Carolina Lightning Take The Gold...

   At 6:20 left in the third period, Carolina Lightning’s Tommy Pettruccelli was able to get one through for the first score of the game. Following an icing call and the game winding down, Charlotte was able to call time out with 6.2 seconds left. With both teams in a frenzy, the Jr. Checkers showed toughness by winning the faceoff and getting a shot by Mark Miller to the back of the net with 2.5 seconds left in regulation. The score left the Lightning stunned and the Checkers breathing new life. The tired teams took to the ice for the first of what would be two overtimes. Both teams struggled in the first overtime to get many chances with only 5 shots by the Lightning being on net. After a brief break, the Lightning were able to get traffic in front of the net and with assists by Ben Hambright and Alden Eslinger, team captain BJ Goodwin was able to put the puck in the net only 38 seconds into the second overtime, finishing what parents from both teams were referring to as an ‘instant classic’. It was a great close to a great season ending tournament.