Caribous beat Flyers to take 2-1 CWSHL finals lead

CLARENVILLE, N.L. — The Clarenville Ford Caribous edged the Gander Flyers 3-2 Saturday night in a heavy hitting affair, winning game three of the Central West Senior Hockey League finals on home ice.

The first two periods ended in a scoreless draw, as each team vied for the opening goal in the pivotal matchup.

Only minutes into the third period, Clarenville seized the opportunity on a goal Keith Delaney, assisted by Justin Pender and Ryan Desrosiers.

Then, the home team were able to add to their lead on the power play, as Kevin Reid scored, with helpers from Rodney Mahoney and Mike Dyke.

The Flyers kept pace, scoring minutes later, but Kevin Reid, with assists from Andrew Smith and Chris Sparkes, added another for the Caribous, putting his team up 3-1 with 6:50 remaining.

With time ticking away, Gander pulled within a goal, when Andrew Ryan scored with 3:27 left on the clock.

But, from there, the ‘Bous were able to hold off the Flyers and hang on to the 3-2 victory. Both teams finished with 22 shots on goal in game three.

Game four is set for 1:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Eastlink Events Centre in Clarenville.