JOHNSTOWN – The Johnstown Tomahawks needed extra time during their weekend series, however, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights secured a 3-2 overtime victory Saturday night at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena.
Johnstown goalie, Vinny Purpura, was tested early in the contest, and stood tall for five big saves in the first period.
The Tomahawks struck late in the first on the powerplay, when Nick Bruce netted his 15th goal of the season. Ott and Pilewicz recorded assists on the goal, and the Tomahawks took that 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
Johnstown opened the scoring 2:50 into the second period with a goal by forward Tommy Horn. Bruce tallied his second point of the game with a primary assist, and defenseman Daniil Bokun earned the secondary assist.
With 11:07 remaining in the second, Wilkes-Barre managed to cut the Tomahawks lead in half, off the stick of Dorian Dawson, with helpers from Joe Schuler and Curtis Carlson.
The Johnstown lead would slip away midway through the third period when Carlson slid a puck behind Purpura to tie the game at 2-2.
In the overtime period, the Knights secured the victory when Michael Morrissey lifted a shot of the post and in to win the game 3-2.
Purpura stopped 19 of 22 Knights shots in the loss while Knights goaltender Grant Valentine picked up a win stopping 28 of 30 Tomahawks shots.
Johnstown returns to the Cambria County War Memorial Arena on Thursday, Feb. 2 for BOGO Night presented by the Johnstown Chamber of Commerce. Faceoff against the Northeast Generals is at 7 p.m. For tickets, call Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000, order online at Ticketmaster.com or visit the War Memorial Box Office.