THIEF RIVER FALLS, Minn. – Keighan Gerrie is atop the Superior International Junior Hockey League scoring race.
The Thunder Bay North Stars forward broke out of a tie for top spot with English River’s Bryce Young, scoring his 34th goal 62 seconds into the third period on Saturday night, giving him 83 points on the season.
Luckily, he’s also got a teammate hot in pursuit.
Defenceman Kyle Auger collected a goal and two helpers against the Thief River Falls Norskies, the goal proving to be the overtime winner in a old-fashioned, 6-5 barnburner.
The three-point output leaves Auger tied for second with Young at 82 points.
More importantly, the win clinched top spot in the SIJHL standings for the North Stars (40-3-2), meaning they’ll enjoy home-ice advantage throughout the coming Bill Salonen Cup playoffs.
But it’s a game Thunder Bay almost gave away.
Trailing 4-2 after Gerrie’s goal, the Norskies scored three times in less than five minutes to move in front 5-4 with 7:49 to play in the third.
But the lead lasted all of 36 seconds, Brendan Gillis knotting the game at 5-5, his 16th of the season sending the game to overtime, where Auger won it 1:44 in.
It was Gillis’ second goal o the night.
Jayde Mrakic, and Josh Bryant also scored for Thunder Bay, who captured their sixth straight win.
Tyler Johnson, Blake Nelson, Bryce Johnson, and Boe Bjorge, with a pair in the third, scored for Thief River Falls (27-17-5).
