GLACKIN’S THIRD IS OVERTIME WINNER, REBELS WIN TELUS CUP

LEDUC, Alta. – Nick Glackin capped off his natural hat trick with the game-winner at 8:45 of double overtime as the Red Deer Rebels won their first-ever TELUS Cup with a 6-5 victory over the Phénix du Collège Esther-Blondin in Sunday’s gold medal game.

Glackin’s goal completed one of the greatest comebacks in tournament history – Red Deer trailed 5-1 after two periods before scoring four times on the power play in the final 20 minutes, including three in 1:48 on the same five-minute man advantage, to force overtime.

The winner was also a power play goal; with Collège Esther-Blondin’s Alexandre Grenier off for tripping, Logan Fisher won a face-off back to Rebels captain Brady Bakke, whose wrist shot from the slot was tipped by Glackin over Phénix netminder Kevin Darveau.

Darveau had entered the game for starter Simon Leiva after Glackin’s second goal tied the score at 5-5, setting off a raucous celebration inside the Leduc Recreation Centre, where many Red Deer fans had made the 116-kilometre trek up the QE2 for the game.

The double overtime finish – just the 13th game to go that long in the tournament’s 39-year history – was a familiar one for the Rebels; Red Deer had lost in the second extra period twice – in 1994 and 2007 – among its three gold medal game defeats.

The Rebels are the first Pacific Region team to win Canada’s National Midget Championship since the Calgary Northstars in 2003, and are just the fifth Alberta team ever – the Calgary Spurs won in 1976, Calgary Buffaloes in 1989 and Northstars in 1991 and 2003.

Bakke opened the scoring for Red Deer on a shorthanded breakaway early in the second period after the Phénix had jumped out to a 3-0 lead after 20 minutes, and Scott Feser got the comeback started with a pair of power play goals before Glackin’s heroics.

The turning point was the five-minute boarding major and game misconduct to Collège Esther-Blondin’s Alexandre Caron-Roy midway through the third period. Feser’s second goal came 55 seconds into that man advantage and Glackin potted two in 90 seconds, the first coming just 18 seconds after Feser’s goal, to bring the Rebels back to even terms.

Vincent Deslauriers, with two, Frédérik Gauthier, David Bergeron and Laurent Dauphin all scored goals for the Phénix, which came up short in its bid to win Quebec’s first national title since Ste-Foy in 2001.

Leiva and Darveau combined to make 45 saves for Collège Esther-Blondin, while Dasan Sydora, winner of the tournament’s Top Goaltender award, stood tall after a slow start, finishing with 37 stops, including 10 in the two overtime periods.