A couple of 2nd period Giants powerplay goals were the difference as the league leading Flames fell 2-1 on the road at Belfast.
A 50/50 split of 1st period shots illustrated an evenly contested 1st period but Eamon McAdam and Tyler Beskorowany were each on form to close the set still on a scoreless draw.
Just 45 seconds into the 2nd, Logan Fredericks put the visitors on the board, but a Giants reply on a powerplay 91 seconds later through Steven Owre levelled at a goal each. Another Giants powerplay put them in front a little over 4 minutes from period time when Henrik Eriksson grabbed a lead that held up through the end of the set, and nothing changed in the 3rd as Giants ensured that go ahead strike would count as the winner.
McAdam turned away 30 of 32 shots, while Beskorowany was good on 27 of 28.
“It was a pretty evenly played game from nearly start to finish, but the one area where Belfast really outdid us was on the powerplay where they scored on both of theirs and we struck out on all of our opportunities,” explained Paul Dixon.
“On top of that, it was unfortunate that when we had a chance to play 4 of the last 5 minutes on an extended powerplay we took a penalty that nullified most of that opportunity. Things happen some nights where one team’s timing is just enough to convert a game to a win when it could have gone either way, and the timing on that stuff was not in our favour tonight.”
“It would have been a nice game to win and maybe open a bigger spread in table, but we can’t complain about where we are as we head into the international break so we are just going let the guys enjoy a couple of days off then start to look at what we do for a tight race that will define the final games of the schedule.”
