Tim Ruhnke – Recorder & Times
It was a big win for the home team.
The Brockville Braves came back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat the first-place Ottawa Jr. Senators 5-3 at the Brockville Memorial Centre on Friday night. The Jr. A Braves remain in seventh place in the Central Canada Hockey League but are six points ahead of eighth-place Kemptville and Cornwall, and seven points up on 10th-place Rockland.
The top eight teams at the end of the regular season advance to the quarter-finals in March.
Mathis Bedard gave Ottawa a 1-0 lead at 3:40 of the first period Friday. Braves captain Lucas Culhane responded less than a minute and a half later by going down the right side and getting one past Jr. Sens netminder Connor Shibley to even the score. It was Culhane’s 15th goal of the season.
Ottawa took a 3-1 lead in the second on two goals in 23 seconds from James Taylor and Emile Villiard. Brockville blueliner Trent LeDrew cut the lead in half a few minutes later on his fifth goal of the year. Teammate Matt Yeager tied the game 51 seconds later; it was his eighth goal of the season.
Kowin Belsterling scored what would prove to be the game-winner for the Braves at 1:54 of the third. Yeager gave the Braves some insurance with an empty-netter with 1:19 to go in regulation.
Brockville outshot Ottawa 37-29. Braves goalie Sami Molu picked up the win in net.
Belsterling, LeDrew and Taylor were named the three stars.
A crowd of 656 was on hand at the Memorial Centre.
Brockville’s next game is in Cornwall on Thursday night.
Original Story at Recorder.ca
