ALLAN CUP HOCKEY NEWS

Article and Picture courtesy of the Brantford Expositor

The Allan Cup Hockey semifinal series between the Brantford Blast and Whitby Dunlops is now a best-of-three.

Trailing the best-of-seven series 2-1, the Blast were able to even things up at 2-2 with a 2-0 win at the civic centre on Friday night.

Not only did Brantford earn a victory in the pivotal game, the Blast also did something no other team did all season long in ACH - they held the Dunlops scoreless. The fewest goals Whitby had previously scored this season was one, way back on Nov. 22 when Brantford hosted the Dunlops and took the game by a score of 4-1.

Game 5 will now be played Saturday in Whitby at 6:30 p.m. and Game 6 is in Brantford at the civic centre on March 14 at 7:45 p.m.

If necessary, Game 7 is March 16 in Whitby at 7:30 p.m.

Both teams enjoyed some pressure at points during the first period of Game 4 but neither team could find the back of the net until the game's first 20 minutes had almost expired.

After the Blast killed off their second penalty of the period, Brantford's Joel Prpic was able to skate in all alone on Dunlops goalie Ryan Gibb after receiving a pass from captain Chad Spurr. Prpic took the puck in on the netminder and as soon as Gibb went for the poke check, the Blast sniper put the puck up high and into the back of the goal for a 1-0 lead at 18:02.

Prpic was Brantford's leading scorer during the regular season and after scoring his first goal of the playoffs - and recording his first point of the post-season - he jumped into the end boards as a sign of relief.

Early on in the second, each team had chances but Blast goalie Brett Leggat got some help from the iron while Gibb was able to turn away Chris Rebernik on a breakaway after the Brantford player took two stabs at putting the puck in the goal.

With 7:30 played in the second, the Blast went ahead 2-0 thanks to the selfless play of defenceman Andrew Lackner and the speed and hands of Chris Leveille.

After blocking a pair of hard shots just inside the Brantford blue-line, the puck rebounded off Lackner's shin guard the second time, out to centre ice.

Leveille, arguably the fastest skater on the ice for either team, raced to the puck and he made no mistake in putting the puck past Gibb on the breakaway.

While there was no assist on the play, without a doubt Lackner deserved credit on the goal.

Up to that point, Whitby had enjoyed four power plays while the Blast had yet to enjoy the man advantage. By the time the period was over, Brantford had gone to the power play once - and the Dunlops for a fifth time - but the score remained 2-0 after 40 minutes.

Despite some good chances, neither team could score in the third period as Brantford outshot Whitby 32-27 in the game.

There were no penalties called in the game's final 20 minutes.

In the other ACH best-of-seven semifinal series, the Dundas Real McCoys have a 3-0 stranglehold as they beat the Stoney Creek Generals 4-0 on Friday night.

Dundas can wrap that series up on Sunday night with a win in Stoney Creek in Game 4 at 2:30 p.m.