Brantley III scores in OT to lead SoHi hockey past Palmer

Brantley III scores in OT to lead SoHi hockey past Palmer

  • By JEREMIAH BARTZ Frontiersman.com
  • Thursday, January 10, 2019 2:26am
  • Sports

By JEREMIAH BARTZ

Frontiersman.com

PALMER — Soldotna and Palmer were ready to play eight minutes of extra hockey. But thanks to Galen Brantley III, the Stars needed only eight seconds.

Brantley III scored on the first shift of the additional frame to give the Stars a 3-2 overtime win over the Moose on Wednesday night at the MTA Events Center in Palmer.

“Close game like that, any kind of mistake, you can end up losing the game,” Palmer head coach Dean Wilson said after the loss.

SoHi center Braxton Urban won the opening draw of overtime, and dropped a pass back to Brantley III, and he did the rest. Brantley skated up the left side of the ice and lifted a backhander that glanced off the bottom of the crossbar to stun the Moose.

This is after Palmer forced the extra period with a pair of unanswered goals, including the game-tying score with just less than three minutes left with regulation. As SoHi skated on the power play late in the game, Palmer senior Darian Wilson forced a turnover on the forecheck at the left side of the SoHi net. Wilson picked up the puck, wrapped around the backside of the goal and tucked a shot just inside the right post. Wilson’s goal came off of one of at least three turnovers forced by the Moose forecheck late in the game.

“They were flying around out there,” Dean Wilson said of his team’s play on the defensive end.

Wilson said Palmer’s ability to win battles in the neutral zone was also key in comeback.

“We were trying to turn things around at neutral ice,” Wilson said. “Regroups are way better than breakouts.”

Quick scores were a theme for SoHi throughout the night. Soldotna took a lead less than two minutes into regulation. Defenseman Lucas Kline moved the puck from the right point to just inside the left circle where Alex Montague snapped a quick shot above the reach of Palmer goalie TJ O’Rourke with 13:17 to play in the first period. Early in the second, Brantley III needed only seven seconds of Soldotna’s first power play of the game to push his team’s advantage to a pair.

Brantley III took a pass at the top of the zone, skated between the circles, and tucked a shot right underneath the crossbar to give Soldotna the 2-0 lead.

Palmer cut SoHi’s lead in half late in the second period. Nathan Hooks knocked in a rebound from the right side of the crease with 1:50 left in the middle frame to put the Moose on the board.

Wednesday’s game marked the first meeting of the season between the old North Star Conference rivals in the new Railbelt Conference.

“I think it’s a lot more even,” Wilson said of the new Division II conference, which also includes Kenai Central, Homer, Houston and Juneau.

Contact Frontiersman managing editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com

Soldotna 3, Palmer 2 OT

Wednesday, MTA Events Center

First period — 1. Soldotna- A. Montague (Kline, Skalnick) 13:17.

Second period — 2. Soldotna- Brantley III (Urban, Schelzenbach) pp 10:14; 3. Palmer- Hooks (Horacek, Hayes) 1:50.

Third period — 4. Palmer- Wilson (unassisted) sh 2:49.

Overtime — 5. Soldotna- Brantley III (Urban) 7:52.

Shots on goal: Soldotna 9-2-9-1—21, Palmer 6-7-10-0—23; Saves: Soldotna- Wirz 6-6-9-0—21, Palmer- O’Rourke 8-1-9-0—18.

More in Sports

tease
Oilers topple Glacier Pilots in opener

The Peninsula Oilers opened their season by defeating the Anchorage Glacier Pilots… Continue reading

tease
Twins swept by Service

The American Legion Twins were swept in Anchorage by Service on Wednesday,… Continue reading

tease
Twins open season by stopping Dimond

The American Legion Twins opened their season by topping Dimond 16-3 on… Continue reading

tease
Oilers, Twins open seasons this week

The American Legion Twins and Peninsula Oilers open their 2023 seasons this… Continue reading

The Kenai River Brown Bears mob Ryan Finch after he scored the game-winning goal in overtime against the Janesville (Wisconsin) Jets on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023, at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex in Soldotna, Alaska. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)
Browns Bears announce commitments for Holt, Finch

The Kenai River Brown Bears recently announced college commitments for Ryan Finch… Continue reading

Morgan Aldridge leads riders down a hill at the start of Week 3 of the Soldotna Cycle Series on Thursday, July 18, 2019, at Tsalteshi Trails. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)
Sterling’s Aldridge wins Eagle River Duathlon

Sterling’s Morgan Aldridge won the women’s overall at the Eagle River Duathlon… Continue reading

Soldotna's Trenton Ohnemus delivers to Kenai Central in the Division II state championship game Saturday, June 4, 2023, at Wasilla High School in Wasilla, Alaska. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)
SoHi tops Kenai to repeat as Division II state baseball champs

The Soldotna baseball team retained the Division II state title with a… Continue reading

tease
Kenai, Soldotna baseball to face off for state title

The Kenai Central and Soldotna baseball teams will play for the Division… Continue reading

tease
Kenai Central ends run at state softball tournament

The Kenai Central softball team ended its season with two losses Friday… Continue reading

Most Read