The Oakville Blades have a chance to finish off their second round playoff series after a 3-1 victory over the Burlington Cougars on Wednesday night.
The Cougars drew first blood with eight minutes remaining in the first period. With Sal Filice in the box for tripping, Michael Boushy would take a shot on net but the Blades managed to deflect the puck away. Phil Lagunov was in a good spot in the high slot to pick up the rebound, swatting at it to make it 1-0.
But Oakville was there to knot it up. Two minutes after, Tyler Hildebrandt’s shot was deflected by the goaltender in front, sending it to the right side of the net. Peyton Reeves, who has proven to be clutch when needed throughout his time with the Blades, picked up the rebound and sent the puck up top corner, tying the game up at one apiece.
Reeves was having himself quite the game, so it was fitting that he would score the go-ahead goal for the Blades. At 10:33, Hildebrandt set up Reeves at the high slot before the two-way power-forward let out a blister of a wrist shot, going bar-down for the 2-1 goal.
At 11:12 in the third, the Blades grabbed a two-goal lead, a big advantage in the series. Sal Filice used his big slap shot from the point to blow towards the net, with NHL Draft prospect Bryce Misley deploying an aggressive tip to beat Mario Cavaliere and give the Blades the 3-1 lead. The goal would give the Blades a big enough lead to secure the win, giving them the 3-1 advantage in the series heading into game five.
Game four will take place at Appleby Ice Centre at 7:30 PM on Friday night. Come on out to see Oakville attempt to close out the series in five games!