PORT MOODY, B.C. – The Delta Ice Hawks made their return to the win column on Sunday night, rallying from an early deficit to subdue the Port Moody Panthers.
Ryden Mathieson returned to the lineup after missing the previous game to suspension, also joined on the roster by two of the newest Ice Hawks: forward Louie Sim, and goaltender Thomas Popa. Port Moody entered the game short-handed, down an available skater spot and playing four Affiliate Players, though they would come out swinging with the first two goals of the hockey game. With Mathieson in the penalty box and the Panthers on a power play, Dane Svingen-Jones opened the scoring just 23 seconds into the man-advantage. Marcus Lindholm scored at even-strength for Port Moody to compound the home squad’s lead. Delta’s power play got some reps in during the first period, revving their engines as Brogan Kennedy was in perfect position to wire a pass from Mateo Sjoberg underneath the blocker of Panthers netminder Ty Angus. Another power-play chance saw Brandon Petrie find the back of the net through traffic, sending the teams back to the dressing rooms knotted up at two apiece.
The Ice Hawks did not wait long to earn their first lead of the night, with Eric Lee notching his fourth of the season. Though Port Moody got a juicy opportunity to tie the game with Delta captain Tye Hemenway sitting for a double-minor penalty, the Panthers would fail to capitalize as the Ice Hawks seized control of the game. Hemenway put away his fifth goal of the season, assisted by Sjoberg and Jonathan Soares.
Delta converted their rally into a routing in the third period, propelled by strong showings from Danylo Bereza (one goal), Sjoberg (one goal, one assist this period), Declan Warburton (two assists) and Blake Medalla (assist on Sjoberg’s goal). Sjoberg’s goal, his league-leading 31st of the season, came with seven seconds to spare to cement the Ice Hawks’ success, bringing home a 6-2 victory from the shores of Burrard Inlet.
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THREE STARS:
• Port Moody goaltender Ty Angus made 44 saves on 50 shots and faced down a formidable Delta offence to earn third star at home.
• Delta forward Declan Warburton notched assists on both his club’s third-period goals and was a steady presence all night long, catching the nod for second star.
• Delta forward Mateo Sjoberg sparked the offence and paced the Ice Hawks to victory with three assists and one goal, named first star of the game.
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