Courtesy of TheCarillon.com
The Steinbach Pistons had six minutes on the power play to get the equalizer they needed but they couldn’t convert.
The Pistons dropped their home opener 5-2 after a roaring Flyers side capitalized on the two breakaways they earned in the third period to pull the game out of reach Friday night at T.G. Smith Centre.
Down 2-0 after 20 despite outshooting the Flyers, Steinbach rallied back in the second period, the momentum shifting in their favour after they killed off a 5-on-3 man advantage early in the middle frame.
The Pistons finally found the back of the net when captain Tyler Penner tallied a beauty power play deke 15 minutes into the period.
Steinbach opened the final frame with a critical four-minute power play but had nothing to show for it. In a subsequent two-minute man advantage, James Shearer got the puck past the goalie with a rip from the point, appearing to hit the back of the net, but the referee waved it off.
The Flyers would make sure their chances counted. They broke out for two breakaways that period and counted two goals. Scott Gall bounced on a rebound with 63 seconds left to count it 5-1.
Former SRSS Sabre Scott Petkau got his first career MJHL goal with 31 seconds to go, making the final 5-2.
The Pistons out shot the Flyers this game by a total of 47-32.
Steinbach heads to Winkler tomorrow night for a rematch.