Port Hope Panthers Trail Amherstview Jets 2-0

By Jeff Gard/Today’s Northumberland

A shorthanded goal midway through the third period proved to be the difference for the visiting Amherstview Jets in a 2-1 victory over the Port Hope Panthers in Game 2 of their playoff series Friday night at the Jack Burger Sports Complex.

Amherstview now leads the Provincial Junior Hockey League Tod Division best-of-seven semifinal series 2-0 and will host Game 3 Sunday night at 7:30.

“We had a slow start in the first period, obviously we need to play a full 60, come prepared on Sunday,” said Carter Clarke, who assisted on Nathan Ford’s  lone goal for the Panthers. “This one coming up Sunday is really big for us and we’ll be coming pretty prepared.”

Nicholas Deichmann tallied the go-ahead goal that stood up as the winner for the Jets at the 9:43 mark of the final frame Friday night and just 11 seconds into a Port Hope power play.

“Obviously it was a bad bounce, shorthanded goal, it happens, but we’re moving the right direction,” Clarke said. “It’s going to be a confidence builder for us, it’s a wake-up call.”

Ford opened the scoring 4:42 into the contest and with five seconds remaining on a Port Hope power play when he found himself alone in front of Jets netminder Jeremy Piazzi.

Amherstview tied the game two minutes later when a shot from defenceman Rowan Pearson-Clark trickled past Panthers goaltender Sam Dingle.

With about four-and-a-half minutes to go in the opening period, Panthers players thought they had scored but play continued. Clarke was positioned right behind the Amherstview net when he believed teammate Ethan Shore scored to give Port Hope the lead.

“Shoresy tapped it in there and the goalie’s arm was fully in the net and pulled it out and obviously the ref waived it off, but it was a full goal and with that goal it would have made us 2-1,” Clarke said.

Amherstview’s Matthew Donovan then thought he scored with just under three minutes left on the clock in the first, but the officials ruled no goal due to a high stick.

Piazzi stopped 29 of the 30 shots he faced to record the win in net for the Jets while Dingle made 24 saves in a losing cause for the Panthers.

“Amherstview’s a tough team. They finished first place in the regular season for a reason. We’ve got to come ready to play 60 minutes every night,” said Panthers head coach David Miller.

“Tonight I don’t think that we did that. I think we gave them a little bit of free hockey. I thought our power play was terrible tonight, our penalty kill was way better, but we’ve got to figure out how to put together a full hockey game to beat those guys. I know we’ve got it in us, but it’s just a matter of putting it together.”