It was a beautiful sequence, 200 feet in a flash with the puck in the net and goal light ablaze just 59 seconds after the Eagles had tied the game.
"That was huge," said Heat coach Cail MacLean. "The momentum in this building is tough. The crowd gets pretty loud. For Dillon Dube to drive the net hard, put that goal in, that was a big one for us to get us back in the lead."
It started with a seemingly harmless loose puck, corralled by Juuso Valimaki, who retreated behind Stockton's net and hit the brakes. The young blueliner then reversed the play and found Spencer Foo at the attacking blue line, who had to retreat as he was hemmed in by a pair of Eagles defencemen and a back-checking forward.
Foo passed to Dube, who entered the zone with speed, danced around a defenceman and powered to the net. One forehand-to-backhand move later, and Stockton was back on top.
"We talked about it last game, and we had the opportunity in the same situation when they tied it back up," said Dube about flipping Friday's script for two points on Saturday. "It's tough when you're losing. You get anxious. You want to make plays. The effort's there each night, but we've got to start playing the right way and we did tonight."
Dube, who finished Saturday's game with a goal and an assist, was one of six goal scorers on the night for Stockton in an offensive onslaught, a relentless effort that saw the Heat will themselves to win in a hostile road environment.
The Heat will need more of the same if they're to cut into their point deficit with 21 remaining regular-season games. The Heat currently sit 10 points out of the playoffs, giving each game added weight.
If Saturday was any indication - with the poise and discipline, dedication to getting back to the system and playing the right way - the Heat still have a puncher's chance at making a run.
