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The playoffs keep rollin’ on and players keep grindin’ it out. As the summer winds down, players begin to feel the wear and tear that a full season of box takes on the body. But players keep pushing through it in their efforts to make it to the Minto Cup tournament. With two teams in Ontario having punched their tickets already, B.C. and Alberta contenders stand locked at 1-1 in both their series as they battle to see who will represent their respective province. These same match-ups continue on into this week’s ‘Games to Watch’ as they certainly are games to watch. Man I love the playoffs. Check these out:

Coquitlam Adanacs vs. New Westminster Salmonbellies

The series in B.C. has become very interesting with New West’s 16-12 victory last night in game 2. With the series knotted at 1-1, game 3 goes back to Coquitlam’s home barn.

Game 1 featured some great efforts from both squads. From Coquitlam, as expected, their offensive put up some big numbers. While they only put nine goals on the board, four guys on their roster chipped in four points or more on the night. Trevor Moore, Robert Church, and Corbyn Tao each had four with Jordan Weir adding five of his own. Keepers Chris Seidel and Dan Lewis split time in net and combined to make 41 saves.

While the A’s had big point scorers, the ‘Bellies spread the scoring out more. Although they only mustered eight goals on the night, their offense was still solid keeping them in a game which was knotted as six after two periods. Goalies Neil Tyacke and Brandon Mulligan also split time in net and combined for 33 saves on the evening. New West may have felt they should have walked out of Coquitlam’s home barn with a 1-0 lead in the series. Instead they walked away a goal shy of a big W and full of revenge, which they certainly got in game 2.

Game 2 was not anything like game 1. The only thing that may have resembled game 1 was Coquitlam’s offensive production. Their boys were at it again. Travis Cornwall joined Moore, Tao, and Weir this time dropping four points of his own, as well as Robert Church who went off as he potted two goals and added six helpers for an absolutely insane night. Once again the goalie tandem for the A’s played stellar making 30 saves on the night but it just was not enough to contain a New West offense which found a spark which it was lacking in game 1.

The coaching staff of New West must have done or said something between games to make their high powered offense wake up. They certainly woke up in game 2 as the offense put up 16 goals on a defense which only gave up double-digit goals three times during the regular season. 14 out of 20 players on the ‘Bellies roster register a point in game 2. Dan McQuade went nuts in this game as he put up seven points on the the night (2,5). Curtis Dickson (Delaware), Mark Negrin, and Brandon Goodwin all chipped in with hat-tricks on the evening as well. The goalie dup of New West stepped up once again, combining to make a whopping 41 saves on the night. Game 3 goes down tomorrow in Coquitlam, gonna be real good.

Orangeville Northmen vs. Brampton Excelsiors

A preview of a future Minto match-up, the Northmen and Excelsiors have turned their provincial final into an interesting series. A slugfest between maybe the two best teams in the country, the Excelsiors took a 2-0 lead in the series with another big W last night in their home arena.

Game 1 was somewhat of a shock to a lot of people. Brampton walked away with a 10-3 victory over the defending Minto champion. In a game where the Excels seemingly dominated Orangeville, they showed why they are one of the best teams, if not the best team, and also the Minto Cup host. Brampton is so good because they have so many threats to score on their roster. In the first game, three players led the way with four points each in Scott Tinning (2,2), Dane Stevens (1,3), and OLA rookie of the year winner Michael Burke (1,3). The big offensive on the Excels roster, Andrew Potter, had a quiet three points but these other guys picked up the slack and established their place in this series with a giant win.

The defense played stellar as well, holding Orangeville star and OLA most outstanding player Adam Jones pointless on the evening. The Northmen could not get anything going offensively, as their other main point scorers were limited to one goal or less. Goalie Nick Rose did all he could between the pipes but the tendy can’t save everything. After this disappointing loss, the Northmen were ready for their game 2 match-up but so were the Excelsiors.

Game 2 was much different than game 1. The score was 6-5 going into the third but Brampton’s offense seemed to be too much for Orangeville to handle. Brampton’s Andrew Potter stepped up big time dropping two goals and adding four helpers for six total points. His offensive production was certainly felt in this one. But goalie Steve Fryer was the real standout in this game making 35 saves on 41 shots. It is tough to put up points when a goalie is playing like he is standing on his head.
Not only did Potter make some serious noise in this contest, but Adam Jones did as well. Potting three goals and adding two assists, Jones made his presence on the floor known. OLA outstanding goalie Nick Rose played stellar in net but his 33 saves on 41 shots was just not enough to keep Brampton from walking away with a 2-0 lead in the Ontario final. Look for game 3 tomorrow to be a big one for both teams.

Calgary Raiders vs. Edmonton Eclipse

With the series tied 1-1, like out in B.C., look for tonight’s game and tomorrow’s game to be huge. If the Raiders win both it could completely change the nature of this series, as well as if the Eclipse leave Calgary with two more wins under their belt. The first two match-ups between this two were heated and physical, which was expected. Look for these next two the be the same.

Game 1 was tight throughout most of the contest but the Raiders began to pull away in the 3rd period. Two goals each by Garrett Werschke, Brett Baron, Chad Mitchell, and Travis Comeau (Georgetown) paced Calgary throughout the game. At the end of two, the score was 7-6 in favor of the Raiders. After a quick goal by Jake Hayes (Robert Morris) to open the third, the Eclipse bounced back with two unanswered knotting the score at 8. After that it was all Raiders. Adam Shute played the first two periods in net and kept the Raiders up by one, making some solid saves. Greg Hallett took over in the third and preserved the win for the Raiders as he faced a barrage of Eclipse shots.

On the other side, the Eclipse were paced by Sean Reid’s and Shane Lopatynski’s two goals a piece. In net, Marc Nano had a stellar game making some huge saves to help keep the Eclipse in the game. Stud offensive player Simon Giourmetakis was held without a goal in this game. His three assists in this one sure helped but his scoring presence was certainly missed.

The Eclipse were looking for revenge in game 2 after a tough first game, and they got just that. Once again, the game was tight through the first two periods of play. But this time, the third period was dominated by the Eclipse. Giourmetakis and Kirby Zdrill led the offense of the Eclipse with two goals each, which were huge ones in a rather low scoring game. Tendy Marc Nano played lights out in this one, limiting the Raiders to just five goals for most of the game. A late goal by rookie Tim Nolte proved to be the game winner, as the Raiders added two quick scores in the final minute.

The Raiders had a tough time solving the Eclipse defense and goalie Marc Nano in game 2. They were held scoreless for almost 30 minutes until Chad Mitchell and Casey MacIntyre put up two quick ones near the end of the game. MacIntyre’s two goals led the way for the Raiders in this poor offensive showing. If it were not for the play of goalie Greg Hallet in net, Calgary would have not been in this game. Game 3 tonight with Game 4 to follow tomorrow. Look for both to be just as physical and just as intense as the first two.

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