LAURIE WEIR
Quinn Booth led the Smiths Falls Bears to a 4-3 comeback win over the division-leading Carleton Place Canadians in Central Canada Hockey League action Sunday on the road.
Booth tied the game in the first period, then scored the winner in the third as the Bears rallied from a 2-1 deficit.
Carleton Place struck first when Jackson Froysland scored at 5:44 of the opening period, assisted by Tristan Boudreau and Sam Allaby.
Booth netted his 10th goal of the season at 14:15 on a power play, with assists from Cameron O’Connell and Tyson Parker.
The Canadians responded in the second period with back-to-back goals. Loic Prud’homme scored on the power play, assisted by William Bower and Ryan Small, before Froysland tallied his second of the game at 7:54, helped by Ben Neil and Truan Conrad.
The Bears answered two minutes later with Travis Ouellette’s power-play goal, assisted by Booth and Davis Hails.
Kyle James tied the game with another power-play marker at 12:46, with assists credited to Xavier Tessier and Jackson Heron.
In the third, Booth secured the win for Smiths Falls with a goal at 13:10, assisted by Parker.
Bears goaltender Ethan Morrow held off Carleton Place in the final moments, making 18 saves for the victory. Ian Vandenburg took the loss in net for the Canadians, who outshot the Bears 27-21.
Game stars were Booth (first), Froysland (second), and Parker (third).
The Bears sit ninth in the league standings with 36 points from a 16-14-3-1 record, trailing Brockville by one point and Kemptville by two. Carleton Place holds fourth place with 44 points, while Rockland leads the league with 57 points (28-5-1-0).
Smiths Falls hosts Pembroke on Friday, Jan. 17, at 7:30 p.m., and Rockland on Tuesday, Jan. 21, at 7:30 p.m.