The battle for top spot in the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League’s West Division remained tight after action on Thursday night.
A second period goal by Jordan Spadafore on the power play lifted the Rayside Balfour Canadians to a 2-1 victory over the Soo Thunderbirds as the two teams continue to fight for top spot in the division.
The two teams now sit tied atop the division with 73 points each and have three regular season games remaining.
Taylor Woolcott had the other goal for the Canadians.
Rayside goaltender Brayden Lachance made 43 saves.
Brandon Gordon stopped 24 shots for the Thunderbirds while Kaidan McDonald had the lone goal.
The Thunderbirds will take a 35-15-2-1 record into action on Friday night on the road in Elliot Lake against the Wildcats.
The team will then play a pair of home games to round on the regular season, beginning with a game against the Canadians on Mar. 6 and wrapping up the season the following night against the Soo (Mich.) Eagles. Start time for both of those games is set for 7:30 p.m. at the John Rhodes Community Centre.