Giants Drop OT Decision in Tri-City

Parker Bowles scored in overtime to lift the Tri-City Americans to a 2-1 win over the Vancouver Giants at the Toyota Center on Tuesday night. Travis McEvoy had the lone goal for the Giants who outshot the Americans 38-17 in a losing cause.

The Giants dominated the opening period, peppering 16-year-old goaltender Evan Sarthou with a number of shots. McEvoy and Dalton Thrower both hit goal posts early in the game while Jackson Houck was stopped on a great chance as well. The G-Men finally found the net when McEvoy found himself alone in front of the net and was able to knock the rebound of a Thrower point shot across the goal line. The Americans found an equalizer late in the period after a turnover in the Vancouver zone allowed Connor Rankin to get a shot away, and Brian Williams buried the rebound to even the score with less than eight seconds to go in the stanza.

Much like the game between the two teams in Vancouver on Saturday, the rest of the night was a defensive showdown. Neither side scored in the second period, and both goaltenders came up big at different points. Jared Rathjen made a big breakaway save on Brian Williams late in the period to keep the game tied at 1-1.

The Giants controlled the majority of the third period but Sarthou stood strong. Vancouver was given a power play in the late stages of the frame, but despite a number of chances, the G-Men couldn't find a go-ahead goal. Rathjen was called into action again before the end of the third when he made a big right pad save on Braden Purtill on a partial break to send the game to overtime.

Bowles ended the game 1:32 into the extra period when a turnover at the Vancouver blue line allowed him to walk in alone on net, and he beat Rathjen between the legs to secure the victory for the Americans.

The Giants will wrap up their two-game trip in the US on Wednesday evening against the Spokane Chiefs. Hear the action on TEAM 1410 and teamradio.ca. The Pre-Game Show begins at 6:30pm, followed by the opening face-off at 7 o'clock.

Game Summary

3 Stars:
1. Evan Sarthou - Tri-City
2. Parker Bowles - Tri-City
3. Jared Rathjen - Vancouver