Lions inch closer to playoff spot with 3-2 win over Adirondack

Following the team’s heartbreaking 3-2 overtime loss on Saturday against Worcester, the Lions were looking to get back into the win column against the Adirondack Thunder on Tuesday night at Colisée Vidéotron. The team’s final four regular-season games are all being played at home, and head coach Éric Bélanger’s squad needs three points out of these four games to book their ticket into the playoffs.The Lions started the night on the right foot by opening the scoring in the first period. Taking a pass from teammate Tim Vanstone, Max Kaufman made no mistake and beat Thunder goalkeeper Alex Sakellaropoulos. Then it was Lions’ defenceman Hayden Shaw’s turn to find the back of the Thunder net with his sixth goal of the season with assists going to Justin Ducharme and Alexandre Fortin. But that two-goal lead disintegrated later in the period as the Thunder scored two of their own within two minutes of each other on goals by Ryan Smith and Patrick Grasso. The teams headed into the first intermission knotted at 2-2. The Lions had two power play opportunities in the second period, but Sakellaropoulos stopped all 13 shots he faced in the period. Not to be outdone, Lions’ goaltender Philippe Desrosiers made a terrific save on a one-timer by perfectly anticipating the play and robbing the Thunder of a sure goal. Desrosiers’ heroics resulted in the teams still tied 2-2 after 40 minutes of play. Less than two minutes into the third period the Lions’ number 22 – Julien Nantel – was able to break the deadlock and put the Lions back in front. Trois-Rivières was then able to shut the door for the rest of the game. Final score: Lions-3, Thunder-2… and the Lions are now ever-so-close to qualifying for postseason play.The Lions’ next game is Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. against the Worcester Railers. Fans who can’t make it to Colisée Vidéotron can catch all the action on TVA Sports.