CORNWALL Ontario – The River Kings dropped their second straight contest on home ice in overtime with a 4-3 loss to Trois-Rivieres on Saturday night at the Civic Complex.
Kevin Veilleux had a hat trick, including the knock out punch at 1:44 of the extra session as the Blizzard came back to beat the River Kings in front of a Boxing Day crowd of 671 fans.
Michael Stinziani opened the scoring for Cornwall at 10:25 of the first when he cashed in on a Chris Kushneriuk rebound to beat Marc-Antoine Gelinas.
A Veilleux shot at 12:14 of the middle frame squeaked past Charles Lavigne to cut Cornwall’s lead in half. Then, with 2:47 to play in the second, Nicolas Pard buried a juicy rebound to restore the two-goal lead.
But Veilleux and Blizzard captain Jonathan Bellemare scored 16 seconds apart in the final two minutes of the game to send the contest to overtime.
Trois-Rivieres outshot Cornwall 2-0 in overtime and 41-37 overall. Robbie Thomson of the River Kings dropped the gloves twice with Trois-Rivieres’ Gabriel Boutin-Gagon.
Veilleux (first), Cornwall defenceman Danick Malouin (second) and Joanette were the announced stars.
DOUBLEHEADER: Next weekend, the River Kings have a pair of home games. On Saturday, Jan. 3, Cornwall hosts Laval with a 7:30 p.m. puck drop. On Sunday, Jan. 4, the River Kings take on Trois-Rivieres. The puck drops at 3 p.m.
PROMOTIONS: Next Saturday, the first 250 fans will receive a River Kings foam puck. On Sunday, there will be a skate with the Kings following the game along with a photo/autograph session.