Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos
At the Memorial Gardens on Tuesday, April 14th, the Soo Greyhounds returned home looking to shift momentum in their second-round series against the Kitchener Rangers. The Greyhounds entered game three trailing in the series after dropping the opening two contests in Kitchener by scores of 3–1 on April 10th and 8–5 on April 12th, putting added pressure on the hometown squad to respond in front of their fans.
Leading the way offensively for the Greyhounds has been Marco Mignosa, who came into Tuesday’s matchup with an impressive six goals and eight assists through seven postseason games. Between the pipes, Carter George has been a steady presence despite the early series deficit, allowing 16 goals so far while maintaining a solid 2.09 goals-against average in the playoffs.
On the other side, the Rangers have been fueled by the production of Humphrey’s, who has recorded five goals and six assists in six playoff appearances. In goal, Christian Kirsch has provided consistency, entering the April 14th contest with a 2.29 goals-against average and 14 goals allowed, helping Kitchener maintain control of the series heading into game three.
The Soo Greyhounds found themselves in a difficult position on Tuesday night, falling 4–3 to the Kitchener Rangers in game three of their second-round playoff series. With the loss, Kitchener now holds a commanding 3–0 lead in the best-of-seven matchup.
The Rangers opened the scoring at 11:42 of the first period as Haeden Ellis notched his third of the playoffs, finishing a play set up by Alexander Bilecki and Tanner Lam. The Greyhounds responded just over two minutes later during four-on-four action when Quinn McKenzie capitalized on a two-on-one, scoring his fourth of the postseason with help from Chase Reid. In the second period, Dylan Edwards restored Kitchener’s lead at 17:50, burying his fifth of the playoffs off a feed from Jack Pridham.
The third period featured a flurry of action, beginning with Greyhounds captain Brady Martin tying the game at 1:41 with his third of the playoffs, assisted by Marco Mignosa and Reid. However, the Rangers answered back on the powerplay at 5:39 as Edwards struck again for his second of the night, with assists from Pridham and Sam O’Reilly. The Greyhounds continued to battle, evening the score at 13:50 on a powerplay goal by defenseman Reid, his third of the postseason, with helpers from Lukas Fischer and Martin.
Just 53 seconds later, Edwards completed his standout performance, scoring his third goal of the game unassisted to secure the hat trick and ultimately the game-winner for Kitchener. In goal, Carter George turned aside 20 of 24 shots for the Greyhounds, while Christian Kirsch made 18 saves on 21 shots to earn the victory for the Rangers.
With the win, Kitchener takes a 3–0 series lead as the action shifts back to the GFL Memorial Gardens for game four on Thursday, April 16th, with puck drop set for 7:07 p.m. The Greyhounds will look to stave off elimination and extend their playoff run on home ice.
