Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos

After advancing through the opening round of the postseason, the Soo Greyhounds and Kitchener Rangers kicked off their second-round series on Friday, April 10th in Kitchener, Ontario, with the Rangers skating away with a 3-1 victory to take a 1-0 series lead.

The Greyhounds entered the matchup fresh off a hard-fought five-game series win over the London Knights, while the Rangers came in with momentum after sweeping the Saginaw Spirit in four straight games.

Kitchener wasted little time getting on the board in the opening period. At 2:15, Haeden Ellis scored his first goal of the postseason to give the Rangers an early 1-0 lead. The goal was set up by Gabriel Chiarot and Alexander Bilecki, as Kitchener carried that advantage into the first intermission.

In the second period, the Rangers extended their lead once again thanks to Ellis. At the 8:05 mark, he netted his second of the game and second of the postseason, finishing off another strong sequence with assists coming from Alexander Bilecki and Gabriel Chiarot to make it 2-0.

The Greyhounds pushed back in the third period and found a breakthrough midway through the frame. At 6:25, Quinn McKenzie scored his second goal of the postseason to cut the deficit to 2-1, with Callum Croskery picking up the assist and giving the Soo life late in the game.

Despite the late push, the Rangers sealed the win in the final second of regulation. With the Greyhounds net empty in favor of the extra attacker, Sam O’Reilly scored an unassisted empty-net goal at 19:59 to secure the 3-1 victory for Kitchener.

With the win, the Rangers take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. Game two is set for Sunday, April 12th in Kitchener, where the Greyhounds will look to even the series before it shifts locations.