The Ottawa 67’s earned a hard-fought victory in Game 1 of their second-round series vs the Peterborough Petes, and Jack Beck led the charge.
The Calgary Flames prospect scored the first goal, and the game-winner, powering the Barber Poles to a 4-2 win. Henry Mews scored the first goal of his playoff career, and Logan Morrison iced things with an empty-netter, as Max Donoso made 22 saves, for his third straight win.
“It’s playoff hockey,” said Head Coach Dave Cameron after the competitive matchup. “Two great teams came to battle. We came out on top, and now we’re going to have to do it again.”
As both teams engaged in something of a feeling-out process, the scoring finally opened up 6:01 in, when a shot by Morrison was denied by Michael Simpson, but Beck blasted home the rebound for a 1-0 lead.
Peterborough got it back with 27 seconds remaining in the frame, however, as Tucker Robertson capitalized on a favourable bounce at the net front, tying the game at one apiece.
Eerily similar to the opening frame, Vinzenz Rohrer won an offensive zone faceoff at the six-minute mark of the second, Frankie Marrelli fed Mews, and a quick point shot by his fellow rookie found its way through traffic, and restored the Barber Poles’ one-goal advantage.
The Petes stuck with the theme however, as J.R. Avon streaked in on a breakaway and scored at the buzzer. After a review, where it was difficult to determine whether or not the puck had crossed the line, the goal stood, and these teams were tied once more.
Showing the level of battle that they have all season, though, the 67’s found a way to overcome adversity once again. Morrison again won a faceoff in the Peterborough zone, and Beck took the puck on his backhand in the slot, rifling his second of the game past Simpson, and sending the 3,455 inside The Arena at TD Place into a frenzy.
“I think I’ve got to thank my alignments,” Beck said of his first-star performance. “Logan Morrison, playing with that guy, he just makes the game easier. It almost slows the game down for you, and [Brady Stonehouse] should get a lot of credit for the amount of times he gets in the middle of things, creates stuff, and opens up space for us.”
Now with five goals in six postseason games, Beck also spoke of the mindset that prevails this time of year.
“I think playoffs is just a different mentality. It’s a new season. It’s almost a restart, and you’ve got to bring your best every night.”
As time wound down, and the Petes pressed for the tying marker, Morrison ended their hopes with the empty-netter, putting the 67’s up 1-0 in the best-of-seven series.
The 67’s will look to put the Petes on even more unstable footing, when Game 2 goes down on Sunday, inside The Arena at TD Place at 2:00pm ET.
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