the frame in what turned out to be the final marker of the night as the stingy Soo defence did not let the Canadians tie it for a third time.
Eric Schuch turned in a solid effort in het for the Thunderbirds as his 31 saves earned him the victory.
Brayden Lachance faced 33 shots in defeat for Rayside-Balfour.
Photos courtesy of James Egan’s Sports Photography
