The Springfield Thunderbirds beat the Belleville Senators 6-3 on Friday night.
Jiri Smejkal, Egor Sokolov, and Garrett Pilon scored for the Senators.
The Senators took the only goal in the first period, opening scoring in under 10 minutes and holding their slim lead through the entire first frame. During the second, the Thunderbirds scored three back-to-back goals before the Senators could grab two of their own to even the score at 3-3 going into the final frame.
In the third period, the Thunderbirds blew the game wide open, with three unanswered goals to secure a commanding lead that the Senators couldn’t match, winning the game.
Senators forward Jiri Smejkal, who scored his first AHL goal during the first period, was happy to score his first goal but dissapointed in the loss.
“I think we were a little bit lucky that it was 3-3 after the second, especially in the second they were the better team,” said Smejkal. “Then in the third, they had a lot of power plays and got going, and we kind of fell a little short.”
The Sens play again tonight, facing the Scranton Penguins at 6:05 p.m.
