Portage Lake forward Spencer Donnelly (26) battles for position in front of the net with Calumet defenseman Isaac Avery (22) and goaltender Matthew Ryynanen (39) and Portage Lake forward Dawson McKay (8) during a game Thursday at Dee Stadium in Houghton. (David Archambeau/For the Gazette)

HOUGHTON — With the Great Lakes Hockey League regular season title potentially on the line, the top seed in the league’s playoff tournament in play, and one last chance to beat their rivals from just up the road, the Portage Lake Pioneers needed a comeback. They got just that, scoring two goals in a span of 11:02 to defeat the Calumet Wolverines, 2-1, at Dee Stadium Thursday night.

“Any time you can be the one-seed in this league, it’s a huge advantage going into the tournament next weekend, for sure,” said Pioneers defenseman Ross Rouleau.

Rouleau would know a thing or two about beating the Wolverines. He has scored multiple game-winning goals against them in both regular season games and Gibson Cup games.

Thursday was no exception. The Pioneers drew a late-game power play with just over three and a half minutes remaining, and they kept the pressure on Calumet goaltender Matthew Ryynanen, who had been stellar prior to that point in the game.

Rouleau himself had two different looks from the high left circle on the man advantage, but Ryynanen fought them both off. A third look by Rouleau from the left boards near the hash marks found a hole and beat the Wolverines netminder at 18:32.

“Not much,” said Rouleau, when he was asked about what he saw when he got the puck along the boards. “I just saw the goalie was down, so I tried to get it up.”

With the win, the Pioneers improved to 15-1-0-1 overall, good for 31 points. A win Saturday over the Dane County Dairy Kings guarantees them the top seed.

“Any time you can beat Calumet (is big),” Rouleau said. “We’re huge rivals. We love playing each other. I can’t wait for the Gibson Cup. It’ll be packed. It’ll be a fun game.”

The game went into the third period 0-0, thanks in large part to 22 saves by Ryynanen through the first 40 minutes. Wolverines captain Logan Rastello could not have been happier with where the game was at as the old rivals took to the ice for the final frame.

“I was happy with it,” he said. “I mean, we had great goaltending. We came out hungry.

“That’s the best I think we looked all year, and perfect timing, right before playoffs, right before the Gibson Cup.”

The Wolverines dropped to 7-8-2-0 with the loss, but there was plenty for the team to feel good about with the way they played.

“We know we’ve got at least three, counting tonight, three games against the Pioneers coming up,” Rastello said. “We assume we’re going to run into them in the playoffs. We assume. We’re hoping the Gibson Cup goes three. We’re assuming the Gibson cup goes three games. So (we) had to set the tone tonight.

“This game was important to both of us. We needed a point, or the win, to get out of the placement we’re in, and we knew that they wanted to win, to hold on to first place, and be reigning regular season champions from last year.”

Rastello broke the scoreless tie himself just 2:12 into the final frame when he crashed the net and quickly converted a pass from forward Gabe Coppo. Alternate captain Stephen Dudenas also picked up an assist on the play as well.

“I’m just happy Coppo drove,” said Rastello. “He pushed the play. He used his speed, came around the net, and he found me in tight. Thankfully, the goalie didn’t have his paddle between his legs.”

The goal seemed to spark the Pioneers, who immediately went to work trying to even things. Defenseman Matt Mantta had a look from the left point off a feed from left winger Nick Harris that Ryynanen had to track down two minutes after Rastello’s tally.

Still, the Pioneers did not panic when things weren’t going their way.

“(I) wasn’t too frustrated, because we had a tough first period,” said Pioneers alternate captain Spencer Donnelly. “Definitely didn’t play our best game there. But, I think the second period and then into the third, we definitely picked it up. The game was in our control. So, honestly, not to sound cocky, but when they scored that one, I wasn’t sweating it. We were all over them and I knew that it was going to come.”

When the tying goal came, it scored off Donnelly’s stick.

He drove hard into the slot on an odd-man rush, cut to his left, towards the middle of the slot, and then wristed a shot that missed the net entirely. However, he followed the puck as it bounced off the back boards, and he beat everyone to it before quickly firing it at Ryynanen, and this time, he did not miss at 8:58.

“I missed the net first, by a tiny bit,” he said. “Then, from there, I just, I saw a bounce, and I busted butt, and found the rebound and was able to put it home.

“I saw an open net, actually. I just saw that puck, and I said, ‘I better get there first.’ That puck hit my stick, and I saw an open net. I sent it there and it went in.”

Ryynanen made 38 saves in the loss for the Wolverines. A.J. Petrulis made 25 saves to earn the win for the Pioneers.

UP NEXT

The Wolverines were back in action Friday night at home against Dane County to close out the regular season. The Pioneers face the Daily Kings on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Dee Stadium to close out their season.