After just barely making the playoffs, the Washington
Generals were not expected to go very deep in the post-season, especially as
they had to face the defending champion Montreal Royale in the first round. The
Royale won game one 5-2 and immediately jumped to a 3-0 lead in game two. A
sweep seemed inevitable, when suddenly the Generals offense exploded for three
unanswered goals from Rob Wentzel and two from Igor Zharkov. The game was now
tied entering the third period. Early in the third, Tomas Axelsson beat Victor
Malmsten to give Washington a 4-3 lead, one they would hang on to to win game
two. The Generals never looked back after the big comeback, winning both games
in Washington, including a thrilling double overtime victory in game four, to
take a stunning 3-1 series lead. Back in Montreal for game five, the Royale
were in unfamiliar territory, facing elimination in only the first round. “We
know we can win, we just need to keep things simple and force them to play our
game” said Vincent Ducharme prior to the game. Game five was a close one, tied
2-2 through two periods, until Wentzel scored a big goal to make it 3-2 midway
through the third before Grant Sibley sealed it with an empty-net goal in the
dying seconds. Washington completed one of the biggest upsets in PHL history
and advanced to the second round for the first time since 1981.
The Quebec Nationale finished the year with 13 fewer points
than their first-round opponent, the Boston Bulldogs. But that didn’t stop them
from giving Boston all they could handle in a hard-fought first-round series.
After splitting the first four games, Quebec took a 3-2 series lead in game
five to put the Bulldogs on the brink of elimination. Ron Buckner had struggled
in goal throughout the series, even allowing the game five winning goal to
trickle between his legs as he attempted to pick it up with his glove, so Gary
Shantz decided to give rookie Kevin Washer the start in game six. Washer was
spectacular, stopping 39 shots for the shutout as Boston won 4-0 to force game
seven. Washer turned in another strong effort in game seven, as Boston won the
game 4-1 to move on to the second round. In other Eastern Conference action,
Long Island upset the Philadelphia Redshirts in six games, while Toronto
defeated Detroit in five.
Out West, the Edmonton Northern Lights and Calgary Wranglers
met in the “Battle of Alberta” for the first time ever in the playoffs. The
teams split the first four games setting up a pivotal game five in Edmonton,
where the bad blood that had been brewing all series finally boiled over. When
Shannon Michaels laid out Edmonton’s Gary Clayton with a clean but devastating hit,
Joey Hamilton went after him, engaging him in a fight while two other fights
broke out of the ensuing scrum. Edmonton went on to win the game but shortly
afterwards it was announced that Clayton could miss the remainder of the
playoffs with a concussion. Upon news that Calgary star Sergei Krayev would be
returning to the lineup for game six after being out since March, Tough
Edmonton defenseman Dwight Ingram hinted at retribution for the hit on Clayton.
“I’m just saying, we lost one of our star forwards for the rest of the
playoffs, their guy is coming back tonight. If the game gets out of reach, they
may want to sit Krayev.” The league fined Ingram for uttering what certainly
seemed to be a threat and Calgary defenseman Jonathan Adams made sure Krayev
would have the space he needed in game six, dropping the gloves with Ingram
right off the opening faceoff. The fight seemed to settle everything down, at
least for a while, as Krayev scored his first goal in over a month in a 5-3
Calgary win to send the series to a deciding game in Edmonton. Game seven was
face-paced and hard-hitting. After a week of controversy, Ingram played a very
focused game for Edmonton and ultimately became the hero, scoring late in the
second period to give the Northern Lights a 2-1 lead. The goal would eventually
be the winner, as Edmonton won the provincial battle to advance to round two.
Elsewhere in the West, Minnesota defeated Milwaukee in five
games, Chicago took out St. Louis in six, while Vancouver eliminated LA in six
games.
