Playoff spot clinched, but Greyhounds want more
by Peter Ruicci (Independent Media) | Photo by Bob Davies
FULL PHOTO GALLERY | GAME HIGHLIGHTS
After weeks of pushing the button, the elevator door finally opened for the Soo Greyhounds on Friday.
By beating the Saginaw Spirit 7-4 in front of a season-high 4,695 at GFL Memorial Gardens, the Soo clinched a Western Conference playoff spot.
“I feel tremendous. This is a great feeling,” gushed star centre Brady Martin, whose club will finish at least seventh and could wind up placing as high as sixth, depending on what happens this weekend.
“This is unreal, it’s so sweet,” added defenceman Chase Reid, whose team survived a white-knuckle ride of a third period, after watching the Spirit cut into the Soo’s 4-2 and 5-3 leads. “I’m so proud of what we’ve accomplished so far, and I’m confident we can keep it going.”
Nursing a 5-4 lead, not until Brady R. Smith notched back-to-back, empty-net goals could the Hounds breathe easy.
Noel Nordh had perhaps his best all-round game in a Soo uniform, scoring twice and contributing three assists.
“A feeling of pride is going through me right now,” said head coach John Dean, whose club won its fourth straight to improve to 28-35-2-2, good for 60 points.
The Soo closes the regular season on Sunday against Sarnia (2:07 p.m.) at GFL Memorial Gardens.
“This has been pretty close to an eight-week grind for us,” Dean added. “We’re asking so much of this young group, emotionally and physically. It’s super impressive for them to answer the bell the way they did tonight.”
As his players celebrated in their dressing room, the coach spoke of the confidence he has in their ability to refocus for Sunday.
“We want to finish as high as possible, which is sixth,” Dean said.
Meantime, sixth-place Flint (28-33-2-3) lost 5-2 to Sarnia (22-32-6-7) on Friday.
With 61 points, the Firebirds, who’ve also qualified for the postseason, are one point up on the Hounds with two games remaining. They’re home to Saginaw on Saturday and play at the Spirit on Sunday.
Should the Soo and Flint finish tied for sixth, the first tie-breaker is combined regulation and overtime wins. The Greyhounds hold the edge 26-25. The next tie-breaker is head-to-head play and the Soo holds the edge there, as well.
However, with two points this weekend, Flint could clinch sixth, relegating the Hounds to seventh place and a first-round playoff matchup against Windsor.
That best-of-seven would begin Thursday and Saturday of next week at WFCU Centre. The Hounds would play host to Games 3-4, Monday and Wednesday, Mar. 31 and Apr. 2.
Game 5, if needed, is slated for Apr. 4 in Windsor. The Hounds would host a sixth game, if necessary, on Apr. 6.
And should the series go the distance, the deciding game would be played in Windsor on Apr. 8.
However, should the Hounds secure sixth spot, they would face Kitchener in Round 1.
The playoff dates with Kitchener would be the same as they are against Windsor, except for Games 1-2. They would go next Friday and Sunday at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium.
The Rangers beat Owen Sound (25-35-4-3) 3-2 on Friday, leaving the Attack tied with Sarnia for the eighth-and-final playoff spot with 57 points. Both clubs have one game remaining and Owen Sound holds the first tie-breaker.
The Attack is home to Guelph on Saturday.
After playing what was arguably their best period this season, the Soo skated off up 3-0 after 20 minutes against Saginaw.
“Unbelievable start,” said Dean, whose club wound up outshooting the visitors 38-28. “Our forecheck was incredible and we looked very hungry. Considering the magnitude of this game, that was our best period this season.”
The Hounds also carried a 4-2 advantage into the third.
Michael Misa notched the Spirit’s third power-play goal of the night to make it 4-3 just 34-seconds into the final frame.
Martin answered five minutes later. His initial shot hit a defenceman, but he batted the rebound past Kaleb Papineau to give the Hounds a 5-3 edge.
Dimian Zhilkin trimmed the Soo’s lead to 5-4 at the 6:30 mark. He took a drop pass and beat Nolan Lalonde high to the blocker side.
With fans on the edge of their seats, Smith scored both his ninth and 10th goals into the empty Saginaw net.
Dean admitted he was “tense” behind the bench in the final frame, but praised his charges for finding a way.
“We’ve learned so many valuable lessons through this roller-coaster of a season,” the coach added.
“This was one of my best games for sure,” said Nordh, who notched a power-play goal and even-strength marker in the opening period to put the Hounds up 3-0. “I try to work hard all the time and lead by example. And with all of the hard work we’ve put in, I’m really proud of our team.”
Martin was outstanding with the way in which he drove play. The second-year man finished with a pair of goals, up to 33 on the season.
“Hopefully we can get sixth place and go on a long playoff run,” Martin said.
Smith scored twice and set up another for the Hounds. Reid finished with a power-play goal and an assist and Marco Mignosa added a pair of helpers.
Sault native Calem Mangone had a pair of power-play tallies and an assist in defeat.
“It would be unbelievable to get sixth place,” said Reid, who praised the hometown crowd. “The fans were unbelievable. They boosted our energy in every aspect of the game. We wanted to win for them.”
