POWASSAN – A Cody Gratton power play marker with 1:14 remaining in double overtime helped the Cochrane Crunch edge the Powassan Voodoos in Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League action Saturday at the Powassan Sportsplex.
Each side would strike twice in the opening 20 minutes as Gratton and Aviv Milner connected for Cochrane while Jake Staples shorthanded, in his Powassan debut, and Michael Silveri during a man advantage countered for the Voodoos.
The teams added two more tallies apiece in the second stanza to knot the score at 4-4 after two.
Staples and Tyler Gervais-Rolfe put Powassan up by a pair only to see the Crunch answer back with markers from Joey Mavrin and Stavros Soilis to level the proceedings.
Milner’s second of the evening put Cochrane back in front only to see David Sherman tie it once again with 10:12 to go.
Staples struck again for his second man down effort of the contest with just over five minutes left, but the Crunch forced extra time as Dustin Cordeiro tied it with 3:26 left in regulation.
Neither side would convert in the first OT, but Gratton ended it late as his potted his league-leading 41st goal of the season to give the Crunch the extra point on the night.
Ben Auger made 28 saves to record the win while Jack Ondrovic faced 41 attempts in defeat as the Voodoos earned a point with the OT setback.