In round two, the Toronto Racers faced a tough test of their
will against the Long Island Concordes. The series went back and forth, with
Long Island winning game one, then routing the Racers 9-0 in game three after
Toronto had tied the series in game two. The blowout seemed to be a clear
indication of who was in control of the series, as Stuart Burns was enjoying
the performance of a lifetime with seven goals in three games, including four
in game three. Toronto managed to tie the series once again in game four, only
to once again give the Concordes the lead in game five on an overtime goal from
Doug MacIntyre. The Racers now faced elimination and needed a big win on the
road to extend the series. Goals from David Havel, Alexei Yolkin, and Tory
Partridge gave Toronto a 3-0 lead in game six, before Burns and Mike Wheeler
answered with two for Long Island to make it a one goal game. The Concordes
nearly tied in late in the second period when a Craig Davidson shot hit the
crossbar, but minutes later, Long Island defenseman Brandon Fox was given a
penalty for roughing. Randy Fernandez scored on the powerplay with a booming
point shot and Toronto once again held a two goal lead. The Racers ultimately
won game six 5-3 to force game seven at home. The deciding game was tied 1-1
with just seven minutes to go when Scott Whitmore was sent on a breakaway.
Whitmore made no mistake, beating Jeff Pickard to give Toronto the lead.
Partridge scored the empty-netter to seal the victory as the Toronto Racers
advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 1979.
The Edmonton Northern Lights also faced an uphill battle in
their second-round series with Vancouver. The Bighorns took 1-0 and 2-1 series
leads and forced Edmonton to play from behind throughout most of the first four
games. The Northern Lights finally caught a break in game four, trailing 3-2.
Tommy McGuire was hooked on a breakaway and was awarded a penalty shot. McGuire
made good on the rare opportunity and tied the game. Just two minutes into
overtime, McGuire scored his second of the game as Edmonton tied the series.
The penalty shot proved to be a turning point as the Northern Lights never
looked back, winning game five 5-3 and taking game six 3-2 to win the series
and advance to the Western Conference Finals for the third time in five years.
In other second round action, Boston ended the Washington Generals run in six
games, while Chicago defeated Minnesota in five.
For the first time since 1987, the Conference Finals would
both go to seven games. Edmonton continued their resilient play against the
heavily favoured Shamrocks. After losing game one 4-0, the Northern Lights battled
back, earning a 2-2 split after the first four games. The Shamrocks knew they
had to get a win at home in game five, and would get a big boost from an
unlikely hero. 40-year-old Rudy Hunter, playing in his 21st and
final season, scored two goals in a 3-1 win as Chicago now had an opportunity
to advance to the Lewis Cup Final in game six. The celebration would have to
wait, however, as Dwight Ingram and Kevin Wyatt did an excellent job shutting
down the Russian Connection line while Wes Simmons stopped 35 shots in a 2-0
win. Game seven would only bring more frustration for the Shamrocks, as Joey
Hamilton enjoyed a two goal night while Ingram and Wyatt continued to physically
wear down the talented Russian trio as the Northern Lights finally advanced to
their first-ever Lewis Cup Finals appearance with a 4-2 game seven victory.
The following night, the Northern Lights gathered together
to watch game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals, they would play the
winner for the Cup beginning in four days. Boston and Toronto had played a
tight series, trading the lead back-and-forth until the seventh and deciding
game. With the game tied 2-2 after two periods, Toronto had a golden
opportunity when Alexei Yolkin found himself on a breakaway. Yolkin deked Kevin
Washer and slipped the puck between his legs to give Toronto a 3-2 lead. The
Racers now stood just 16 minutes away from facing Edmonton in what would be the
first all-Canadian final since 1941. Unfortunately for Toronto, Boston’s Jason
Luna scored with just three minutes left to send the game to overtime. Overtime
would last just 28 seconds, enough time for the Racers to get a big opportunity
on an odd-man rush, which was broken up by Dale Knight, who passed it ahead to
captain Craig Bush. Bush found Colin Fleming through traffic, springing him on
a breakaway. Fleming slapped it from the top of the faceoff circle to beat
goaltender Tom Branson and send the Bulldogs to their first final since 1976. For
Fleming, a Bulldog since his rookie year in 1974, it was a dream come true.
When asked if this would be his final year, the 39-year-old answered “we’ll
see, we do have one more hill to climb, but if we win, I can’t imagine a better
way to say goodbye.”
No comments:
Post a Comment