Giants Fall to Clan in Overtime

First Period

The Clan had the first chance of the game when Devin Sideroff had an effort stopped by Jackson Whistle. This would be far from the last save that the Giants goalie would make but the visitors would have the next chance with Marcus Eriksson almost tipping an effort past Lucas Brine. Tristin Langan and Brayden Burke then had two gilt-edged one-on-one chances repelled by Whistle before the Giants did well to kill a penalty given against Gabe Bast for tripping.

During that penalty-kill, Jake Guadet had an effort smothered before Karl Boudrias let fly from the hash marks from Patrick Grasso’s pass. Brine made the stop there but Whistle was called into action again to brilliantly deny a Burke penalty shot.

Boudrias and Richard Jarusek were sent to the box for roughing before another high-danger attack from the hosts could not be finished by either Mikhaili Teppo or the enterprising Darien Kielb. Adam Keefe’s men tried to scramble home a couple of efforts just before the buzzer but neither Nicholas Guay nor Scott Conway could beat Brine.

Second Period

The visitors came out of the traps quickly after the first intermission and a pair of defencemen in Bast and Bo Hanson had efforts well stopped by Brine. Colton Poolman then bravely dived in front of a goal-bound Eriksson effort as the visitors pressed. However, the deadlock was broken by the hosts just before the nine-minute mark in the second. Brett Neumann was teed up by Felix Pare before unleashing a rasper of a shot that beat Whistle (1-0).

The Giants almost levelled immediately through Scott Conway before Jarusek was denied by the skate of Whistle. Belfast were knocking on the door and Ben Lake almost tipped home Reid Irwin’s effort before Jordan Kawaguchi’s rebound tipped off the crossbar.

However, that was merely a warning shot as the away side did tie up the game when Mike Lee was quickest to react when Brine could only parry Eriksson’s shot and the Connecticut-born D-man bundled home (1-1). Things got even better just before the second intermission when Ryan Smith snapped home a one-timer off of an Eriksson face-off win to turn the game on its head and send Adam Keefe’s men into the locker rooms ahead (1-2)

Third Period

The Giants once again had the better of the start after the intermission with Bast and JJ Piccinich having efforts smothered by Brine. Both sides were then able to kill penalties called on Jason Fram and Boudrias for interference and hooking respectively before Smith let fly with an effort that caused him to lose his stick while Conway couldn’t mop up the loose puck.

Pare then had a shot saved before 2022 Olympian Fram tied the game with less than four minutes to go as he swept home a rebound off Poolman’s effort. (2-2) With neither side able to force the puck home before the buzzer, that goal took us to overtime.

Overtime

The extra five minutes began with both sides exchanging efforts. Neumann rattled the post before Brine somehow managed to block David Goodwin’s effort despite being prone on his back. That would turn out to be critical for the hosts as Kielb broke up the other end and finished past Whistle to condemn the Giants to a third consecutive league loss after regulation. (3-2).

Up Next

After four road games in a row, the Giants return to home ice tomorrow (Sunday) at 5pm as they welcome the Fife Flyers to the SSE Arena in another Challenge Cup clash. It is two home games in three days as Adam Keefe’s men round off their Champions Hockey League campaign by welcoming Swedish outfit Brynas IF to Belfast on Tuesday evening. That one is a 7pm start and you can get tickets for both here.