Cole Murphy's goal with 3:47 left in the game gave the Crushers a 4-3 win over the Dieppe Commandos in Game 5 of the Kent Cup final on Saturday. The win gave Pictou County a 3-2 series lead and a chance to lift the Kent Cup for the first time ever, if they get a home ice victory on Monday night.
“It was a pretty fun game,” said Murphy, whose quick shot went through the legs of Dieppe goaltender Maxime Michaud off a nice setup from Benji Curtis.
“Stressful, but it worked out well.”
Murphy, Garrett Lambke and Regan Spears, all hungry for a championship before their junior careers end, connected for goals in the first period and Pictou County led 3-0.
Then came the stressful part that Murphy alluded to: Dieppe turned the game around with a goal from Michael Poirier, then Mathieu Newcomb scored later in the second after the last couple of minutes of the period were carried over into the third due to ice problems and the need for a Zamboni run at Arthur J. LeBlanc Arena. Newcomb tied it early in the third period.
“Not one guy can play a loose shift against Dieppe,” said coach Doug Doull. “They’ve got too may weapons over there and they come at you in waves, especially their top line.”
The Crushers could have wilted after surrendering the three-goal lead but kept getting after it, with a solid contingent of Crusher fans looking on after making the trip to New Brunswick.
“I wouldn’t say we were deflated, but we were definitely upset with ourselves that we let that happen,” Murphy said.
The Crushers are 0-2 in league finals since their birth in 2004, but they can erase that on Monday.
“We owe a lot to our fans and we would be proud to win it on home ice,” Murphy said, adding that the work isn’t done yet.
“You can’t overthink situations like this, you just have to go out and play.”
On Sunday afternoon, Doull said the team wasn't looking beyond an evening practice ahead of Game 6.
“We’re not looking ahead at all. We’re looking at practice and some things we have to work on. Our approach is just that.”
Notes: Curtis and Michael Dill both had two assists….
With an assist on Murphy’s first goal, captain Mike Lyle now has 22 points in 16 playoff games (10G, 12A). Lambke (4G, 14A) and Murphy (7G, 10A) are also operating at better than a point-per-game clip….
Dieppe captain Mathieu Newcomb leads the MHL in playoff goals with 12, and Cody Drover leads in points (4G, 23A)…
Crushers’ netminder Daniel Vautour leads with a 2.00 playoff goals against average.
Cole Murphy's goal with 3:47 left in the game gave the Crushers a 4-3 win over the Dieppe Commandos in Game 5 of the Kent Cup final on Saturday. The win gave Pictou County a 3-2 series lead and a chance to lift the Kent Cup for the first time ever, if they get a home ice victory on Monday night.
“It was a pretty fun game,” said Murphy, whose quick shot went through the legs of Dieppe goaltender Maxime Michaud off a nice setup from Benji Curtis.
“Stressful, but it worked out well.”
Murphy, Garrett Lambke and Regan Spears, all hungry for a championship before their junior careers end, connected for goals in the first period and Pictou County led 3-0.
Then came the stressful part that Murphy alluded to: Dieppe turned the game around with a goal from Michael Poirier, then Mathieu Newcomb scored later in the second after the last couple of minutes of the period were carried over into the third due to ice problems and the need for a Zamboni run at Arthur J. LeBlanc Arena. Newcomb tied it early in the third period.
“Not one guy can play a loose shift against Dieppe,” said coach Doug Doull. “They’ve got too may weapons over there and they come at you in waves, especially their top line.”
The Crushers could have wilted after surrendering the three-goal lead but kept getting after it, with a solid contingent of Crusher fans looking on after making the trip to New Brunswick.
“I wouldn’t say we were deflated, but we were definitely upset with ourselves that we let that happen,” Murphy said.
The Crushers are 0-2 in league finals since their birth in 2004, but they can erase that on Monday.
“We owe a lot to our fans and we would be proud to win it on home ice,” Murphy said, adding that the work isn’t done yet.
“You can’t overthink situations like this, you just have to go out and play.”
On Sunday afternoon, Doull said the team wasn't looking beyond an evening practice ahead of Game 6.
“We’re not looking ahead at all. We’re looking at practice and some things we have to work on. Our approach is just that.”
Notes: Curtis and Michael Dill both had two assists….
With an assist on Murphy’s first goal, captain Mike Lyle now has 22 points in 16 playoff games (10G, 12A). Lambke (4G, 14A) and Murphy (7G, 10A) are also operating at better than a point-per-game clip….
Dieppe captain Mathieu Newcomb leads the MHL in playoff goals with 12, and Cody Drover leads in points (4G, 23A)…
Crushers’ netminder Daniel Vautour leads with a 2.00 playoff goals against average.
