Condors battle to 4-3 overtime triumph

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CONDORSTOWN, Calif. – F Ryan Little scored on a breakaway midway through overtime to lead the Bakersfield Condors (30-27-2-3, 65pts) to a 4-3 win over the Ontario Reign (40-17-3-3, 86pts) in front of 5,341 Saturday night at Rabobank Arena. The shorthanded Condors lost two more players to injury during the game, yet never trailed on the scoreboard.
1st Period
  • No goals
  • Bakersfield had four power plays in the first period
  • Condors C Ryan Watson was injured in the period and did not return.
  • Shots: BAK – 15 | ONT – 3

2nd Period

  • CONDORS goal: C Gary Steffes (14th) skated out of the left corner and put it under the crossbar at 3:51; BAK leads 1-0
  • Condors G Tyler Bunz left the game injured after taking a shot awkwardly, 9:19 into the second period. G Chet Pickard replaced him in net.
  • Reign goal: F Rocco Carzo knocked in his own rebound off a partial breakaway at 11:29; tied 1-1
  • Shots: BAK – 8 | ONT – 15
3rd Period
  • CONDORS goal: Steffes (15th) scored his 2nd of the game with a backhander from the left circle at 3:36; BAK leads, 2-1
  • Ontario goal: F Maxim Kitsyn tied it up with a wraparound tally at 12:26; tied, 2-2
  • CONDORS goal: C Matt Thurber (9th) backhanded a loose puck home from the left of the crease on the power play at 14:07; BAK leads, 3-2
  • Ontario goal: D Matt Register with a snap shot from the left circle during 4-on-4 play at 17:02; tied, 3-3
  • Shots: BAK – 8 | ONT – 10

Overtime

  • CONDORS goal: F Ryan Little (4th) on a breakaway ended the game at 2:43 of the extra session; BAK wins 4-3
  • Shots: BAK – 2 | ONT – 0

W: Pickard (5-8-0-0, 19/16)
OTL: Anderson (3-7-1-2, 33/29)
N/D: Bunz (BAK) (9/9; 29:19 minutes)

Condors droppings:
  • Three Stars: 1. Little (BAK), 2. Steffes (BAK), 3. Thurber (BAK)
  • Final shots: BAK – 33 | ONT – 28
  • Power plays: BAK – 1/6 | ONT – 0/4
  • Little finished the night with three points (1g-2a) and added a +3. He leads the team with a +15 rating.
  • Bakersfield is 5-1-1-0 in their last seven games against Ontario. They meet three more times over the remaining 10 games.
  • F Jordan Knackstedt (1g-3a) and C Matt Thurber (1g-3a) each extended their point streaks to four games tonight
  • Scratches: Pageau (21-IR), Bennett (21-IR), Cunningham, Gawryletz

 

NEXT HOME GAME

Tuesday, Mar. 25 – Blood Drive Night/High School-College ID Night/2-for-Tuesday
  • Condors vs. Alaska Aces
  • $1 admission with a voucher for donating blood to Houchin Blood Bank during the month of March, sponsored by KUZZ 107.9
  • High School/College ID Night – get in for just $1 by showing your student ID at the box office
  • 2-for-Tuesday – get a combo meal at Carl’s Jr. and receive a voucher granting 2-for-1 admission to the game.
  • Doors open at 6 p.m., the puck drops at 7 p.m.

Tune In:

  • The weekend wraps up with a 2 p.m. contest in Las Vegas against the Wranglers Sunday afternoon.
  • All games, home and away, can be heard on Fox Sports Radio 970 AM (www.foxsports970am.com), through your mobile device on iHeartRadio, or pay-per-view online at www.AmericaOneSports.com. “Condors Countdown” starts 15 minutes prior to the drop of the puck.
  • “Condors Unleashed” weekly live webcast produced by the Bakersfield Californian can be seen on www.Bakersfield.com Wednesdays from Noon – 1 p.m.
  • “Condors Insider” weekly radio show, live Thursday from 4 – 5 p.m. on Fox Sports Radio 970.