Jack Karran scores four to power Leafs past Rebels
By The Nelson Daily Sports
Leaf forward Jack Karran saved his best game of the season for the second round of the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League playoffs.
The native of Grande Prairie scored four times to rally the Nelson Leafs to an 8-4 Murdoch Division victory over the Castlegar Rebels Friday afternoon in the Sunflower City.
The win gives Nelson a 3-0 stranglehold in the best-of-seven Murdoch Division Final with Game four set for Castlegar Saturday.
Game time is 7:30 p.m.
If necessary, Game five is scheduled for Monday at the NDCC Arena in Nelson.
Trailing 2-0 in the series, Castlegar jumped out to the early 2-0 lead on goals by Reid Wilson and Brady Daniels — the latter coming shorthanded.
However, Nelson rallied back with two goals, 10 minutes into the second frame to even the score.
Sawyer Hunt, unassisted, and Karran on the power play, tied the game at 2-2.
Daniel, with his second of the game, scored on the power play lifting the Rebels into the brief 3-2 advantage.
But Karran evened the score, also on the power play, 44 seconds later to send the teams into the second intermission tied at 3-3.
In the third Daniels completed the hat-trick with a power play marker with Michael LeNoury in the box for charging, giving Castlegar a 4-3 lead.
That lead was short lived as after Karran tied the game less than two minutes later, Logan Wullum notched the winning goal as Nelson scored five goals in the final 11 minutes of the game.
Hunt, Karran and David Sanchez rounded out the scoring for Nelson.
Nelson outshot the Rebels 32-24 as Caiden Kreitz registered the win in goal for the Leafs.
Former Nelson Minor Hockey grad Curt Doyle, suffered his third loss of the series between the pipes for the Rebels. The eight goals was the most Doyle has surrendered this season. The Rebel netminder gave up seven goals to the Green and White during a 7-3 loss to Nelson in October.
BLUELINES: Friday’s puck drop at 4 p.m. was due to the opening game of the BC Intercollegiate Hockey League Playoff series between Selkirk College and Vancouver Island University scheduled for Friday night at the Castlegar Arena Complex. Saturday’s Saints’ game goes at 4 p.m. while the Rebels-Leafs contest follows at 7:30 p.m. . . . Jack Karran, Leafs Game Star, finished the game with four points. Karran’s previous game high scoring outburst came September 23rd with a hat-trick against Creston. Karran now leads the Leafs in playoff goals with seven and is tied with Nicholas Wihak and Michael LeNoury in points, each with nine . . . Teammate Sawyer Hunt had three points while LeNoury, Wihak and Brendan Mckay each added two points. . . . Brady Daniels led the Rebels with three points while Chris Breese and Edward Lindsay each had two points. Breese leads Castlegar in scoring with 11 points while Lindsay and Daniel each have scored five times. . . . Nelson has only scored eight or more goals only once this season, September 15th when the Green and White dropped 12 on the Fernie Ghostriders. Nelson, not relying on offence for success this season, has scored seven times in a game three times and six five times. . . . The early start time attracted 378 fans. . . . Nelson also had a 3-0 lead during the Murdoch Semi Final against Grand Forks, and had to win a Game seven after the Bruins won three straight games.
