Heat evens series at 2-2 against the Barracuda

STOCKTON, Calif. – The Stockton Heat forced game five of the first round Pacific Division Calder Cup series against the San Jose Barracuda with a 5-3 win.

The Heat had to come back from single goal deficits two times to ultimately win the game. Barracuda’s Daniel O’Regan scored his second post season goal only 58 seconds into the game.

Hunter Shinkaruk (16) opens the scoring for the Heat with his second period goal – Photo by Jack Lima

Hunter Shinkaruk found a way to beat Troy Grosenick in the net at 6:21 into the second period to even the score. Garnet Hathaway’s shot went into the net following a barrage of shots with traffic at 7:55. Stockton led until 17:55, when Buddy Robinson’s redirect beat David Rittich.

Stockton Heat players celebrate Andrew Mangiapane’s (26) goal – Photo by Jack Lima

Tim Heed scored at 4:38 into the third period to pull the Barracuda ahead. The two teams battled hard at both ends of the ice. Andrew Mangiapane came through with the tying goal at 14:55, when he picked up a loose puck in the crease to slam it home. Brett Kulak and Hathaway were credited with the assists.

Linden Vey (15) celebrates his game winning goal late in the third period – Photo by Jack Lima

At 17:04, Stockton’s Linden Vey beat Grosenick high to the net to put Stockton back into the lead for good. Vey’s empty net goal at 18:38 sealed the win.

“It was a wild game,” said Vey afterwards. “They got off to a good start and they had us on our heels, but we’ve pretty much done what we’ve done down the stretch. We just stuck with it, grinded away and found a way to win at home.”

San Jose Barracuda’s goalie Troy Grosenick makes a glove save as Mike Angelidis (10) looks for a rebound – Photo by Jack Lima

Neither team was able to capitalize on power play opportunities, despite three chances for San Jose and two for Stockton.

Rittich earned the win in the net, with 34 saves, while Grosenick gets the loss with 28 saves in the net.

Hunter Shinkaruk (16) fights Rourke Chartier (60) for position in front of the Barracuda’s net – Photo by Jack Lima

Coach Ryan Huska is confident the Heat will be ready for Tuesday’s match.

“We’re a thorn in their side, for sure, and we’ve been that way for a while. There’s a real strong belief in our group. Even when we got ourselves down in the third period, our bench didn’t change at all. There’s 100% belief that we were going to win the game. It may have been a little more stressful than we would’ve liked, but we got the job done and that’s what’s important. That’s what we needed to do. Find a way to get the game in San Jose. We have one more game to look forward to and we have to find a way to win on the road now.”

Garnet Hathaway, left, scores past Barracuda’s goalie Troy Grosenick to tie the score 2-2 during second period action – Photo by Jack Lima

Vey also looks forward to getting another chance to play in San Jose.

“Win or go home, that was the story tonight,” Vey said. “We feel comfortable obviously going there. We had a big win there last time we were there and we can’t afford to keep going down in games. We have to make sure we’re ready right away.”