It turned into a wild game that saw the Steinbach Pistons trailing by four goals only to come back to tie the game in the final minute of regulation before a former teammate plunged the dagger into the comeback hopes as the Neepawa Titans claimed a 7-6 overtime victory on Sunday night.
There was a sense early on that this was not going to be a typical MJHL hockey game, it was going to be something different, more unpredictable.
Right out of the gate, the Titans brought the pressure. Shift after shift, it looked as though the Pistons were standing still. Often times guys were beat to pucks or lost battles along the boards to a harder working, more determined Titans club.
Neepawa would open the scoring but the Pistons responded less than two minutes later as Connor Paronuzzi stole a breakout pass and broke into the zone with Cole Cairns. A nice little give and go turned into Paronuzzi's 5th of the season, tying the game 1-1.
That score would not hold as the Titans crashed into the zone and looked as though they got away with a clear trip behind the net, resulting in a Pistons turnover that was quickly snapped past the Steinbach netminder and restored the Titans lead, 2-1.
Once again, the Pistons responded, this time in less than thirty seconds.
Good speed into the Titans zone pushed the defenders back and while the original shot was blocked, Luke Bogart was there to wire a puck home for his first MJHL goal. The 2-2 marker was assisted by Ryan McDonald and Bogart's billet brother, Shane Burns.
In the second period, the wheels came off for Steinbach.
Neepawa stormed out of the gate in the middle period and everything they directed toward the net seemed to go in. What started as a 2-2 period became 6-2 for the home side in the span of twelve minutes.
Down by four, a strange series of events led to Steinbach getting a 7:00 minute power play that would finish off the second period and carry over into the third.
Paronuzzi would strike for a second time in the game with just nine seconds remaining in the period, getting Steinbach a little closer, making it 6-3 through 40 minutes of play. Noah Szabo notched the lone assist on the power play goal.
Less than three minutes into the third, Szabo would make it 6-4 as the captain wired a perfect shot through traffic, missing all the bodies in front and finding the back of the net for 4th time this season. Mathis Laplante was given credit for the lone assist.
Another unlikely source of offense would make it just a one-goal game as first year blueliner Cale Quamme floated a puck from the point that hit off a Neepawa body in front and in for his first career MJHL goal. Paronuzzi collected his third point of the night on the 6-5 goal.
With under a minute to go and the net empty, Steinbach forced the puck toward the front of the net and after a scramble in front, Jamie Fuchs stuffed home his 3rd of the year, competing the improbable comeback, knotting the game 6-6. Szabo had the lone assist, giving the 20-year-old a 3 point night.
Neepawa would earn the extra point as they broke in and finished off a two-on-one to win the game in overtime 7-6. The winner was scored by former Piston Dawson McCann who added another goal earlier plus two assists, finishing with a 4-point night against his former team.
Zach Burleigh was hit with the loss, stopping 19 shots including a massive save in overtime.
Steinbach's power play is listed as going 1/4 while the penalty kill was hit twice, finishing 4/6.
The Pistons are off until the weekend and they'll use the time to heal up with several players on the mend. The next game is Friday night in La Broquerie as Steinbach welcomes in the Northern Manitoba Blizzard.