The Pelham Panthers stunned their rival St. Catharines Falcons, who entered the game tied for first in the Eastern Conference, with a gutsy 3-2 victory Sunday afternoon. The Panthers entered the game coming off what was arguably their most disappointing performance of the season, an 8-0 loss on the road to Ayr, in which the Panthers looked flat in almost every way imaginable. However, if Thursday was their worst performance of the season there is zero doubt that Sunday’s win was their most impressive. There is also zero doubt about who was the best player on the ice for the Panthers, as goaltender Logan Snyder played sensationally, kicking aside 50 of 52 St. Catharines shots. With the win, the Panthers pick up their second victory of the season improving to 2-7-3-0 while the Falcons drop to 9-4-0-0.
The game started out defensively with the two teams battling to a 0-0 stalemate after an uneventful first period. The Panthers then cracked the game wide open early in the second. After Franceso Sanita beat Falcons goalie Hayden Jefferry at 2:27 of the period, Ty Boone would bury the puck just 33 seconds later at 3 minutes even. The Falcons, who quickly became visibly desperate to get back in the contest, threw everything on net for the remainder of the period tallying 27 shots in the second alone most of which came from the perimeter. Snyder stopped everything that was thrown at him until the Falcons were finally able to get one past him at 16:11 of the second. As the game got chippy in the third, the Panthers were able to take advantage of their second power play of the period. After Jeffery stopped a pair of Panthers attempts, Dylan Leslie crashed the St. Catharines net and managed to knock home a loose puck at 13:54 to make it 3-1 Panthers. The Falcons pressed hard for the remainder of the game, pulling Jeffery for the extra attacker with 2:35 remaining. After the Panthers were called for a cross-checking penalty, the Falcons would manage to get one more at 19:12 to cut the Panthers lead to one. However, the Panthers would manage to successfully hold off the St. Catharines attack for the remaining 48 seconds to secure the victory.
This week, the Panthers will take the short trip to the Seymour Hannah Sports and Entertainment Centre for a rematch with the Falcons on Friday night at 7:00 PM. The Panthers will then return home Sunday afternoon to take on the Caledon Bombers. Puck drop is at 2:45 PM at the Accipiter Arena inside the Meridian Community Centre.
