The Rocket is managed by the Thunderbirds and a quadruple from Will Bitten

The Thunderbirds led the series 2-1. The fourth and fifth matches of the best-of-seven series will take place on Friday and Saturday at Place Bell.

The Rockets are hoping to fly in front of their fans after snatching a win on the road. The Thunderbirds were not intimidated by the loud crowd of Place Bell.

Bitten, a former Montreal Canadiens third-round pick, is no longer a Rocket favorite after several sneaky hits in the first two games. The Thunderbirds plague gave Rocket players another reason not to like him, as Bitten was the star of the night.

Discipline is part of the game plan on both sides. Both teams played with fire by finding themselves shorthaned by two men, but no one took advantage.

Nathan Todd and Hugh McGing also hit the mark for the Thunderbirds, who have lost just one of nine games since the playoffs began. Joel Hofer made 37 saves.

Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, with his second goal in two games, Corey Schueneman and Nate Schnarr in the final seconds responded for the Rocket.

Cayden Primeau held the fort for a long time before giving up late in the second period. He stopped 37 shots.

Montreal Canadiens prospect Joshua Roy is playing his first game in the professional rankings. The 18-year-old forward was entered on Rocket’s roster as relief to injured Gabriel Bourque.

Roy accepted a professional trial following Sherbrooke Phoenix’s elimination from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. In 66 games this season with Phoenix, Roy recorded 119 points.

From the knock on the door

Harvey-Pinard opened the scoring after 5:51 of the game. As the bodies flew in all directions in the neutral zone, Sami Niku organized the attack for the Rocket. He went back to Harvey-Pinard, who beat Hofer with a strong one-timer.

The Thunderbirds responded with 8:56, following a turnover from Schueneman out of bounds. Todd completed a good deal with Nikita Alexandrov by beating Primeau.

The Rocket goaltender redeemed himself minutes later. He was accustomed to stopping a shot from Alexandrov while the Thunderbirds were shorthanded. Primeau performed the same trick on Matthew Kessel moments later.

Indiscipline then put the Rocket in hot water. Schnarr was punished four minutes late in the first period for a cross-check in front of defenseman Tyler Tucker.

The Thunderbirds got 61 seconds of play in five on three when Schueneman cleared the puck from the stands early in the second period. Rocket players, however, protect the enclave well and Primeau is not too threatened.

The story changed when the Thunderbirds again found themselves with a two-man advantage for 90 seconds into the second half of the second period.

This time, Primeau had to be vigilant, making four saves, including two of veteran James Neal’s beautiful shots.

Primeau was then furious as he stretched to disappoint Alexandrov.

The Thunderbirds ’efforts were rewarded, however, when they scored twice within the 2:30 interval late in the second period.

McGing first took advantage of the return to the slot to make it 2-1 in favor of the visitors at 15:09, then Bitten took a chance to pull back from a favorable jump after an inaccurate shot by defender Steven Santini.

The Thunderbirds had a 23-6 shots advantage late in the second period when Schueneman enlivened the crowd at Place Bell by hitting the target with 69 seconds left.

Rocket’s momentum didn’t last long, when the Thunderbirds restored their two-goal lead 35 seconds into the third period. MacEachern’s shot deflected Bitten’s leg, set up in front of the net.

Rocket had a golden chance to get back into the game, inheriting 1:21 of power play from the two men. But not only did the home team miss the target during this massive attack, Bitten also completed his hat trick in 5:59, deflecting the perfect snap from Alexandrov behind Primeau.

The head heats up at the end of the game. Alex Belzile and Dakota Joshua preceded their teammates by recalling in the shower with more than eight minutes left on the clock.

Bitten added his fourth goal of the game, scoring an empty net with less than three minutes left in the game. Schnarr answered for the Rocket with 10.8 seconds left, but the damage was already done.