2008 Playoffs - Conference Finals

Chicago vs Los Angeles

Matt Stover’s solid play in the LA net continued in game one against Chicago with a shutout performance as the Wizards took a 1-0 series lead. In game two, The Wizards came back to tie the game after going down 2-0. Early in the first overtime, Jonathan Wheatley beat Stover to tie the series. After winning two games in LA, the Shamrocks found themselves one win away from the Finals. Game five back in Chicago was a close one. Isaac Hart and Luca Schrober each scored for LA while Dan McBride and Corey Clark each scored for Chicago as the teams went into OT once again. Chicago peppered Stover with shots throughout a lopsided first overtime, but the 27-year-old made some huge saves to send the game to a second extra frame. Five minutes into the second overtime, Wheatley was the hero again, beating Stover to clinch the series and send Chicago to the Lewis Cup Finals.

Long Island vs Philadelphia

The Philadelphia Redshirts’ fourth appearance of the decade in the Eastern Conference Finals did not begin as planned. Almost everyone on the Concordes’ Roster registered a point in a decisive 7-1 game one victory. After being chased in game one, Luke Bowers put any concerns about his confidence to rest with a big 46-save performance in game two as Philly won 3-2 to tie the series. The Redshirts were happy to head home with the split, but the games at the PhillyDome both went the Concordes’ way in a bizzare case of déjà vu, as Scott Drayton score the Overtime winner from exactly the same spot on the ice with nearly identical point shots in a pair of 2-1 wins. The Shamrocks clinched their series the night before game five and it appeared the Finals matchup would be settled, but Philly pulled out a gutsy 4-2 effort on the road to survive. Back at the Dome for game six, another Drayton point shot in OT was stopped by Bowers, giving the Redshirts even more confidence, and just moments later, Sean Nowakowski proved to be the hero, sending the series to a game seven on the Island. Game seven began the way the series started, with a Long Island route. The Concordes jumped to a 4-0 lead by the end of the second period, forcing Philadelphia to pull Bowers in favour of veteran Pierre Noel. Noel was solid in the third, giving the Redshirts a shot at a comeback. Nowakowski, Baxter, and Sergei Dyatlov each scored to bring Philly to one goal with only 50 seconds remaining, when Long Island center Tory Partridge was called for a cross-check. The Redshirts pushed hard but veteran goaltender stood tall. The clock ran out and the Concordes headed to the Lewis Cup Finals for the first time since 1990. When asked about killing the penalty in the last minute, Long Island captain Ryan Shelton replied “its game seven, you have to find a way to kill those penalties.”