AUBURN — The Twin City made a third-period comeback attempt, but it wasn’t enough Friday night.
The Utica Jr. Comets, behind four goals in the second period, defeated the Thunder 6-3 in a USPHL NCDC New England Division game at Norway Savings Bank Arena.
“We have been a good second-period team all year,” Utica coach Louis Educate said. “For us, we like to play downhill, we are on our toes and we like to think we are relentless. Second periods have been good to us; it’s the period with the long change. We got the bus legs out and that period won us the game.”
Thunder coach Dan Hodge said the team couldn’t build off the strong first period.
“I thought we played well in the first, moving the puck well. I thought we did a good job and got up 1-0,” Hodge said. “Unfortunately, we fell asleep in the second and they got up on us.”
Leo Mantenuto scored in the first period for the Thunder (6-14-2, 14 points), but Utica (15-9-3, 33 points) controlled most of the final 40 minutes.
Seth Ferguson scored roughly six minutes into the middle frame, with Alexander Keller setting the tally up.
The Thunder went on a power play midway through the second period, but it was the Comets that had a special teams goal with Peyton Kimball scoring on a shorthanded breakaway. Niko Benjamin and Cam Lowe had the helpers.
The goal came off a set play.
“We lose the draw, they have a set play off the draw, and we slow it down and we got beat up ice on the shorthanded goals,” Hodge said.
Utica finished the period strong when Robert Gatewood scored with two minutes remaining and Nick Dimatos put in a 4-on-4 tally with 10 seconds to go.
“He’s the heart and soul of our group,” Educate said of Gatewood. “…He’s always chipping in with points and even when he’s not, he’s playing an honest game. The guys feed off that and we play the way he plays.”
The Thunder switched goaltenders at the start of the third period, with Ludwig Svensson coming in for Jeffrey Kriedler.
“Jeff was fighting the puck earlier (in the game), dropped some pucks, and he hadn’t played in a couple of weeks, so he was dropping a lot of pucks,” Hodge said. “That third goal, he had the puck behind the goal, and he misplayed it. Hopefully it’s one of those things that spark the team, and I think it did.”
Utica found the back of the net early in the third when Garrett Krieger notched the team’s fifth goal of the night.
Ervin Terwilliger got Twin City within three goals with about six minutes remaining in the contest when his shot beat Utica goalie Waylon Esche. JC Humphreys and Cullen McCormick assisted on the goal.
The Thunder continued to make a late push when Matteo Pero — a recent call-up from the Atlanta Madhatters — found the back of the net with 4:33 remaining. Patrick Last and Jack MacDonald had the assists.
“We were just competing,” Hodge said. “We were competing and we were working hard, skating hard, making plays, getting shots and rebounds. We weren’t getting shots in the second period.”
Hodge took a timeout with 2:49 remaining but couldn’t get Svensson pulled until 2:10 left.
Gatewood put in an empty-netter for Utica for his 20th goal of the season.
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