Game Recap: Luke Ellinas Breaks Away in Series Clinching Win Over Erie
Game Summary: Luke Ellinas wrapped up the series, scoring on a breakaway in overtime to win the game 4-3 and clinch the series. Erie battled back from down two to tie it at three late in the game to force overtime and keep their season alive. However, Ellinas bid them farewell. Eduard Šalé scored twice in the win as he, Ellinas, and Filip Mešár all led the team with two points each in the series clincher.
Filip Mešár led the team in points after round one with nine, followed by Eduard Šalé with eight, and Carson Rehkopf with seven. Rehkopf led the team with goals, scoring four, followed by Eduard Šalé, Luke Ellinas, and Matthew Sop each with three.
Scoring Summary:
1st Period
ER 0, KIT 1
2:51 Eduard Šalé (2) – Carson Rehkopf, Filip Mešár – 5v3 PPG
Eduard Šalé scored on a five-on-three power play picking up a loose puck and sniping it low glove. Kaleb Smith took a high sticking penalty at 1:35 and Dylan Edwards took a delay of game penalty at 2:00 leading to 1:35 of a two-man advantage for the Rangers. On the power play, Carson Rehkopf picked up a loose puck between the circles and skated it out blocker side towards the boards. He attempted to shoot the puck however, it was blocked and bounced out to Šalé who had no trouble putting it past a recovering Ben Gaudreau.
ER 1, KIT 1
15:31 Dylan Edwards (6) – Pano Fimis, Owain Johnston – PPG
Dylan Edwards tied the game up on the Otters power play as he beat Jackson Parsons through traffic from the slot. Pano Fimis took the puck out from the corner before passing it cross-ice to Edwards, who walked in a bit before rifling the shot through traffic and in.
ER 1, KIT 2
16:02 Eduard Šalé (3) – Filip Mešár, Cameron Reid
Eduard Šalé regained the lead for the Rangers scoring his second of the period. Filip Mešár received the puck from Cameron Reid in the neutral zone and carried it into the Erie zone. As Mešár entered the zone he sent the puck to his left to Šalé who walked down and scored blocker side on Ben Gaudreau.
2nd Period
ER 1, KIT 3
6:27 Trent Swick (2) – Luke Ellinas
Trent Swick doubled the lead for Kitchener scoring from in tight after receiving a pass from Luke Ellinas. Ellinas held the puck in on a failed clearing attempt by Erie. Ellinas then passed the puck down to Swick who was skating down towards the crease and flipped it over the shoulder of Ben Gaudreau.
ER 2, KIT 3
13:28 Carey Terrance (2) – Sam Alfano
Carey Terrance brought the game back within one as he cut across the crease and backhanded the puck in. Terrance held the puck along the wall of the blocker side faceoff circle. From here he cut down, skating across the crease and tucking the puck in from his backhand.
3rd Period
ER 3, KIT 3
17:06 Pano Fimis (4) – Martin Misiak, Owain Johnston – PPG
Pano Fimis tied the game up on the power play as a lucky bounce snuck past Jackson Parsons. Fimis received the puck at the Rangers blueline after Martin Misiak rimmed the puck back to him. From here he sent a wrist shot towards the net, bouncing off Simon Motew beside Jackson Parsons and into the net.
Overtime
ER 3, KIT 4
5:38 Luke Ellinas (4) – Simon Motew
Luke Ellinas ended the series by scoring on a breakaway glove side. Simon Motew cleared the puck off the glass from his end and the puck was loose in the Erie zone. Ellinas won the foot race to the puck and found himself one-on-one with Ben Gaudreau. He shot the puck over the glove of Gaudreau to end the game and series.
The Stars:
First Star: Luke Ellinas (1G, 1A)
Second Star: Pano Fimis (1G, 1A)
Third Star: Eduard Šalé (2G)
The Goalies:
Ben Gaudreau made his fourth appearance of the series, stopping 25 of 29 shots. He finished the series with a 1-0-3 record. (W-L-OTL) Jackson Parsons stopped 29 of 32 shots in the win. He made all six starts for Kitchener, finishing the series with a 4-2 record.
The Numbers Game:
Shots: ER 32, KIT 29
Powerplay: ER 1-5, KIT 1-4
FO%: ER 54.2%, KIT 45.8%
Up Next: Kitchener will move on to the second round against their rivals the London Knights. Games one and two will be played in London and the Budweiser Gardens on Thursday, April 11th and Saturday, April 13th before the series turns to Kitchener. Game three will be played at The Aud on Tuesday, April 16th at 7 pm and game four goes Thursday, April 18th at 7 pm. You won’t want to miss this series…Tickets go on sale on Thursday, April 11th at 10 am online here and at The Aud Box Office Sponsored by White Way Plumbing.
For inquiries, contact:
Lindsay Eastwood
Manager of Communications and Team Services
Kitchener Rangers Hockey Club
613-793-0168
[email protected]
Photo Credit: Erie Otters
