CLEVELAND, Ohio- The Manitoba Moose and Lake Erie Monsters hit the ice at the Quicken Loans Arena in downtown Cleveland and the Monsters were looking to again put the Moose out of the playoffs. Game six was only possible after the Moose staved off elimination in Winnipeg on Friday night. Eddie Lack got his third start of the series and was looking to stonewall the Monsters just like he did in Winnipeg in game five. Both teams hit the ice at Quicken Loans Arena with urgency in their game as the Moose looking to stay alive hit the ice to prove a point playing again without Cody Hodgson who again is in Chicago tonight playing for the Vancouver Canucks.
The Monsters just wanted a quick start to get on the board first and try to take the Moose out of the game early. Lack was on top of his game and a good thing because the Monsters jumped out with an explosive offensive attack in the first period when they stepped out to a 7-1 lead in shots in the matter of minutes, the Moose still try to beat the Monsters massive d line to get into the Monsters zone. When the first period came to a close and the only thing that the teams had in common was the fact that the two teams and combined for five minor penalties in the period with the Moose sitting at 0-3. The second period started much like the first ended with the Moose giving up another penalty to the Monsters when Alex Bulduc was given a penalty at 29 seconds of the second period, given the Monsters a 1-0 lead and that goal could very well have ended the Moose season. At 3:14 of the second period Bill Sweatt got a one timer off and blew it past Monsters goalie John Grahme to tie the game. Sweatt who was a force in the regular season in goal-scoring netted just his first goal of the post season. The Moose got a late power play in the second period, their fourth of the game, and were looking to go up and possibly change the course of the game. Bolduc was caught on a hooking charge and ended the Moose power play and left the two teams to do battle four on four.
Both penalties were killed however and the second period in a one all tie, but with the Monsters well ahead in shot leading that department 22-13. In the third period, Lack was a brick wall as he continued stopping everything that the Monsters had been tossing at the net.
The Monsters’ Mark Olver was given a penalty early in the third giving Manitoba a fifth power play, this time the power play unit did not disappoint and Kevin Clark entered the Monsters zone and droped the puck for Moose forward Jordan Schroeder who whistled one towards the cage which was tipped by none other than Sweatt who deflected it past John Grahme to go up 2-1 on enemy ice. Late in the game the Monsters found the Moose number one line of Jason Jaffery Sergei Shirokov and Marco Rosa breaking into the offensive zone and John Grahme was forced to try and stop the odd man rush. Rosa sent the puck in front of the net and Shirokov was able to get just enough of a stick on it to put it in back of the net giving the Moose a 3-1 lead with 2:58 remaining.
As the minutes ticked down the Monsters who found themselves about to move to the next round with a 3-1 series lead just three days earlier now find themselves on the brink of elimination as the Moose are not going down without a fight. Interesting stat for the Manitoba Moose, they are 11-8 when their backs are against the wall. The Moose were only able to come back from a 3-1 deficit in a series and go on to win that series once in team history when they still played in the old IHL.
Winner take all game seven in Tuesday night at Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena.
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