Late-game heroics
Whittingham scores in final minute as Caps stave off elimination
The Summerside D. Alex MacDonald Ford Western Capitals are still alive. Riley Whittingham drove to the net and scored off a Thomas Stavert pass with 34.4 seconds remaining in regulation time to break a 3-3 tie, and give the Caps a 4-3 win over the Dieppe Commandos on Sunday night. “I saw Stavs had the puck and every time he has the puck you know something is going to happen,” explained Whittingham.
“I just went right to the net, he threw it there and it hit me. I will take it, and all I am worried about is the win.” The Commandos questioned the goal, but after referees Tim Hamel and Thane Arsenault, along with linesmen Ryan Deagle and Nolan Cornish, met at centre ice it was ruled a good goal. The Commandos now lead the best-of-seven Eastlink North Division final series 3-2, with Game 6 in Dieppe, N.B., on Tuesday night. A Capitals’ win will force a Game 7 in Summerside on Thursday, and Dieppe can advance to the Kent Cup final against the Pictou County Crushers with a win. The Crushers defeated the South Shore Lumberjacks to win the Eastlink South Division in five games. “We are not going to quit,” said Whittingham. “You need to win four games to win a series. They haven’t done that yet and we’re still alive.”
Close game
The teams were tied 2-2 after 20 minutes, and the Caps took a 3-2 lead into the second intermission before 2,003 fans at Eastlink Arena.
“I felt we were getting our chances, and I felt they were getting their chances as well,” assessed Caps head coach Billy McGuigan. The Commandos dominated the first half of the third period, and at one point were outshooting the Caps 11-2. Michael Poirier’s tied the game 3-3 at 4:03.
“We had to play through to the end, and that’s one of the mental preparation things we went through with Ahead Of The Game, Tara Costello,” said McGuigan. “It’s tough when you are down 3-1 (in a series), but you have to find a way, and this group has done that here again tonight (Sunday).”
Early lead
The Commandos jumped out to an early lead as Mathieu Newcomb finished off a shorthanded 2-on-0 break 2:43 into the game.
Stavert tied the game 1-1 at 4:29, and Mitch Dempsey scored on a wicked high shot from the slot at 9:13 to give the Caps a 2-1 lead. Dempsey’s goal was the Caps’ first power-play goal in 16 opportunities this series. Former Capital Alex Bradley answered back with a powerplay goal at 18:05, tapping in a loose puck. Evan Morrison beat Commandos goaltender Maxime Michaud with a wrist shot from halfway between the top of the circle and hash marks to give the Caps a 3-2 lead at 9:06 of the middle frame.
The final shots-on-goal totals were 34-24 in favour of the Commandos, who held a 17-5 advantage in the third period. Kyle Michalovsky was the winning goaltender. Hamel and Arsenault called four minors in the game – three of those against Dieppe.