SEWELL, N.J. — Paxton Couture scored the deciding goal in the shootout, Jeremy Lowe made 37 saves and the Philadelphia Rebels rallied for a 2-1 victory over the Johnstown Tomahawks on Friday night at Hollydell Ice Arena.
The victory extended Philadelphia’s winning streak to three games and improved its record to 13-8-1-0. The Rebels also earned their first win over Johnstown this season after dropping the previous two meetings in October.
Johnstown opened the scoring in the first period when Jack Genovese found the back of the net, with assists from Jacob Ingstrup and Conner Maione. The Tomahawks controlled much of the opening frame, outshooting Philadelphia 11-4.
Neither team found the back of the net in the second period as Lowe and Johnstown goaltender Matthew Wood continued to turn aside scoring opportunities. The Tomahawks carried a 1-0 advantage into the final 20 minutes.
Trailing by one in the third period, Philadelphia finally broke through when Justin Vlassis scored on the power play to even the game at 1-1. Broxton Ingle and Zach Greenlund picked up assists on the tying goal.
The game remained tied through regulation, forcing overtime. Johnstown outshot Philadelphia 7-5 in the extra period, but Lowe stood tall to send the contest to a shootout.
After Cam Wilson was denied on Philadelphia’s opening attempt, Oscar Djurberg scored to give the Rebels an advantage. Johnstown’s Charlie Zetterkvist answered in the third round, but Couture responded with the deciding goal to secure the victory.
Lowe stopped 37 of 38 shots, including all seven he faced in overtime. Wood finished with 23 saves on 24 shots for Johnstown.
Philadelphia finished 1-for-4 on the power play while holding Johnstown to one goal on three opportunities with the man advantage.
The Rebels will look to complete the weekend sweep when they host the Tomahawks again Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Hollydell Ice Arena.