The Estevan Bruins rode a quick start and a strong defensive effort to a 4-1 victory over the Kindersley Klippers on Wednesday, eliminating the Klippers in four games in the Sherwood Conference survivor series.
Alex Cote, Darcy DeRoose, Hudson Morrison and Cole Olson scored for the Bruins.
The Black and Gold now move on to face the first-place Yorkton Terriers in the Sherwood semifinals. That series starts Friday in Yorkton and Game 2 is Saturday at Spectra Place.
(UPDATE): Game 3 is Tuesday in Yorkton, Game 4 is Thursday in Estevan, Game 5 is March 16 in Yorkton, Game 6 is March 17 in Estevan, and Game 7 is March 19 in Yorkton.
Tonight, the Bruins came out on fire and dominated the first period. It took only 15 seconds for Cote to score first, stealing the puck from Austin Yano in the slot and surprising Warren Shymko with a shot five-hole.
Despite having several other great chances in a period that saw them outshoot Kindersley 13-2, the Bruins would have to settle for the one goal in the first 20 minutes.
The Klippers knotted the score at 1-1 at 13:54 when either Gio Bombini or Colby Daniels (I think Bombini) steered a loose puck away from Tyler Kauk behind the net and centred it to Ryan Doner for a blocker side goal.
Darcy DeRoose made it 2-1 at 7:49 of the second, getting a low shot past Shymko on his second or third whack at it. Just moments earlier, Bombini had fired the puck wide on a good scoring chance at the other end.
The Bruins went ahead 3-1 on a power play two minutes into the third, with Hudson Morrison getting the goal. It came on a shot from the left wing. It bounced around and it looked to me like Yano may have nicked it into his own net.
After that, the Bruins shut down the Klippers for most of the third. They limited their scoring chances for the most part. Olson finished it off with an empty netter with seven seconds left.
I just want to touch on the Klippers for a minute. I know there's been a lot of frustration in Kindersley the last couple of years. It's a town that loves its hockey team, but it's also one where rumours fly around all the time and it breeds negativity. But I like the direction the Klips are headed in. Gio Bombini is a hell of a player, and Colby Daniels is going to be a star. Brandon Lauder and Kyle Davies are also decent pieces to bring back up front, and I've really liked what I've seen from Stefan Seel and Jared Pilet as well. Troy Gedny also has lots of potential on the back end. Add Tyrell King's hot play down the stretch, and there's plenty of reason for optimism in Kindersley.
As for the Bruins, they now take on a deep, balanced team in Yorkton. They played the Terriers reasonably well this year, going 2-3-1 against them. I think they can push the series to at least six games, but it's going to take every single ounce they've got to beat them. Trent Cassan's a hell of a coach and he's got a very good team.
I'll post a series preview tomorrow or Friday.
Here's what Keith Cassidy had to say after the game. I realized halfway through the interview that I wasn't recording, so here's what I did get.
