Conner Jean is the toast of Queenstown. The 29-year-old American centre dragged the Stampede through to another national title with a couple of stunning goals in the decider against the Dunedin Thunder in Queenstown on Sunday night. They trailed the Thunder 1-0 in the best-of-three finals series. Jean helped keep the dream alive for the Stampede. He scored two goals in game two on Saturday to help force game three. Then he banged in another two in the decider to help seal a 6-2 win. The result saw the Stampede secure their sixth consecutive title and their ninth in the last 10 completed seasons. The Birgel Cup has basically been the Stampede Cup. No team has been more successful in the league’s history. They have 11 titles in total. But the Thunder came to play in the all-Otago final series. They won game one 6-4 but slipped to a 6-2 loss in the second fixture. That left the title on the line in game three, and the Stampede seized control early in the fixture. Jean slammed in a shot in the opening moments of the first period. And Axel Ruski-Jones made it 2-0 late in the period, slotting the puck into the net from close range. Jean made it 3-0 from the same spot but at the other end of the ice early in the second period. He is some player and it was some shot. The Stampede were firmly in control, and their grip strengthened when Connor Harrison knocked in a fourth goal from out front. Luke Stegmann slammed in one for Thunder. That provided a spark of hope late in the second period. They had a lot of work ahead if they were going to win their maiden title. They trailed 4-1 but built some pressure at the start of the third period. The Stampede’s defence held and they had the clock on their side. The Thunder were forced to press further forward and they were rewarded with a second goal. Stegmann got a nice deflection and he slammed it in. There was some late drama. The Stampede conceded a five-minute powerplay and the Thunder went searching for a third. They had a numerical advantage and added another extra player by pulling the goalie. It backfired immediately. The Stampede secured a turnover and Lachlan Frear slotted the puck in the empty goal. Jackson Flight completed the scoring with a penalty. .
