The Birmingham Bulls returned from a three-point deficit in an insane game on Saturday night, winning 6-5 in a 12-round shootout over the Rail Yard Dawgs at the Pelham Civic Complex. The win completes the 2-0 weekend sweep of the Dawgs, elevating the Bulls to fourth place in the SPHL standings with ten games remaining in the regular season.
Both teams came out of the gate with plenty of physicality and intensity, and the first period was more of a defensive grudge match between two of the league's elite offenses as there were only 11 combined shots on goal. On Birmingham's first shot of the night, Kolten Olynek was able to rattle the shot in from above the right-wing circle on the rush to make it 1-0 at 3:40. The Bulls would add another at 6:51, as Drake Glover tipped in a shot in the low slot that came from Kyler Matthews at the right-wing point to double the advantage. The Dawgs got a late power play chance in the final minute of the period that would carry into the next frame, but trailed Birmingham 2-0 at the first intermission.
The game flipped on its head in the second period. The Dawgs quickly capitalized on the power play, as Stanko tucked home a rebound goal for his fifth goal in his last six games to make it a 2-1 score just 21 seconds into the frame. Jansen would tie the game on a rebound chance at the left-wing circle at 5:27, smashing home a loose puck right as Birmingham goalie Hayden Stewart was pushing the net off of its morings with his right skate when trying to stretch out for the save. Valerian would also tally on a rebound opportunity when he hammered the puck into the back of the net at 10:02 to give Roanoke its first lead of the weekend. An altercation between Roanoke's Joe Widmar and Birmingham's Matt Clark led to Widmar receiving a gamemisconduct for obscene language, but the Dawgs continued to churn out strong play through the rest of the period to take their 3-2 lead to the final 20 minutes of regulation.
Roanoke continued rolling at the start of the third period, and a defensive zone turnover by Birmingham went straight to Kelly for an easy unassisted tally at 1:12 to make it 4-2 for the visitors. Doney would notch a huge goal for Roanoke just three seconds after a power play chance expired, as his rip from the left-wing dot made it 5-2 at the 5:32 mark.
Birmingham wouldn't go away, making it a 5-3 game on an Arkhip Ledziankou wrister from the left-wing wall during 4-on-4 action at 8:06. A late power play chance enabled Carson Rose to make it a one-goal game, as the reigning league MVP made it 5-4 at 17:50. With just 14 seconds left, Rose would score again with Birmingham's net empty and the extra attacker on to improbably force overtime. The Dawgs had to kill a Birmingham power play in overtime to push the game into a shootout. Roanoke's Daniel Chladek and Birmingham's Taylor Brierley both scored on each team's fourth attempt, and the shootout would eventually go to sudden death after it was still tied 1-1 after five attempts per side. In the bottom of the 12th frame, the seventh additional sudden death round, Rose would score to give the Bulls the victory.
Roudebush stopped 26-of-31 shots in net for Roanoke. Stewart stopped 23-of-28 shots faced in net for the Bulls. Both teams went 1-for-4 on the power play.
Read more at Our Sports Central: