ST. JOHN’S, Newfoundland and Labrador – The St. John’s IceCaps have one opportunity left to try and finish off the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the clubs’ AHL Eastern Conference semifinal. At one point the IceCaps held a three games to one series lead, but after the Penguins 4-2 win on Friday night, the series is now tied at three and headed to game seven tonight at Mile One Centre in St. John’s.
Eddie Pasquale made 27 saves in the IceCaps 4-2 loss on Friday night. Photo by Jeff Cull
“The problem is that Wilkes-Barre wants to win also,” St. John’s head coach Keith McCambridge told www.stjohnsicecaps.com. “These are two very good teams that are playing some strong hockey right now. And this is why you play all season long. You play to have game seven on your home ice. We have that opportunity.”
It looked as though St. John’s just might close the deal on Friday when they held a 2-1 lead late into the second period. However, after IceCaps forwards Patrice Cormier and Aaron Gagnon took penalties in the dying minutes of the second frame for slashing and delay of game respectively, the Penguins tied the score with only nine seconds left in the period courtesy a Cal O’Reilly power play marker.
This swung the momentum into the Penguins’ corner heading into the third, and they capitalized by scoring twice in the final period to seal the win and force the series to a seventh and deciding game.
“Obviously emotions run high in playoffs and guys do whatever it takes to win, but at times you can’t take those kinds of penalties,” IceCaps defenseman Paul Postma told the Canadian Press. “You have to be using your head out there. There are a few specific penalties that you can look back on that you just can’t take.”
The Penguins opened the scoring in Friday’s game at 9:48 of the first period, using a Jason Williams power play goal to go up 1-0. The IceCaps tied the game with a power play marker of their own when Cormier scored at 4:31 of the second period. Raymond Sawada scored on the power play at 11:09 of the second to put St. John’s up 2-1, but O’Reilly’s goal 19:51 of the middle period tied the game at two heading into the third.
Penguins%27 goalie Brad Thiessen keeps his eyes on the puck during a scramble in front of his net. Photo by Jeff Cull
Zach Sill gave Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a 3-2 advantage when he found the back of the net 5:41 into the third period. Paul Thompson then put the Penguins up 4-2 with a goal at 16:30 of the final frame.
“You’ve got to give them a lot of credit,” Postma told www.stjohnsicecaps.com. “They’re a really good team and they’re not going to back down. Obviously the last game of the series is the hardest to win. We want to close it out, but they’re not going to go down with a fight.”
Eddie Pasquale stopped 27 shots in goal for the IceCaps, while Brad Thiessen made 29 saves in the Penguins’ net.
Contact Darcy.MacRae@prohockeynews.com
Contact the photographer at Jeff.Cull@prohockeynews.com
You must be logged in to post a comment.