The Tigers have been playing well on the road so far this season and Saturday’s game versus the Ramblers continued the trend. Early in the first period the Tigers generated some good chances but were turned aside by by the fine play of Joel Goguen in Amherst’s net. About seven and a half minutes in, Campbellton finally managed to break through on the power play with Coleton Perry banging in a rebound off a shot from the point by Dylan Coffey. Amherst tied the game five minutes later but that tie was short-lived as Campbellton grabbed the lead on another rebound goal, this time off the stick of Pascal Valcourt. Off the faceoff in the Rambler’s end, Valcourt drew the puck to Coffey who swept it back to Francis Thibeault on the right point. Thibeault blasted a shot on net where both Valcourt and Coffey were positioned waiting to pounce. When the puck flipped off the goalie’s pad, Valcourt made contact with it midair tapping it into the net to restore Campbellton’s lead which held for the rest of the period.
In the second, the Ramblers scored the only two goals of the period to take the lead and then, early in the final frame scored another early to extend their lead to a pair. For a stretch, neither team was able to maintain offensive pressure and it began to look like all was settled until, with 2:10 left in the game, Coffey deflected a shot by Pierre-Luc Lurette past Goguen and into the net. On the play, with the faceoff in Amherst’s zone and Tristan Gray on the bench in favour of an extra skater, Jared Jenke won the draw back to Coffey who tapped it over to Charles William Gagné who in turn passed back to Lurette on the point. In the meantime, Mitch Britton and Coffey headed for the front of the net. Lurette’s wrist shot seemed to change directions a couple of times and then was deflected into the net by Coffey much to the dismay of the Amherst fans. Unfortunately the Tigers’ comeback was derailed when the Ramblers plopped in an empty net goal with less than a minute in the game.
Coffey was named the game’s third star. Gray stopped 29 shots in the loss.