Storm keep playoffs hopes alive with win over Clan

Photo: Mark Ferris

Manchester Storm kept their hopes of a playoff place alive with a 4-3 win over Glasgow Clan in front of 2,450 fans at the Shelter.

After both sides killed off early penalties, Storm thought they’d taken the lead at 12:46 when Matt Berry tipped a shot from the point past David Tendeck. The officials agreed it needed looking at, and washed the goal out after checking the video for a high stick.

Manchester took the lead at 14:07. After having rushed forward into the Clan zone, the visitors failed to clear the puck allowing Noah Carroll to feed Tyler Hinam for the opener.

A Dallas Ehrhardt shot from the point caused chaos in front of Landon Bow at 26:29, with Alexis D’Aoust poking home a loose puck to double the home side’s lead. Deven Sideroff cut the deficit back to one 81 seconds later, and Clan killed off two penalties before the buzzer to go in one down through 40 minutes.

A loose puck fell kindly for Gianluca Estevez in the slot to fire home at 48:56 and put the hosts further ahead, while D’Aoust found the empty net at 57:54 after Bow was pulled with 2:50 to go and Clan needing two goals.

That goal, however, turned out to be the game winner. Robert Lachowicz and Sideroff both scored inside the final two minutes to bring Clan back to within one, but they could tie things up in the final 44 seconds and slipped to a one-goal defeat.