Derek Laxdal said that he didn’t want to get fined, but didn’t stop talking before saying that the call that erased a go-ahead score for the Coachella Valley Firebirds on Saturday was a word that began with an “h” and ended with a “t.”
Instead of winning the game, the Firebirds lost, 3-2, to the Ontario Reign in front of a rowdy, energetic crowd of 8,279 inside Acrisure Arena.
“It was the worst call I’ve ever seen in my history of coaching,” the Firebirds head coach said. “Probably the worst call I’ve ever seen. Not only that, you wish you had video review in the American Hockey League to see this call.”
Coachella Valley forward Lleyton Roed scored what appeared to be the go-ahead goal with 44.9 seconds left in the third period. But the goal was waved off because of goalie interference and Ontario’s Glenn Gawdin then scored the winning goal just 17 seconds into overtime.
The loss, because it came in overtime instead of regulation, still gave the Firebirds a point in the very tight Pacific Division standings with just three regular season games remaining. Coachella Valley (39-24-6) sits in fourth place.
“It was a big point,” Laxdal said. “We battled back. That’s a first place team over there and they’re probably going to win the division. Our guys, gutsy. We’re down in bodies.”
Jagger Firkus, Ian McKinnon, Caden Price and Lukas Dragicevic remain out for the Firebirds. David Goyette returned Friday from a 20-game suspension.
Leading scorer Logan Morrison returned Saturday from an injury, but the Firebirds were without their two goaltenders, Nikke Kokko and Victor Ostman, who were recalled for duty with Coachella Valley’s NHL affiliate, the Seattle Kraken.
Jack LaFontaine was recalled from ECHL Kansas City to play in the net on Saturday but fell ill, so Logan Terness hopped on a flight Saturday morning and arrived around 1 p.m. for a 6 p.m. puck drop. Firebirds goalie coach Vince Stalletti dressed as an insurance goalie in case anything happened to Terness.
“I think it was, honestly, helpful for it to be so quick,” Terness said. “No time to build it up in your head. I think it was a really cool day, through and through, for me.”
Laxdal and veteran forward Mitchell Stephens, who scored a short-handed goal for the Firebirds, said that they were disappointed that the win didn’t follow a great performance for Terness in his AHL debut. He saved 36 shots and did not allow a goal in the second and third periods as the Firebirds made a push to even the score.
Rookie defenseman Tyson Jugnauth evened the score on a power play goal in the third period, after Koehn Ziemmer and Martin Chromiak scored two first period goals to get the Reign out to an early lead.
Several hundred Reign fans added to a rambunctious atmosphere inside the arena. Their team had beaten the Firebirds 4-1 on Friday and embarrassed a short-handed Coachella Valley 7-0 on April 1. With Saturday night’s win, the Reign clinched the Pacific Division title and will have a first-round bye in the playoffs.
But the performance, even in a loss, showed that there’s a lot of fight in this Firebirds team. Even when short-handed.
“We had a lot of dogs in the fight,” Stephens said. “Like, 20 dogs fighting. We compete until the end. It’s not always going to go our way, but we’re always going to give a 60-minute effort.
“I’m proud of the guys with how we bounced back tonight.”
Up next
The Firebirds will finish the regular season with a three game stretch that includes Tuesday at San Jose, Saturday at San Diego and Sunday at home against Abbotsford.
Standings and tiebreakers check
The Firebirds are currently alone in fourth with 84 points. Henderson is in third with 87 points, while San Jose and Bakersfield are tied for fifth with 82 points. All four teams have three games remaining in the race for one of the coveted top four spots which ensures home-ice advantage in the first round.
The Firebirds are not in a good position when it comes to tiebreakers and would in fact lose a tiebreaker to all three other teams in the race. That’s because the first tiebreaker is number of games won in regulation. The Firebirds have 26 of those while Henderson (34), San Jose (30) and Bakersfield (28).
Milestone moment
With an assist on the Firebirds game-tying goal, forward Logan Morrison became the franchise’s all-time points leader. Morrison’s 141st point moved him into the top spot, surpassing Max McCormick.
[This story has been updated to add new information.]
Andrew John covers the Firebirds for The Desert Sun and USA TODAY. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Waved-off goal in final minute costs Firebirds in loss to Reign
Reporting by Andrew John, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
