THE Belfast Giants came back from two goals down for the second time in three days as they extended their Elite League winning streak to nine games with a 5-2 victory over the Dundee Stars at the SSE Arena tonight.
Goals from Johan Eriksson and Drydn Dow had Adam Keefe's side down by a pair in the first period, similar to Wednesday's Challenge Cup quarter-final against the Nottingham Panthers, but a double from Steven Owre and another game-winning goal from Lewis Hook saw the hosts fightback for the win.
Darik Angeli was also on the scoresheet, while man of the match Will Cullen rounded things off with a late empty-netter as the Giants continued their winning momentum and reduced the gap to the league-leading Sheffield Steelers to just four points.
Despite starting the game the better of the two sides, the Giants would find themselves trailing just 3:14 into the game as a deflected shot from Sam Ruopp was sent all the way back into their own zone where Romans Semjonovs found Eriksson, who tapped in to finish off the three-on-one break.
And after playing out a holding call on Scott Conway, the Giants would be put in a two-goal hole for the second time in three days, this time Dow supplying the finish on the powerplay with a one-timer from the slot at 15:50 as Ciaran Long sat for high-sticking.
But just when it looked like they would have nothing to take back into the locker room at the first intermission, up stepped Owre with a goal of the season contender, dangling through a defenceman in the left circle and beating Anton Svensson shortside at 18:48 for their opener.
That led to a second period that was spent predominantly in the Stars zone, although the Giants were guilty of passing up a couple of early powerplay chances as Carter Folk (slashing) and Ian Parker (elbowing), with Jeff Baum hitting the post the closest they came.
At the other end, a hooking call against Josh Roach put the Stars on the powerplay and they nearly capitalised when Ben Sokay hit the crossbar, while netminder Peyton Jones was required on several occasions to make some big one-on-one stops to deny the visitors.
But the Giants would be level at the second intermission and it was a beautiful goal that got them on even terms, David Gilbert reversing the puck into the slot for Angeli and the winger ripped one high into the net for the equaliser at 33:58.
Jones' best stop of the middle frame was saved for right at the end, however, Ben Sokay going in one-on-one and seemingly beating the netminder down low, only for the Belfast backstop to produce a sensational pad save to ice the puck on the line.
And he would be rewarded early in the third period when Hook got the game-winner, snapping the puck home on the one-timer after Cullen reversed it back in front from behind the net just 1:42 into the final frame, before Owre grabbed a sumptuous powerplay strike.
The winger took the puck in his own zone, skated through the Dundee defence and roofed the puck over the shoulder of Anton Svensson for the goal that clinched the two points at 45:16, which became even more apparent when the Stars couldn't capitalise on a Conway cross-checking minor.
Dundee pulled Svensson for the extra skater late on to try and find a way back into the game but it was to no avail, and instead Cullen rubber-stamped the win by sliding the puck into the empty cage with 1:03 left on the clock.