Rebels Earn 5-2 Win; Force Game 5 on Saturday
Red Deer, AB – The Lethbridge Hurricanes played Game 4 in Red Deer on Wednesday night in hopes of a sweep but the Rebels forced a Game 5 with a 5-2 win at the ENMAX Centrium.
It was a strong first period for the Rebels who peppered the Hurricanes in the opening period with 19 shots to the ‘Canes 10. Red Deer had an early power play in the game but failed to capitalize as Logan Flodell was busy and sharp early. The Rebels did open the scoring at the 7:33 mark as Reese Johnson ripped home his first of the series to make it 1-0. The Hurricanes pushed back in the second half of the period and eventually tied the game as Matthew Stanley banked home his first ever playoff goal with just 39 seconds left in the period to make it 1-1 after twenty minutes of play.
It was a more even second period that saw the shots favour the Rebels 12-8 in the middle frame. The Hurricanes pulled ahead at the 15:17 mark as Tate Olson ripped home his second of the series on a drop pass from Brad Morrison to make it 2-1 Lethbridge. The lead was short-lived, however, as the Rebels answered back just 58 seconds later as Mason McCarty buried his first of the series at the 16:15 mark to make it a 2-2 hockey game after two periods of play.
In the third period, the Rebels did all the scoring as they capitalized on a power play just 38 seconds into the period as Brandon Hagel buried his fourth of the series to put Red Deer ahead 3-2. Rebels added to their lead as Alexander Alexeyev deked Flodell and slipped home his first of the series on a two-on-nothing to make it 4-2 at the 11:39 mark. Kristian Reichel rounded out the scoring with a shorthanded, empty net goal with 27 seconds left in the game to make it 5-2.
Shots in the third period favoured the Hurricanes 12-5 in the third period, but Red Deer held the edge in the game 36-30. The ‘Canes were 0/4 on the power play in the game while the Rebels were 1/5.
Three stars of the game were:
1) Rebels – #4 Alexander Alexeyev (1 goal, 1 assist)
2) Rebels – #17 Reese Johnson (1 goal, 1 assist)
3) ‘Canes – #4 Tate Olson (1 goal)
The Hurricanes now hold a 3-1 series lead and will have an opportunity to close out the series on Saturday night at the ENMAX Centre in Lethbridge in Game 5. Tickets for Game 5 will go on sale on Thursday morning at 9:00am and can be purchased online, by calling 403-329-SEAT (7328) or by visiting the ENMAX Centre Ticket Centre.
(Photo Credit: Rob Wallator)
