Jiri Patera made 32 saves, then stopped three shootout attempts to give the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders a 5-4 comeback win against the Waterloo Black Hawks Friday at Cedar Rapids Ice Arena.

Patera denied all three Hawks conversion tries during the three-round tie-breaker. Marek Valach slipped in a backhander during the second round for the decisive shootout goal. It was the RoughRiders’ only lead of the game.

Bobby Trivigno had created the lone goal of the first period all on his own. In front of the Cedar Rapids bench, the Hawks forward swiped the puck and zipped back to the offensive zone. His low shot from the left circle at 3:02 beat Patera. Waterloo outshot the RoughRiders 12-3 during the opening 20 minutes.

The second period was a wash as each team scored twice during the middle 20 minutes. A three-on-two rush led to a Cedar Rapids equalizer at 7:23, with Jason Polin lifting a shot over Matej Tomek’s left shoulder. A little more than two minutes later, Matt Koopman tied it with a wraparound, coming up from his position at the left point to control the puck.

Waterloo temporarily built the lead with a power play goal at 18:09. Jack Drury’s backhander for the score materialized after an initial chance from Jackson Cates in the slot. However, with 29.5 seconds to go, the RoughRiders tied it again; Harrison Roy stuffed in a shot following up on Nick Granowicz’s strong move to the net.

The high-scoring finish to the second continued during the opening minutes of the third, which began four-on-four after offsetting penalties to Trivigno and Roman Ahcan as the middle period expired.

Just 22 seconds into the third, the RoughRiders’ Tyler Jubenvill cut to the net from the left circle, dodged a pokecheck by Tomek, and knocked in an equalizer. Hank Sorensen reestablished a Waterloo lead 40 seconds later, speeding into the offensive zone on right wing and firing his shot in off the post.

Yet at 2:22, Valach tied it, ending the scoring in regulation. Both teams had prime special teams chances to settle the game before overtime. Nearly eight minutes into the third, Cedar Rapids went on an extended power play when a double-minor was called on Sam Huff for high sticking. Waterloo’s final power play covered the last 1:41 of regulation and the first 19 seconds of overtime.

The Hawks go back to work during another Dupaco Cowbell Cup game on Saturday versus the Dubuque Fighting Saints at 7:05. It’s MAR10 Night, featuring the world’s most popular video game character, presented by Marco’s Pizza. For tickets, call the Hawks at (319) 291-7680.

Contributed By: Tim Harwood (Waterloo Black Hawks Media Relations)

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