Chase Scanlan recorded a hat trick and four points as the Langley Thunder picked up a 7-5 win over the Nanaimo Timbermen on Sunday night.
The victory keeps Langley in the fourth and final playoff spot in the WLA standings at 5-7. The Maple Ridge Burrards sit in fifth at 4-6-2. Both teams have 10 points, but Langley holds the tiebreaker with more wins.
Nanaimo, meanwhile, falls to 2-12. With only four points and four games remaining in the regular season, the Timbermen are on the brink of playoff elimination.
Things looked positive early for Nanaimo, who held a 4-1 lead after the first period. However, they were outscored 6-1 over the final 40 minutes.
Young goaltender Caleb Khan had a bounce-back performance for Langley, stopping 48 of 53 shots in the win.
It was a battle in the faceoff circle, with Tyson Johnson winning seven of 15 draws for Nanaimo, while Hudson “Finn” Halladay won eight of 15 for Langley.
Timbermen Dominate the First
Langley opened the scoring at 2:15, with Connor Robinson converting a feed from Ethan M’Lot. However, just 29 seconds later, Ryan Sheridan answered for Nanaimo to kick off a four-goal run.
Noah Manning gave Nanaimo the lead on the power play at 7:15, followed 30 seconds later by Jordan Neary, who scored in transition off a pass from goaltender Devlin Shanahan.
Tristan Kirkham rounded out the run at 8:56. The teams went scoreless for the remainder of the period, and Nanaimo led 4-1 after 20 minutes.
Khan Stands Tall in Net
Goaltender Caleb Khan stopped 32 of the next 33 shots he faced over the final two periods to keep Langley in the game.
It took until 12:20 of the second period for Scanlan to break through and make it 4-2.
Manning responded for Nanaimo at 15:09 to restore the Timbermen’s three-goal lead.
Scanlan scored again on the power play at 17:30 and added another 21 seconds later as the Thunder pulled within one, trailing 5-4 heading into the third.
Thunder Complete the Comeback
Nanaimo was held off the scoreboard for the final 24:51, while Langley completed the comeback.
Jake Govett tied the game at 3:51 of the third period, and Robinson scored the game-winner on the power play at 6:54.
Nathaniel Kozevnikov added an insurance goal, also on the power play, at 8:28. Nanaimo couldn’t close the gap in the final 11:42, and the Thunder secured a 7-5 victory.
Top Scorers
Langley Thunder
- Connor Robinson: 2G, 3A
- Chase Scanlan: 3G, 1A
Nanaimo Timbermen
- Noah Manning: 2G
- Thomas Vaesen: 2A
- Jordan Neary: 1G, 1A
- Ryan Sheridan: 1G, 1A
Three Stars
- Chase Scanlan, Langley Thunder
- Caleb Khan, Langley Thunder
- Noah Manning, Nanaimo Timbermen
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