From a dramatic third-period finish to an overtime thriller, night two of the Clark Cup Playoffs did not disappoint.
The Tri-City Storm and Lincoln Stars are moving on while two game threes will take place Wednesday night. Here's a look at Tuesday night's action.
Storm survive and advance to second round
Tri-City erupted for four third-period goals Monday night and the offense carried over to Tuesday's 5-4 win over the Sioux City Musketeers. With the win Tri-City takes the best-of-three series and the Storm will face Fargo this weekend at Scheels Arena.
Alex Bump scored 1:45 into the contest and Tri-City looked to be on its way to another dominant offensive showing. However, it wasn't so easy. Kaden Shahan and Ben Poitras gave Sioux City a 2-1 lead midway through the first period and both sides traded goals from that point on.
Trevor Connelly gave Tri-City a 3-2 lead 3:55 into the second and Dane Dowiak stretched the lead to 4-2 at the 10:50 mark. After a pair of Sioux City goals from Ben Doran and Grant Slukynsky, Kieran Cebrian netted the game-winner with 4:51 left in regulation.
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STORM WIN!!! A SWEEP OF SIOUX CITY!! Here's the 3rd period highlights of the game two 5-4 victory! pic.twitter.com/ys7DRajLxN
— Tri-City Storm (@TriCityStorm) April 26, 2023
Cameron Korpi made 19 saves in the win and Tri-City became the first team to punch its ticket in the second round.
Ali sends Lincoln to second round with overtime win over Des Moines
The Des Moines Buccaneers were 2:22 away from a regulation win until Lincoln defenseman Tyler Dunbar tied the game with a shot from just inside the blue line. Dunbar's goal was the first of two straight from the home side as Brennan Ali found the back of the net 7:54 into overtime.
With the 4-3 overtime win, Lincoln becomes the second team to advance and will head to Waterloo this weekend.
Tanner Ludtke scored for a second straight night and gave Lincoln another early lead 3:25 into the contest. However, three of the next four goals ended up in the Lincoln net.
Joey Muldowney, who had a three-point night, got Des Moines on the board nearly four minutes after Ludtke's goal and the teams remained tied until Henry Bartle broke the ice late in the second period.
Rookie defenseman Aidan Van Rooyan doubled the Buccaneer lead 7:24 into the third period, only to be answered by Lincoln's Mason Marcellus and Dunbar.
Ali completed the comeback in the extra session while Cameron Whitehead made 29 saves between the pipes, earning his second win of the series.
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NTDP scores twice in final minutes, forces game three with 6-4 win
Team USA and Cedar Rapids were tied 4-4 with four minutes left. With their season on the line, the NTDP answered with a pair of goals to force a third game in Plymouth.
Kristian Epperson netted the eventual game-winner with 3:06 left and Charlie Cerrato tacked on an empty-netter with 29 seconds left.
EPPY!!!!!!
— USA Hockey’s NTDP (@USAHockeyNTDP) April 26, 2023
Team USA with the lead! Buckle up folks, this is going to be a good one.#USAvsCDR pic.twitter.com/7WVY5uIUVl
The third period featured six combined goals, four of which were scored by the NTDP. Brendan McMorrow scored twice in the final period while Jack Musa and Ryan Walsh found the back of the net for Cedar Rapids. Walsh had two goals in the loss and both he and McMorrow had three-point (2-1-3) nights.
The RoughRiders were the final Eastern Conference team to clinch a playoff spot and were the lone road team to win Monday thanks to a four-goal second period. However, they’ll need another road win on Wednesday to keep their season alive.
Fighting Saints fight back and force game three in Green Bay
Dubuque held a 1-0 lead after 40 minutes Monday night, only to see the Gamblers respond with four third-period goals and take game one. It’d be easy for the Fighting Saints to roll over and let Monday’s finish linger.
However, the Fighting Saints were on a mission from the start, scoring three first-period goals and going on to a 5-2 win. Max Montes scored 5:35 into the contest, Brayden Morrison stretched the lead to two and James Reeder made it 3-0 with 54 seconds left in the opening period.
Montes’ goal was his first of two on the night as the Ohio State commit stretched the lead to 5-2 in the final minute of the second period.
Montes paying the price for his second of the night!#HailToTheHalo #StarsRise pic.twitter.com/UrXLR285CY
— x-Dubuque Fighting Saints (@fightingsaints) April 26, 2023
Dubuque and Green Bay will square off in a winner-take-all game three Wednesday night at the Resch Center. Wednesday’s game is set for 7:05 p.m.
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