(Christian Bender/NLL)
If the Toronto Rock had a superhero name, and not just the jerseys they wore Saturday night, it would be “The Comeback Kids.” Dealing with another 4-0 deficit to the Halifax Thunderbirds in Week 17, the Rock battled back to score twice in the final minute, and win 9-8 in overtime to clinch a home playoff game.
Mark Matthews tried to end the matchup on the first possession of OT going one-on-one with Ryan Terefenko. Baking down to the crease, Matthews’ sidearm-backhand was stopped by Warren Hill – one of his 40 saves. With Terefenko and Matthews tangled up on the turf next to Hill’s crease, the play went down into Toronto’s end. However, a moving screen call dropped the ball at the feet of Tom Schreiber who quickly found the wide-open Matthews down floor. With a few steps and a perfectly placed shot, Matthews had his second goal of the game, and the Rock’s 12th win of the season.
“My cherry-picking turned out to be the game winner,” he joked with TSN sideline reporter Ashley Docking after the game. Although he admitted, “We’ve got to find a way to get better as an offence early.”
Going back to their last matchup in Halifax on January 12 when Toronto scored first and led 5-1 after the first quarter, the Rock have either not scored first or trailed after 15 minutes in every game (10 entering Saturday) except their 12-9 win over Colorado two weeks ago. (The Mammoth tied the game in the second, and were tied 7-7 after three.)
This meeting was no different as Ryan Benesch, Terefenko, Dawson Theede and Johnny Pearson had Halifax up 4-0 after one. Terefenko said at halftime, “We had a good warmup and came out ready to play.”
On the Rock side, head coach Matt Sawyer admitted things did not go to plan. “It was a tough go for us tonight,” he said.
The Thunderbirds would score once more in the half, and only three more times after that. Benesch led Halifax with five points (3 goals, 2 assists). Austin Shanks (1 goal, 3 assists) and Clarke Petterson (4 assists) both had four points.
This is the first time Petterson has been held scoreless this season, although he had a goal called by by a Rock challenge in the third quarter. He also nearly ended the game in regulation. Coming out of a timeout, Cody Jamieson and Petterson kept the ball high, passing between themselves. When a lane opened with a few seconds remaining Petterson shot a bouncer that Nick Rose handled, part of a spectacular night of his own.
NICK ROSE – CONFIRMED SUPERHERO
It’s another week and another standout performance for the Rock netminder who stopped 37 of 45 shots. One of those included a Jamieson penalty shot that Rose deflected off his left hand. The veteran left his crease pumping his arms seeming to be firing up his bench and the crowd. On the ensuing possession, he left the crease to throw a big hit behind the net on Benesch, breaking up the play.
The 9-8 win was career win 106 for Rose, passing Bob Watson for third all-time in NLL history.
LATE COMEBACK
Rosey’s heroics allowed the Rock to come back, yet again, in the fourth, said Sawyer. “Without our ‘D’ and our goaltender’s performance, we don’t have an opportunity to come back like we did.”
Off a save, Justin Martin picked up the rebound and motioned for transition. Near mid-floor he spotted Dan Lintner cutting off the bench. Lintner had just seen a crease dive called ‘no goal’ and Toronto unable to challenge within the allotted 25 seconds. This time, he rushed in alone and put the ball past Hill to trail 8-7 with just under two minutes to play (his only goal of the game).
In the final minute, a Rock rebound saw Hill scrambling in his crease. Tom Schreiber picked the ball up at the side of the crease and out-waited everyone before tying the game at eight. Matthews called the goal ‘wild.’ Sawyer said the late sequence was “timely” adding there were “some special performances in the last 15 minutes.” Schreiber, Matthews and Craig all had a pair of goals.
The win – combined with Buffalo’s 12-11 OT loss to Panther City Friday, and Saskatchewan’s 14-11 loss to the Riptide Saturday – means the Toronto Rock will host a first-round playoff game for the third straight season.
