Thunderbirds bounce back, beat Thunder 4-1
Winston-Salem, NC – After a crushing 6-5 overtime loss Friday night, the Thunderbirds beat Delaware in dominant fashion on Saturday night. The win snapped a five-game losing streak and saw a little bit of everything over the course of 60 minutes.
Gus Ford entered the game on a 12-game scoring streak. He seemed to extend that to a 13th game with a powerplay goal early in the 1st period. Instead, the play was blown dead as Ford began to shoot the puck due to incidental contact in the crease. Delaware’s Ryan Marker would capitalize on the momentum swing a few minutes later. On a partial breakaway, Marker waited for Carolina goaltender Chris Paulin to attempt a poke check, drove wide with the puck, and buried a wraparound on the other side of the net for the game’s first goal. The goal was Marker’s sixth point in two nights against Carolina. Later in the period, Dawson Baker broke through with a powerplay one-timer from the left circle. Baker drew the penalty himself, and the goal snapped a four-game scoring draught. Later on, a scrum broke out after Alex Basey grabbed John Buttitta from behind and unloaded with fists into the back of his head. The incident began after Buttitta speared Basey in front of the Delaware goal. Both were given game misconducts for their actions.
Carolina’s second period won them the game, with three goals overwhelming the Delaware defense. Everett Thompson broke the deadlock two minutes into the period, skating off the right-wing boards and rolling a backhander through Mike Cosentino. Five minutes later, Blake Peavey snapped a shot from between the dots that glanced off of Cosentino and into the net. Finally, Gus Ford got his powerplay goal, tapping home an Everett Thompson shot-pass. Carolina boasted a 4-1 lead headed into the second intermission.
The Thunderbirds outshot the Thunder in the 3rd period, 16-9. No goals were scored in the 3rd, and the Thunderbirds had outshot their opponents 55-22 by game’s end. The 4-1 win marked Carolina’s 4th win over the Thunder this season.
Sunday afternoon completes the three-game weekend set with the Thunder, with puck drop set for 4:05pm.