Troops in seventh heaven

NORTH BAY, Ont. — It took seven games and numerous heart-pounding moments, but the North Bay Battalion finally put the Barrie Colts out to pasture.

Kyle Jackson and Kyle McDonald scored third-period power-play goals and Owen Van Steensel added an empty-netter as North Bay rallied to a 3-1 Ontario Hockey League victory Tuesday night to capture the full-length Eastern Conference semifinal.

The second-place Battalion advances to face the fourth-place Peterborough Petes in the conference final.

Beau Jelsma scored for third-place Barrie, which forced the deciding game with a 4-2 home-ice win Monday night. Goaltender Anson Thornton gave up two goals on 23 shots.

Battalion goaltender Dom DiVincentiis, stellar throughout the series, made 28 saves, including on a last-minute penalty shot, before a season-high Memorial Gardens crowd of 4,218 that was largely subdued thorough the first two periods as the Troops struggled to find their game.

Having trailed 1-0 after 40 minutes, North Bay tied it on Jackson’s fifth goal of the playoffs at 4:26 of the third frame, 14 seconds after Jacob Frasca went off for a check from behind. Matvey Petrov and Ty Nelson had assists as Jackson snapped the puck home from high in the right circle.

McDonald struck for the winner at 6:25, 13 seconds after Cole Beaudoin was banished for blindsiding. McDonald drilled the disc behind Thornton from inside the right circle. Nelson and Jackson assisted on McDonald’s league-leading 12th goal.

Nelson has a 10-game points streak in which he has three goals and 12 assists for 15 points.

Thornton left for an extra attacker at 17:46, and Van Steensel scored unassisted into the vacant cage from centre ice at 19:13. It was his second goal.

Jelsma was awarded a penalty shot at 19:40, but DiVincentiis denied the attempt.

Jelsma opened the scoring at 15:50 of the first period after a turnover in the neutral zone. He and Tyler Savard staged a give-and-go rush against Brayden Hislop, with Savard feeding the puck to Jelsma on the right side for a one-timer sweep that produced his fifth goal.

Dalyn Wakely and Anthony Romani raced off on an odd-man rush at the 18-minute mark, with Wakely testing Thornton from the left wing and the rebound ricocheting just out of reach of Romani.

Justin Ertel was held or dumped in the offensive zone three times on the same shift before Barrie’s Artur Cholach was called for crosschecking and, remarkably, Ertel for diving at 18:52.

The Colts had two power plays in the second period to North Bay’s one, with Ertel sent off for holding at 1:18, Barrie’s Brandt Clarke for holding at 8:37 and Van Steensel for a head check on the diving Savard at 10:49.

The Troops pressed late in the frame on the way to a 9-8 edge in shots, with Romani having the best scoring chance at 16:23 on a screened snap shot off the right wing that went just high of the net.

BATTALION BULLETS: The Battalion has an all-time won-lost record of 92-105 in playoffs, including 49-48 at home. The Troops are 45-39 since relocation from Brampton in 2013, including 25-16 on home ice … The Battalion is 5-0 all-time in the seventh game of a series, including 3-0 at home and 3-0 as North Bay … Each of Petrov and Nelson has four goals and 24 assists for 28 points in 26 playoff games, tied with Matt Duchene for ninth place in franchise history … In 25 games, Jackson has 14 goals and 13 assists for 27 points, while in 26 games McDonald has 18 goals and nine assists for 27 points, tied for 12th place … McDonald’s 18 goals are tied with Barclay Goodrow for fifth place, and Jackson’s 14 goals are eighth … Petrov’s and Nelson’s 24 assists are tied for fourth place all-time … Nelson has 15 power-play assists, tied with Brenden Miller and Kyle Wood for the franchise record, while Petrov has 14 for fourth place … Jackson’s seven power-play goals are fourth all-time … McDonald’s two game-winning goals are tied with Jackson and seven others for 10th place … The Battalion went 2-for-4 on the power play. Barrie was 0-for-2 … The Battalion, which dressed 11 forwards and seven defencemen, scratched Wyatt Kennedy, Jacob Therrien, Brayden Turley, Ethan Procyszyn and Brett Bouchard … Barrie scratches included Carter Lowe, Evan Vierling and Kashawn Aitcheson … Mike Cairns and Sean Reid were the referees.