Canucks stave off elimination

With their backs against the wall, the Niagara Falls Canucks nonetheless kept their eyes on the net.

The strategy to focus only on the next goal instead of worrying about the last one returned immediate dividends Monday night.

Tanner Ferriera and Ryan Mooney scored unanswered third-period goals to give the Canucks a 5-4 come-from-behind victory over the visiting Caledonia Corvairs.

Justin Kyle, with a hat trick, opened the scoring for fourthseeded Niagara Falls which came into the game trailing the best-ofseven Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League Golden Horseshoe Conference semifinal three games to none.

Nolan Gardiner, Bailey Fletcher, Cole Mayo and Cal Davis scored for No. 1 seed Caledonia.

“I’m happy for our players, they were rewarded tonight for all their hardwork,” Canucks owner-head coach Frank Pietrangelo said.

The team, he said, is “just taking it one period at a time.

“We know the task ahead of us isn’t an easy one,” said Pietrangelo. “But we’re confident in our team.

“We think we deserved a better fate in Game 2 of the series, and that this thing could easily be tied.”

Niagara Falls was up 2-1 Friday night at home but couldn’t hold on suffering a 4-2 setback in the second game of the series.

The loss, before an announced crowd of 548 at Gale Centre, was the Corvairs first after opening the playoffs 7-0.

It was also the defending conference champion’s first loss to Niagara Falls in head-to-head play this season. In league play the Corvairs defeated the Canucks six games to none, 12 points to one.

Caledonia outshot Niagara Falls 31-29 and neither team scored on the power play finishing 0-for-4 and 0-for-5, respectively, with the man advantage.

Game 5 is 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Halidmand Centre in Caledonia.

A sixth game, if necessary, will be played 7 p.m. Wednesday in Niagara Falls.

The Corvairs are seeking their fifth consecutive conference championship and fourth Sutherland Cup junior B championship in five years.

The other semifinal — St. Catharines Falcons, No. 2, versus Ancaster Avalanche, No. 3 — was tied at one win apiece heading into Game 3 Tuesday night at Jack Gatecliff Arena in St. Catharines.

Kings’ reign ends

Third time was the charm for the Glanbrook Rangers in the Provincial Junior Hockey League’s South Bloomfield Division.

After falling to the perennial powerhouse Grimsby Peach Kings in the division final in each of the past two seasons, Glanbrook rebounded from a 3-1 deficit to dethrone the Kings, eliminating them in seven games.

The Rangers, who finished first in league play and are seeking their first Ontario junior C Schmalz Cup championship since 1999, advanced to face the Doherty Division champion Tavistock Braves in a best-of-seven conference championship.

Grimsby was seeking to qualify for the league quarter-finals for the 15th year in a row.