Rebels on the brink after game three loss
RED DEER – The Red Deer Rebels hit the ice with fire in their eyes on Tuesday night at the Marchant Crane Centrium, looking to answer back against the Prince Albert Raiders, but came up short in a 4-2 loss in game three of their first-round WHL playoff series.
The Rebels head into game four on Wednesday, April 1 looking to keep their season alive as the Raiders lead the best-of-seven series 3-0.
“Our goal is to still support our players and try to help them find ways to win,” explained Rebels head coach Marc Habscheid.
“We’ll go through some video now see what we can correct, and see if there’s any cracks in their armour that we can take advantage of. We’ll lace ’em up tomorrow for sure. These guys are a good group, character group, and we’ll show up tomorrow and we expect to win.”
Stats Story:
Alisher Sarkenov (PA) – 2 goals
Aiden Oiring (PA) – 1 goal, 1 assist
Nate Yellowaga (RD) – 2 assists
How it Happened:
Prince Albert opened the scoring as Alisher Sarkenov buried a rebound past Matthew Kondro to make it 1-0.
Red Deer answered on the powerplay. Poul Andersen threaded a slap pass to Patrick Sopiarz, who was waiting crease-side to tip it past Raiders netminder Michal Orsulak.
Just three minutes later, back on the man advantage, the Rebels grabbed their first lead of the series. Kalder Varga from the bottom of the circle buried the go-ahead goal.
With a minute to go in the period, chaos erupted in front of the Rebels net. Amid the scramble, Sarkenov found the puck once again and found the net for his second goal of the game.
The game remained tied until late into period two when a close call went in favour of the Raiders to give them the lead.
It appeared that Kondro had made a spectacular, desperation save on Prince Albert’s Aiden Oiring. But after video review, the on-ice call was overturned and the Raiders took a one-goal lead into period three.
The third period saw the pace slow, but the fight never wavered. The Raiders eventually put in an empty-net goal in the dying seconds.
Both netminders stood tall throughout the contest, with Kondro stopping 22 and Orsulak denying 18. Red Deer made the most of their opportunities, going 2-for-4 on the powerplay for a 50-per cent conversion rate, while the Raiders were held off the board twice on the man advantage.
Brandt Three Stars
1. Alisher Sarkenov (PA)
2. Nate Yellowaga (RD)
3. Jonah Sivertson (PA)
What They Said:
Marc Habscheid
Notes:
Rebels scratches for the game were Noah Chadi and Matej Mikes, along with affiliate players Chace Turchak, Cash Arcand-Vandale, Nolan Wolitski and Graeme Pickering … Poul Andersen left the game in the second period after crashing into the Raiders net and did not return … Attendance at the Marchant Crane Centrium was 3,021.
Next up:
The Red Deer Rebels will look to make it loud at the Marchant Crane Centrium once more on Wednesday, April 1, at 7 p.m. as they go back-to-back at home against the Prince Albert Raiders in Game 4 of the best-of-seven series (TICKETS).
