Blaze claim point from Cardiff
The DPD Coventry Blaze claimed a point on the road in Cardiff on Saturday, pushing the Devils to overtime before suffering a narrow 5-4 defeat in the Challenge Cup.
The Devils opened the scoring at 2:52 when Brandon Estes found the net with a wraparound finish from just outside the crease, assisted by Riley Brandt.
Coventry responded at 8:34 as William Boysen levelled the scores, finishing after a perfectly timed feed from Matthew Gleason on a two-on-one break.
The Blaze were handed their first power-play opportunity shortly afterwards when Bayley Harewood was penalised for tripping at 8:52. Coventry capitalised at 9:27, with Ryan Richardson firing home after the Devils failed to clear their zone, giving the visitors a 1-2 lead.
Coventry carried their momentum into the second period, extending their advantage at 24:20. Márkó Csollák beat Christian Stoever with a one-timer from the left, finding the top-right corner to make it 1-3.
Cardiff responded less than two minutes later through Jimmy Oligny, who finished from the slot at 26:17 to bring the Devils back within one.
The Blaze restored their two-goal cushion at 26:41 when Griffin Ness finished from in front of goal after being set up by Gleason.
The Devils continued to apply pressure and were rewarded at 37:23 when Ryan Barrow beat Coventry netminder Evan Fitzpatrick with a one-timer from Kris Kontos' pass.
Cardiff then completed their second-period comeback just before the interval. After Clements was sent to the penalty box, the Devils capitalised on the power play, with Joey Martin finding the net to level the scores at 4-4.
Both sides pushed for a decisive goal in the third period, but neither could find a breakthrough, sending the contest into overtime.
The Devils ultimately had the final say in the additional period. Barrow helped create the winning opportunity for Nick Welsh, who beat Fitzpatrick to complete Cardiff's comeback and secure a 5-4 victory for the hosts.