Bulls’ Late Charge Comes Up Short As They Fall In Shootout
San Francisco Bulls v Ontario Reign, January 31, 2013 – Photos Courtesy of Mike Tkacheff via SF Bulls Homepage
The Bulls fall short in the shoot out following an incredible comeback late in the third period. The Bulls were able to come away with at least a point as Cody Carlson equalized with under a minute remaining in the game. The Reign were able to put away the game in the seventh round of the shoot out as Brady Calla beat Taylor Nelson for the game winner as the Reign won on a final of four to three. Nelson had a nice bounce back game as stopped 24 of 27 shots he faced. The Reign take the season series with a dominating nine win and one loss record against the Bulls.
First Period:
Both Goalies came out of the gate read to play as they both stopped a combined 18 shots to keep the game at zero through the first. It took Marek Viedensky just 38 seconds to make his presence felt as he took a boarding penalty to the give the Reign an early power play. The Bulls penalty kill continued its impressive run of play by killing off another opportunity. The Bulls would be back on the penalty kill at 7:33 when Alex Tuckerman would be called for holding. This would also lead to the game’s only fight as Scott Langdon squared off with Derek Couture. The Bulls would again kill off the power play to keep the Reign scoreless. The Bulls would get a late power play but would not make much of it as they were held scoreless. The Reign out shot the Bulls 11 to seven.
Second Period:
The second period was a relatively uneventful period as neither team could really mount much sustained pressure as both teams combined for just 12 shots on the period. Despite the lack of shots Ontario was able to break the deadlock as they opened scoring at 6:08 in the period. Kyle Kraemer continued his solid play as he was able to beat Nelson on a break away. The Bulls gave the Reign another great scoring opportunity when Brady Calla was tripped up on a scoring chance that gave him a penalty shot attempt. Taylor Nelson stood tall and turned away the shot keeping the Bulls within a goal.
Third Period:
The Bulls would come out strong early in third as they tried to tie the game. The Bulls would get another chance with the man advantage early in the third, but again would fail to find the back of the net. Shortly after the power play another Ontario breakaway led to their second goal of the night as Kevin Estrada put in the rebound from Nelson’s save on the initial shot. Several minute later the Reign would seemingly put the game away as they stretched their lead to three on Kyle Kraemer’s second break away goal of the game. The Bulls would finally get on the board just 30 seconds later as Dean Ouellet would pot his 23rd goal of the season to cut the deficit to two. The Bulls would cut the lead to just one with under four minutes remaining as Jordan Morrison would sneak one pass Chris Carrozzi for his 12th on the year. The Bulls would complete the comeback as Cody Carlson would net the game tying with just 39 seconds remaining in the game, which pushed the teams to overtime. Coincidental unsportsmanlike conduct penalties by Kris Belan and Derek Couture at the end of regulation would the teams to skate three on three for the beginning of the overtime period. The Bulls out shot the Reign 11 to seven in the third and both teams would be tied with 27 shots after regulation.
Overtime:
The teams started out the overtime period with a lot of room to skate as they went three on three for the first two minutes as Belan and Couture served their penalties from then end of regulation. Neither team would be able to capitalize to end the game forcing the game into the shoot out. The Reign out shot the Bulls three to two.
Shoot Out:
Ontario Shoots First
- Kyle Kraemer – No Goal; Cody Carlson – Goal
- Mario Lamoreux – Goal; Rob Kwiet – No Goal
- Brodie Sheahan – Goal; Dean Ouellet – Goal
- Derek Couture – No Goal; Sebastian Trudeau – No Goal
- Everett Sheen – No Goal; Chrsitian Ouellet – No Goal
- C.J. Stretch – No Goal; Marek Viedensky – No Goal
- Brady Calla – Goal; Jordan Morrison – No Goal
Overall this was a relatively quiet game for both teams until basically the last half of the third period as five goals were scored after the 8:59 mark in the third. Both teams combined for just 30 shots through the second, including a 12 shot second period as neither team could really grab a hold of this game. The Bulls again dug themselves into a deep hole, but a magical stretch of play in the final nine minutes of play led to an impressive comeback to force overtime. It was a major improvement as they just looked flat in their previous outing. Dean Ouellet scored his 23rd goal on the season, which increase his lead in rookie goal scoring and puts him just two points behind Mario Lamoureux for the rookie scoring lead. The Bulls also added goals from Jordan Morrison and Cody Carlson had the game tying goal with 39 seconds remaining in regulation. Taylor Nelson had a solid game in net as he stopped 24 of 27 shots he faced. The Bulls fall to 17-23-7 on the season, while Ontario maintains their hold on first place with a record of 35-11-3. The Bulls return home for a weekend series with the Bakersfield Condors. Tomorrow night’s game will start at 7:15 pm, while Sunday’s match up will be at 2:15 pm.
Three Stars:
- Brady Calla – Ontario
- Kyle Kraemer – Ontario
- Cody Carlson – San Francisco