Keenan Ingram capped off a sensational four-point performance with the overtime winner as the Yorkton Terriers edged the Melville Millionaires 7-6 in a thrilling matchup at Westland Insurance Arena.
The Terriers came out firing in the opening 20 minutes, energizing the packed crowd. Defenceman Riley Cormier opened the scoring with a point shot from the right side that slipped past Luke Brunen for his fourth goal of the season.
Just 1:45 later, Ingram carried the puck into the zone and found Carter Briltz streaking down the middle. Briltz fired it five-hole, doubling Yorkton’s lead to 2-0.
Melville responded late in the period as Raiden Zacharias broke free on a breakaway and slid the puck five-hole past Callum Creig, cutting the deficit to 2-1.
The Millionaires controlled the pace with the period’s only power play and outshot Yorkton 13-8.
The second frame saw an explosion of offence from both teams.
The Terriers restored their two-goal cushion early as Thomas Ries received a slick feed from Ingram and backhanded it past Brunen, making it 3-1. However, just 50 seconds later, Zacharias struck again, roofing a breakaway chance glove-side to pull Melville within one.
Melville carried the momentum, scoring twice in quick succession. Preston Baerwald and Jadon Iyogun found the back of the net to give the Millionaires their first lead of the night at 4-3.
Yorkton clawed back late in the period when Ingram capitalized on space in front, rifling the puck past Brunan to tie it 4-4 heading into the third. The Millionaires outshot the Terriers 11-6 in the frame.
Melville started the final period on the power play and took advantage. Liam Rodman’s shot from the point went post-and-in, giving the Millionaires a 5-4 lead.
Zacharias completed his hat trick shortly after, extending Melville’s lead to 6-4. With time ticking down, the Terriers appeared on the ropes.
However, Melville’s penalty troubles proved costly. Yorkton capitalized on back-to-back 5-on-3 power plays. First, Briltz tipped Bryce Dahl’s point shot past Brunan, cutting the lead to 6-5. Then, with Creig pulled for the extra attacker, Aiden Knutson made a spectacular spinning no-look pass to a wide-open David Coyle, who hammered home his fourth of the season to tie the game 6-6, forcing overtime.
The extra frame saw Melville dominate possession, but a costly turnover gave Yorkton the chance they needed. Ries and Ingram broke out on a 2-on-0 rush, with Ingram roofing the game-winner to complete the dramatic comeback.
The Terriers’ thrilling 7-6 victory sets the stage for a rematch tomorrow night in Melville, with puck drop scheduled for 7:00 PM.
