Zach O’Brien’s goal with a minute and a half left in regulation time gave the Newfoundland Growlers a 4-2 win over the Manchester Monarchs and a split of their weekend playoff series at Mile One Centre.
That means the Growlers head back to Manchester, N.H. for Games 3, 4 and 5 starting Tuesday night tied 1-1 in the best-of-seven North Division final.
The Growlers dropped the first game of the series 3-2 Friday night at Mile One.
Before 3,836 at Mile One Saturday evening, O’Brien scored his team-leading fourth goal of the post season at 18:31 of the third on an unassisted play.
O’Brien also drew two assists, including one on Derian Plouffe’s empty-netter, for a three-point night, giving the St. John’s native nine points in eight playoff games.
O’Brien, by the way, played for the Monarchs when they were in the American Hockey League, winning a Calder Cup with Manchester in 2015.
The teams traded first-period goals, with the Monarchs’ Craig Wsyzomirski opening scoring five minutes in, before Newfoundland’s Josh Kestner evened things just over two minutes later on an unassisted play.
Brady Ferguson staked the Growlers to a 2-1 lead at 12:47 of the second, with O’Brien and fellow St. John’s native Marcus Power assisting on the power play marker.
Fifty-five seconds after the Ferguson goal, Manchester’s Pavel Jenys made it a 2-2 game, setting the stage for O’Brien’s heroics.
Michael Garteig got the start again for the Growlers, stopping 22 of 24 shots.
Eamon McAdam was reassigned to the Growlers from the AHL’s Toronto Marlies earlier in the day, and served as Garteig’s backup.
McAdam was dispatched to St. John’s after Michael Hutchinson was reassigned from the Toronto Maple Leafs to the Marlies.
