The Beaver Valley Nitehawks are in must-win territory after falling 2-1 to the Kimberley Dynamiters on Friday night at the B.V. Arena.
The Dynamiters took a 3-0 series lead in the Kootenay Conference final, and can end the ‘Hawks season with a win on Saturday night in Game 4.
Nitros forward Keegan McDowell scored twice including the game-winner for the second game in a row, beating Hawks goalie Noah Decottignies two-minutes into the third period to give Kimberley a 2-1 lead.
Beaver Valley couldn’t generate any sustained pressure in the Kimberley end, managing just 9 shots through two periods.
McDowell opened the scoring at 8:05 of the first period, converting a setup from Braiden Koran and quieting a capacity crowd at the Hawks Nest.
The intensity ramped up in the second period with each team getting three power-play opportunities, but the score remainied 1-0.
Nolan Corrado tied the game at 18:28 with the assist to Angus Amadio, but just 22 seconds later McDowell notched his seventh of the playoffs to make it 2-1 Nitros.
Beaver Valley couldn’t find the equalizer and Kimberley goalie Brett Anderson came up big when he had to for the Dynamiters 11th straight playoff victory.
Decottignies kept B.V. in the game, facing 35 shots, while the Hawks fired 18 at Anderson. B.V. was 1-for-6 on the power play and Kimberley 0-for-3.
Game 4 goes Saturday night at the Beaver Valley Arena with the puck drop at 7 p.m.