‘Nothing to lose’
Host Pride looking to force another game as Wild looks for series clincher tonight
Nick Reeves knows there’s no room for error.
He also knows his Charlottetown Bulk Carriers Pride isn’t about to quit, despite trailing the Kensington Monaghan Farms Wild 3-0 in the best-of-seven major midget hockey series.
“If anything, we’re going to be resilient. It’s do-or-die now,” said the Summerside forward. “We don’t want to lose this banner. . . We’re going to throw everything at them. We have nothing to lose.”
Game 4 goes tonight at 7 p.m. at MacLauchlan Arena.
“I really think the pressure is on them to close out the series,” Reeves said after Monday’s practice. “I think the boys feel loose right now, and we’re just going into Wednesday with a winning mindset and come out with a win.” Wild head coach Kyle Dunn said while teams always want to end a series as soon as possible there’s no pressure on his guys.
“(The Pride is) in a must-win situation,” he said. “We’re going to see the best they have come Wednesday night.”
The Wild has outscored the Pride 15-4 during the first three games, but the final scores don’t show how close the games have been, Reeves said, noting they have hit multiple posts.
“We haven’t really had our breaks in the first three games,” he said. “We’re right there with them. A little bit of puck luck could change the outcome of a game.”
Pride bench boss Luke Beck said his squad has played some of its best hockey during the past two games.
“Unfortunately for us, there’s been some untimely goals against and not capitalizing on some of our opportunities,” he said. “Eventually, we feel we will be rewarded.”
One key will be scoring early. The Wild is looking to get the lead on the road and take the wind out of the Pride’s sails.
“The start is going to be big for us,” Dunn said. “All series we’ve played with the lead, and that’s our goal again come Wednesday.”
The Wild is staying with Chad Arsenault, while the Pride hadn’t decided its starting goalie after going with Erik MacInnis during the first three games.
“All we’re trying to do is force one more game,” Beck said.
Both teams will advance to the Atlantic championship, April 4-7, at MacLauchlan Arena.