Left picture: #27 Marcus Mitchell scores Nanaimo’s first goal in the first period.
Right picture: #15 MacKenzie Merriman’s centering pass banks in off former Clipper David Melaragni for to OT winner.
By Dan Marshall
The WOLF 106.9 FM
Reprinted from NanaimoNewsNOW.com
DUNCAN – The Clippers perfect record against the Capitals is still intact after a 5-4 overtime win on Tuesday. The victory also extends Nanaimo’s season high winning streak to five games.
Marcus Mitchell got the visitors off to a 1-0 lead but Brady Lynn tied it for Cowichan late in the first period. Ethan Scardina beat Jack Grant to give Nanaimo another lead with a power play goal in the final minute.
The only tally of the second period was a seeing eye shot by Luc Wilson that fooled Jordan Naylor. Cowichan had a goal waved off in the second as well, when Naylor was interfered with in his crease.
Nanaimo took a 4-2 lead early in the third period on quick goals by Sammy Steele on the man advantage and Thomas Samuelsen. After a timeout the Caps came back with two fast markers of their own by Kolton Cousins and Olivier Gauthier.
That sent the game to overtime for the second time in four head to head meetings. Mackenzie Merriman beat two checks and banked a puck in off a Cowichan defender to give the Clippers a fourth straight win over the Capitals in the season series.
The shots finished 36-26 for Nanaimo while the Clippers went 2/4 on the power play and 1/1 on the penalty kill.
Tuesday’s Three Stars were Mackenzie Merriman (1 goal), Dimitri Mikrogiannakis (2 assists), and Ethan Scardina (1 goal, 1 assist).
The Clippers only other game this week is in Victoria on Saturday, 7 p.m. at The Q Centre.
