River Kings drop OT thriller

Cornwall Ontario – Social media has lit up like a Christmas Tree recently over questions of River Kings ownership. That story might over shadow the fact that the River Kings had an exciting game Saturday night.

For the second straight home game, River Kings fans were treated to an overtime thriller. But this time, the visiting Thetford-Mines Isothermic skated to a 2-1 win at the Civic Complex.

The Isothermic capitalized on a turnover as Maxime Lecours connected on a setup by Maxime Villemaire at 3:43 of the extra session.

The River Kings got another great performance from Pete Karvouniaris, who was locked in a goaltending battle all night with counterpart Gabriel Girard.

Cornwall had its chance in overtime with a powerplay but couldn’t convert. The River Kings outshot Thetford-Mines 40-32, including 3 to 1 in overtime.

Villemaire opened the scoring for Thetford-Mines at 12:20 of the first. Left alone in front, Villemaire made a nifty move to beat a defenceless Karvouniaris.

The River Kings finally levelled the score when rookie Antony Courcelles’ blast trickled past Girard at 9:18 of the third on Cornwall’s 34th shot of the game. It was the Courcelles’ team-leading 10th goal of the LNAH season.

Long Sault’s Brennan Barker drew the biggest ovation of the night late in the first when he stepped up to defend teammate Sasha Pokulok. Barker dropped the gloves with Christophe Losier and the two combatants had a lengthy battle.

Despite the loss, the River Kings (4-10-1) have picked up five out of a possible six points in their last three home games.

Villemaire (first), Karvouniaris (second) and Girard were the announced stars.

ROAD LOSS: The River Kings two-game win streak came to an end with a 5-1 road loss at Thetford-Mines on Friday night. Keven Veilleux had three assists to lead the Isothermic. Julien Corriveau had the lone goal for Cornwall. Loic Lacasse took the loss in goal for the River Kings, who were outshot 45-32.

TRADE: The River Kings have acquired forward Francois Ouimet from Trois-Rivieres. In 12 games with the Blizzard this season, Ouimet had 8 points (2 goals and 6 assists). The River Kings gave up a 2nd round draft pick in 2015 to acquire the 28-year-old. “We like the skill Francois adds to our team at the forward position,” said general manager Rick Lalonde. “He’ll be a nice addition to the powerplay as well.” Cornwall also receives Trois-Rivieres’ 7th round pick. Ouimet made his River Kings debut on Saturday night.