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| (Ian Webster/Merritt Herald) |
The 1st period was very evenly played, as the shot clock (9-9) reflected. Both teams had their fair share of chances, and the game was again very physical. Tonight it was the Spruce Kings that tried to take the game to Merritt, both physicality and offensively, trying to establish a pace that is more to their liking. They did that fairly effectively I though and really had somewhat of a breakout game from the first 2 in Merritt.
However, after the Spruce Kings were unable to take the lead with their solid start, the Centennials were opportunistic. Jakob Reichert led a 3 on 2 rush down the left wing and centered for Reece Wilcox, who had the puck go off his skate, off a Spruce King and back onto his stick; the bounce confused Spruce Kings netminder Kirk Thompson (making his 1st start of the series) and Wilcox wound up with a half open net to make it 1-0 Merritt at the 7:29 mark.
However, just a couple of minutes later, Merritt would take their first penalty of the game, and the Spruce Kings made them pay. The Fitzgerald triplets looked very solid and relentless cycling the puck, and then completed a pretty 3-way passing play; from the left point, Golightly fed Leo Fitzgerald in the circle, and then Leo centered in front to brother Gerry who tipped the puck through Chimienti's legs to tie the game at 1.
The two teams continued to play a fast, up-and-down style in the 1st period, and this free-flowing benefited the Centennials on their next goal, as Brandon Bruce fired a pass to Sean Maktaak, who was able to fend off Pacheco, cut around him down the left wing and cut to the front of the net, where his shot appeared to have been swallowed up by Thompson, but somehow wound up trickling in through his legs to give Merritt a 2-1 lead through 20 minutes.
Early in the 2nd period, the Cents would come out with a lot of fire and hunger, and it led to a quick goal, which was supposed to be the "insurance marker". After a great by Fletcher to muscle the puck out front, him and Reichert had a couple of great chances that they couldn't finish, but with Thompson scrambling at the side of his net and out of position, the puck came back to the blueline for Dylan Chanter, who leaned into a slap shot into a yawning cage, giving the Cents a 3-1 lead just past the 1 minute mark.
After this point, the Spruce Kings really came on with some strong, momentum shifts, pinning the Centennials in their end for extended stretches of time. I'm almost positive the shot clock was not working properly or not managed properly, because Prince George was only given credit for 1 shot I think through the first half of the 2nd period, but they were easily the more dominant team as they slowly gained momentum.
All this momentum led to a crucial goal for the guy the Spruce Kings REALLY needed to get going: the BCHL's leading scorer. After Colantone's nifty re-direct in the right hashmark was stopped, Paul De Jersey pounced on the rebound at the side of the goal to cut the deficit to 3-2, after which he proceeded to mock the Centennials bench during his celebration and tried to get the huge crowd riled up. It certainly seemed to work... the fans really got into the game at this point and were making a lot of noise in support of their team.
Things got very heated in the 2nd period in terms of the chippiness on the ice and the post-whistle scrums. It was a lot for even 4 officials to handle and keep up with. Prince George would take a couple of undisciplined penalties to put them down 5 on 3 for a long time, but instead of being in trouble in their end, they actually wound up being the aggressors and had 2 scoring chances while down 2 men, not allowing the Centennials to set up whatsoever. Merritt would have 4 straight power plays, including the 3rd period, but they just couldn't capitalize, and that was the difference between putting the game away and letting the Spruce Kings hang around the way they did. It stayed 3-2 after 40 minutes.
In the 3rd, the exciting pace of the game continued with plenty of up and down action, especially for the first half of the period. The goaltenders on both sides were strong, but you could tell the Spruce Kings were just extremely determined to tie the game at all costs. They knew their necks were on the line, and they really fought for it. After another great shift (following a power play) by the Fitzgerald triplets, Myles Fitzgerald ended up finishing off a wild scramble at the side of Merritt's goal, after Chimienti originally made a glorious save with his stick. The relentless pressure paid off and the game was tied.
Down the final stretch of the 3rd period, the Spruce Kings appeared more hungry and poised to possibly even finish the game in regulation. In the final minute, they were all over Merritt, and Khaira almost ended the game with a great move around Mancuso, where his backhander was barely held out by Chimienti's paddle. There were several shots on net in the final minute, some that Lino had to stop and others that zoomed just past him, but overall, it was all Spruce Kings down the stretch, and Merritt was very lucky to be going to overtime.
In the overtime, the Spruce Kings picked up where they left off, starting with a Paul De Jersey breakaway in the first minute as the forced a bouncing puck past the diving Willcox... a chance that rolled off his stick and was barely held out on the goalline by Chimienti. It was a clutch, difference-making save. The Kings had lots of pressure in the Merritt zone and really controlled play for the most part, but were frustrated by Merritt's collapse in front of their netminder and the play of Lino Chimienti himself.
Suddenly, against the flow, as the Centennials dumped the puck into the left corner in the Prince George end, and as Shinkaruk went to make a hit on Woodley, the big Prince George dman went to backhand the puck around his goal to his defense partner. BUT... the puck took a weird hop off the stanchions and bounced into the slot for the waiting Merritt captain.... without looking or aiming, Evan Stack snapped a shot on net as quickly as he could, a shot that would beat Thompson clean to the blocker side, giving Merritt a 4-3 OT victory and an imposing 3-0 lead in the best of seven series.
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| (Ian Webster/Merritt Herald) |
*for Prince George, their best players were their best tonight, as De Jersey/Colantone/Khaira and the triplets were all able to dominate the game at times, and all able to find their OWN game. I though they were outstanding, but their 3rd and 4th line was very quiet, whereas Merritt's 3rd and 4th line looked a lot more dangerous
*with 25 saves on 28 shots, Lino Chimienti might not have had the same great stats as he did the first 2 games, but he was just as clutch for his team when they needed him most. They faced the most adversity they've seen in this series, but Lino was always there to make sure they'd come out on top
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| (Ian Webster/Merritt Herald) |
Here were my 3 stars from the broadcast tonight: (I should note, because of the overtime scenario, I had no commercials and no time to really pick them properly, so I just took a quick glance at the scoresheet and made them up on the spot. I have since decided that Lino Chimienti was really deserving of a star, despite his official stats, but here's who I went with on the broadcast::
1) Evan Stack- 1G
2) Gerry Fitzgerald- 1G
3) Myles Fitzgerald- 1G
*Unfortunately since I am stuck in Prince George and they had no photographer at the game at all tonight, I am also stuck with no pictures. And without the ability to get back to the station in Merritt, I won't have audio highlights of this dramatic game until we get back to Merritt after game 4. But they ARE coming, that I promise!
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