Welcome back to the interview room. Tonight we have Kris Knoblauch, Devin Williams, Dane Fox, and Connor Brown. We also have Guelph Storm head coach Scott Walker and captain Matt Finn. The Otters stay alive and will travel to Guelph on Friday for game 5.
Kris Knoblauch and Devin Williams:
Dane Fox:
Connor Brown:
Matt Finn and Scott Walker:
Erie 5 Guelph 2
Shots: Erie 44 Guelph 28
PP: Erie 0-2 Guelph 0-2
3 Stars:
3. Devin Williams (26 saves)
2. Dylan Strome (G)
1. Connor Brown (2 G-1 A)
THIRD PERIOD
It’s over. Otters win 5-2. We head back to Guelph.
Brownie ices it with :14 left. 5-2 Otters.
1:32 to play actually.
Timeout Guelph. 1:00 to play.
Mancina pulled for the sixth attacker.
4012 the attendance tonight at EIA.
5 to play. still 4-2 Otters. Playing smart.
Dane Fox with a wide open net. Misses just wide.
Otters playing very smart this third period. Nothing too aggressive. Just trying to get out with a win.
Williams with another big save, this time on Fabbri point blank.
STONE COLD DEVIN WILLIAMS DOES IT AGAIN BAH GAWD. Huge toe save.
Kosmachuk got loose but MacDermid breaks it up nicely.
Puck drops. Back underway.
This is a completely different Otters team than we saw in Game 3. Let’s hope it continues for the 3rd and this series continues.
SECOND PERIOD
End of 2. Otters still lead 4-2. Outplayed the Storm the entire frame.
Both teams full.
Otters going to the PP as Abraham has his stick slashed out of his hands by Bertuzzi.
2:58 to go in the frame. Still 4-2 Otters
Both teams full strength.
Fabbri is being sent off for holding. Otters to the PP after the media.
DEVIN WILLIAMS WITH A STONE COLD ACROBATIC SAVE ON RYCHEL!
Great chances for the first line last time out but nothing in the net. 9 to go in the second
McDavid REALLY needs to learn to be selfish. Always thinking pass first just cost the Otters a goal.
Otters kill the penalty.
MacDermid shaken up after blocking a slapper point blank. He’s being looked at on the bench.
Otters to the PK as Donnay is sent of for holding.
Penalty time is up. Full strength for both teams.
McGinn with a shorthanded steal in the Otters zone. Williams steps up to make the stop.
Puck drops and the 2nd is underway. Otters with :46 PP carrying over from the 1st.
FIRST PERIOD
That’s the end of the first. Otters lead 4-2. They will have :46 of PP time to start the 2nd.
Less than a minute to play in the period.
Joel Wigle down after a hit from Trojanovic behind the net. He gets up. 2 for boardsing for Trojanovic.
Otters goals reads Fox (8) from Genovese and Brown
Genovese floats one in from the point and it’s tipped in by Fox for his first of the series. 4-2 Otters
Guelph Goal reads Rychel from Fabbri and FJinn.
Otters goal reads Wigle (2) from Gaunce. Mancina now in goal for Guelph.
Rychel finishes on the doorstep. 3-2
Joel Wigle rips a sizzler past Nichols from the slot. 3-1 Otters
McDavid sets Brown up for a great one-timer but Brownie couldn’t get good wood/carbon fiber/aluminum/graphite on it.
Otters goal reads Brown (7) from McDavid at 9:44.
Connor Brown takes a wrister from the near circle. Nichols gets a piece with his glove but it goes in. 2-1 Otters
Otters goal reads Strome (3) from McDavid 4:48.
Otters killed the penalty and then Dylan Strome ripped a wrister from the slot past Nichols. We’re tied at 1.
Now an interference call on Troy Donnay as he shoves Tyler Bertuzzi into the net. Guelph PP.
First shot goes in as Zack Mitchell finishes a 2-on-1 with Rychel. 1-0 Storm.
