RAPIDS DEFEAT TIGERS 4-2
CAMPBELLTON – Jonah Leard scored twice and the Rapids earned their 19th victory of the season as they defeated the Campbellton Tigers by a score of 4-2 on Friday night.
Grand Falls remains atop the Eastlink North division standings with a record of 19-12-5 for 43 points.
Adam Lecours earned his 15th win between the pipes, making a total of 32 saves as Campbellton outshot the Rapids 34 to 29.
It was also Bailey Shortall’s first game in a Rapids uniform. Recently acquired in a trade with the Amherst Ramblers, Shortall picked up an assist on the winning goal scored in the second period by Coen Miller.
It was Isaac Allard who opened the scoring for the Rapids at 8:26 of the opening frame. His shot from the faceoff circle beat netminder Niko Boudreau who also played a solid game for the Tigers.
Campbellton tied the score at 10:50 of the same period on a tip in front of the net. Alexi Parent was credited with the goal, his first of the night.
But with only 9 seconds left in the period while playing with the man advantage, the Rapids regained the lead when Jonah Leard’s shot found the far corner of the net, giving the visitors a 2-1 lead after twenty minutes of play.
Coen Miller, who finished the game with 1g and 2a, made it 3-1 for Grand Falls at the 3-minute mark of the second period following a two-on-one break.
Jonah Leard added his second goal of the game and his 15th of the season at 11:13 of the third period to bring the score to 4-1. Leard finished the contest with 2g and 1a, bringing his season total to 15 goals and 29 assists for 44 points.
The Tigers added their second goal on a power play at 13:06, courtesy of Alexi Parent, his second of the contest.
The Rapids got into penalty trouble in the final frame, picking up four consecutive minor penalties, but the penalty kill unit came up big and Adam Lecours responded well as Grand Falls held on for the victory.
It was the only game on the schedule this weekend for the Rapids. They will play their next contest next Friday night in Bathurst against the Chaleur Lightning before returning to home ice on Sunday January 18th against the Edmundston Blizzard.
EXTRA NOTES
*The Rapids are two victories away from tying the total of wins earned in a season since their arrival in Grand Falls 8 seasons ago. They won 21 games during the 2022-2023 season despite missing the playoffs.
*Both teams scored once on the power play.
*Three stars of the game: 1- Jonah Leard (GFR); 2- Adam Lecours (GFR); 3- Alexi Parent (CAM)
Patrick Thibault
Scoring
| 1st | |||
| 8:26 | GFR | Isaac Allard (7) ASST: Patrick Baxter (9), Nathan Plamondon-Michaud (18) | |
| 10:50 | CAM | Alexi Parent (9) ASST: Samuel Deveau (9), Jacob Singer (3) | |
| 19:51 | GFR | Jonah Leard (14) ASST: Coen Miller (22), Conor Ryan (11) (PP) | |
| 2nd | |||
| 3:05 | GFR | Coen Miller (19) ASST: Bailey Shortall (7), Jonah Leard (29) | |
| 3rd | |||
| 11:13 | GFR | Jonah Leard (15) ASST: Nathan Dubreuil (4), Coen Miller (23) | |
| 13:06 | CAM | Alexi Parent (10) ASST: Samuel Ouellet (5), Jacob Singer (4) (PP) |