Elite League: Belfast Giants hold nerve beat Manchester Storm in overtime
- Published
Ciaran Long (right) notched two of the Giants' goals at the Altrincham Ice Down
Elite League leaders Belfast Giants secured a nervy 6-5 overtime win away to the Manchester Storm after letting slip a 5-1 lead at Altrincham Ice Dome.
Two goals from Ciaran Long and strikes from Sam Ruopp, Slater Doggett and Lewis Hook looked to have the Giants in total control.
But Adam Brady's hat-trick and goals from Cameron Critchlow and Linden Springer incredibly saw Storm level.
However, Mark Cooper's overtime winner secured Belfast the vital two points.
Storm took the lead through Brady in the fifth minute of the opening period, exploiting a five-on-three power play opportunity after Mark Garside and Kevin Raine were called for hooking and boarding penalties respectively.
The Giants hit back seven minutes later after Ruopp forced home a rebound and then ended the period with a 2-1 lead after Long fired home.
Doggett extended the Giants lead less than two minutes later, poking home a rebound from the crease.
Hook made it 4-1 with a back-post finish from a pass from Jordan Boucher while Long got his second of the evening three minutes before the second interval.
Mark Cooper was able to celebrate scoring another goal against Manchester Sotrm
Brady got his second goal of the game for the Storm on a power play three minutes into the third period, after Jeff Baum was penalised for tripping.
Critchlow then made it 5-3 pouncing on a rebound from Giants' netminder Jackson Whistle.
It then got even more uncomfortable for the visitors as Brady completed his hat-trick with yet another power play goal with 12 minutes still to play.
Giants head coach Adam Keefe called a timeout to steady his side and stop the hosts' momentum.
It didn't have the desired effect as Springer forced the puck home from the crease for the equaliser for 5-5 and the game would need to be settled in sudden death overtime.
Cooper spared the Giants' blushes, less than two minutes after the restart, clinching a hard-fought win with a breakaway goal.
The victory means the Giants maintain a four-point lead ahead of nearest rivals the Sheffield Steelers, although Belfast have played one game more.
The maths in the title race at this stage are that the Giants need to win seven of their remaining nine games to clinch the league title - and they still must face the Steelers three times.