Puck drop: We’re underway here at EIA.
Welcome back to the in-game blog here on Otters Press Box. The Otters find themselves down 3-0 in the series to a powerful Guelph squad. It’s do or die.
Here are the lines for tonight:
Erie:
Forwards:
Fox-McDavid-Brown
Curtis-Strome-Burakovsky
Wood-Gaunce-Wigle
Evans-Pettit-Murphy
Defense:
Genovese-Pelech
MacDermid-Abraham
Dermott-Donnay
Goaltender: Williams
Scratches: Felker, Raddysh, Maksimovich, Betz
Guleph:
Forwards:
Rychel-Fabbri-Mitchell
Bertuzzi-Dickinson-Kosmachuk
McGinn-Horvat-Auger
Bauman-Suter-Pierog
Defense:
Finn-Trojanovic
Leslie-Ebert
Baltisberger-Harpur
Goaltender: Nichols
Scratches: Craievich, Stevens, McFadden.
Both teams have been waiting for what seems like an eternity but tonight, the Western Conference Final between the Otters and Storm begins in Guelph.
The top two teams in the west during the regular season, Erie and Guelph had a back-and-forth-battle for the number one spot in the West with the Storm, tying for the league lead with 52 wins. Guelph came out on top by two points and earned home rink advantage for the duration of their playoff run.
The two teams met five times during the regular season. The Storm got the best of the Otters in the season series with a record of 3-1-1-0. The two losses came in Erie in November. The overtime loss is where Connor McDavid sniped a highlight reel game winning goal.
Much like the Otters, the Storm have dispatched their first two playoff opponents with ease, knocking out Plymouth and London with 4-1 series victories in each.
With the exception of a 5-0 loss in December, the Otters have played the Storm pretty evenly throughout the season. This matchup features the two best teams in the league and should burn down the barns right to the very end.
What to watch for.
Devin Williams. He is the key to the Otters success in the post season so far. In the past series vs. Sault Ste. Marie, the Otters netminder gave up a grand total of three goals in four games, including two shutout victories. Coach Kris Knoblauch will continue to ride Williams for as long as he can. Meanwhile, Oscar Dansk, who everyone thought was the Otters number one guy throughout the season, will continue to ride the bench while the 2014 Draft Eligible Williams has the reigns. If Williams continues his dominance, the Otters will have a difficult time losing this series.
Players to watch.
Besides Williams, Connor McDavid will be the one to watch. He has used his skill to devastate the Storm earlier in the year. Not only that, this is the first time McDavid (as well as the rest of the Otters) has played in an OHL playoff series as big as this. He has shone on the world stage before so he should have no problem bringing that experience here. All eyes will be on the wunderkind throughout the series. McDavid has four goals and 10 assists in nine games during the postseason.
Look for McDavid to shine on the big stage yet again.
For Guelph, it will be Columbus Blue Jackets first round draft pick Kerby Rychel. Rychel was acquired mid-season by the Storm from the Windsor Spitfires and immediately put his playmaking abilities on show. He is a dangerous winger with an underrated shot. The Otters will need to prevent Rychel from making plays in order to keep the pressure off Devin Williams. Rychel has two goals and eleven assists in ten playoff games.
Rychel’s hot hands can potentially be deadly for the Otters.
Goaltending for the Storm will be another 2014 draft eligible, Justin Nichols. Nichols hasn’t been tested too tremendously in this postseason, but was remarkably consistent throughout the regular season. He has a 2.77 GAA and a .919 save percentage through ten games this postseason.
Series prediction.
This one goes down to the wire. I will say the Otters. In seven. In triple overtime.
Now it’s your turn. Vote in the poll below.
Random notes.
Puck drops for the series in Guelph tonight at 7:05. Otters Press Box will be at all home games during the series, beginning Monday. You can follow @RealJeffSnyder and @theZothman for information throughout the series.
Images from the Ontario Hockey League were used in this report.
Otters Press Box 