ROUND ONE, GAME SIX PREVIEW: Kitchener Rangers vs. Erie Otters
Kitchener, ON – The Kitchener Rangers head to Erie for game six on Tuesday night with a 3-2 lead in the series. Puck drop is set for 7 pm at the Erie Insurance Arena.
- TV: Rogers Channel 20 (Kitchener)
- Video Stream: OHL Live on CHL TV
- Radio: 570 AM CKGL
- Live Stats
- Live Tweets
SCHEDULE
Game 6: Tues., April 9 at Erie, 7:00 PM
*Game 7: Wed., April 10 at Kitchener, 8:00 PM
*If necessary
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Game Five: Rangers Series Lead 3-2
Game six was tightly contested just like the entire series has been as the game needed extra time. The Rangers ultimately came out on top winning 4-3 in overtime. Tanner Lam and Matthew Sop grabbed the goals in regulation while Trent Swick nearly blew the top off The Aud when he scored the overtime winner 12 minutes in. Pano Fimis and Dylan Edwards scored the goals for Erie.
Game Four: Series Tied 2-2
The Rangers fell short in game four with a final score of 5-3 in favour of Erie. Sam Alfano and Pano Fimis registered a goal and assist each while Brett Bressette, Alexis Daviault, and Martin Misiak (Chicago Blackhawks) had the Otters’ final three goals. Carson Rehkopf (Seattle Kraken), Filip Mešár (Montreal Canadiens), and Luke Ellinas grabbed the Rangers goals.
Game Three: Rangers Series Lead 2-1
In a remarkable comeback, the Rangers clinched game three by scoring four unanswered goals, forcing the game into extra minutes, and ultimately winning 4-3. Despite the Otters outshooting the Rangers 43 to 27, it was the Rangers who came out on top.
The Otters initially took the lead with three straight goals from Sam Alfano, Kaleb Smith, and Dylan Edwards. In the second period, Adrian Misaljevic started the Rangers’ comeback before Antonio Pugliese narrowed the goal gap to one. At 8:56 of the third period, Justin Bottineau tied the game to send it to extra time. In overtime, Bottineau secured the win with his second goal of the game on the Rangers’ first and only shot.
Game Two: Series Tied 1-1
Erie took game two at The Aud with a final score of 7-4. The Rangers took an early two-goal lead, but Erie stormed back to pull ahead, and never trailed again to level the series at one game apiece. The Rangers hung around and battled back from behind twice before finally going down with 9:23 remaining in the game.
Carson Rehkopf (Seattle Kraken- 2G), Matheas Stark, and Matthew Sop netted the Rangers goals while Filip Mešár (Montreal Canadiens) registered another three-assist night. Eduard Šalé (Seattle Kraken) tallied two assists, and Hunter Brzustewicz (Calgary Flames), and Tanner Lam each notched one. Pano Fimis (1G, 1A), Malcolm Spence (1G, 1A), Dylan Edwards (1G, 1A), Sam Alfano (2G, 1A), Kaleb Smith, and Carey Terrance scored the goals for Erie.
Game One: Rangers Series Lead 1-0
The Rangers won game one 6-3 with five Rangers recording multi-point games. Luke Ellinas led the way for the Rangers scoring their first goal of the playoffs finishing the game with two goals and one assist for the first star. Matthew Sop, Eduard Šalé (Seattle Kraken), and Carson Rehkopf (Seattle Kraken) each netted one goal and one assist while Filip Mešár (Montreal Canadiens) had three assists. Dylan Edwards netted two goals for the Otters and Sam Alfano notched their third goal.
Playoff Statistics:
Kitchener
Overall Power Play: 1st in the OHL at 40.0%
Away Power Play: 1st in the OHL at 66.7%
Overall Penalty Kill: 3rd in the OHL at 87.5%
Away Penalty Kill: 4th in the OHL at 83.3%
Erie
Overall Power Play: 13th in the OHL at 16.7%
Home Power Play: 13th in the OHL at 16.7%
Overall Penalty Kill: 16th in the OHL at 60.0%
Home Penalty Kill: 16th in the OHL at 33.3%
SCOUTING THE RANGERS (41-23-4-0) 86 points 68 GP
4th in the Western Conference, 5th in the OHL
Rangers’ Watch:
- Filip Mešár (Montreal Canadiens) leads the Rangers in points with one goal and seven assists for eight points. Mešár has four power play assists and has registered at least one point in four of the five games this round.
- Luke Ellinas has been one of the Rangers studs this playoff season putting up five points (2G, 3A) in five games. Game one has been Ellinas’ best performance so far scoring twice and tallying an assist in the win. The 2006-born forward recorded 16 goals and 17 assists in the regular season.
- Hunter Brzustewicz (Calgary Flames) is leading the Rangers blueline just as he did all season long with four assists. The defenceman has played 14 playoff games in the OHL with eight assists total.
Goaltending:
Parsons:
Last Friday night Jackson Parsons saw 33 shots allowing two to finish game five with a 1.67 goals against average and a .939 save percentage. Through Parsons’ 10 career playoff games, he has a 3.24 goals against average and a .911 save percentage.
SCOUTING THE OTTERS (33-28-5-2) 73 points 68 GP
5th in the Western Conference, 11th in the OHL
Otters to Watch:
- Pano Fimis leads the Otters in points, assists, along with ranking third in the league for points in the playoffs. Fimis has three goals and six assists for nine points which are spread out through all five games. The centreman has one shorthanded goal and one power play assist.
- Sam Alfano has a 5-3-8 stat line through the five playoff games. One of those goals was on the power play and another marked a game winning goal. He has now played nine OHL playoff games having scored six goals and three assists for nine points.
- Matthew Schaefer leads the Otters’ blueline with three assists and a plus five rating. The 2023 first overall pick scored three goals and 14 assists in 56 regular season games.
Goaltending:
Gaudreau:
Ben Gaudreau stood tall in net for the Otters the last three games going 1-0-2. On Friday night he was faced with 50 shots saving 47 for a .940 save percentage and a 2.50 goals-against average. In Gaudreau’s 25 career playoff games, he has a 13-9-2 record with a 2.61 goals against average and a .910 save percentage.
BROADCAST COVERAGE
Tuesday’s game vs the Erie Otters will be televised live throughout Kitchener and the Waterloo Region on Rogers TV, cable channel 20, and can be watched across the province of Ontario on the Super Sports Pak on channel 470 for cable subscribers. The game will be streamed live online on OHL Live on CHL TV. Additionally, fans can listen to Tuesday night’s action on the radio on CityNews 570 AM CKGL.
UP NEXT:
The Rangers could end the Otters season in this game six, if not the Rangers and Otters will return to Kitchener the very next day for game seven at The Aud. Game seven puck drop would be at 8:00 pm. Stay tuned for schedule and tickets on our social media pages, join our newsletter, or visit kitchenerrangers.com.
For inquiries, contact:
Lindsay Eastwood
Manager of Communications and Team Services
Kitchener Rangers Hockey Club
613-793-0168
[email protected]
Photo Credit: Brandon Soto