Oil Caps win Game 5, will move on to next round of MJHL playoffs
The Oil Caps are moving on to the second round of the MJHL playoffs.
A four-goal outburst in the third period sealed the deal for Virden as they defeated the Selkirk Steelers 5-1 in Game 5 of their first round best-of-seven playoff series. With the win, the Oil Caps defeated the Steelers four games to one and will now have a few days off to rest up and prepare for their next opponent.
After a Cole Thompson redirection gave the Steelers a 1-0 lead at the 13:47 mark of the first period, the Oil Caps responded in the second as Kirklan Lycar was able to tip in a puck 7:11 into the middle frame to make it 1-1 after 40 minutes.
Kyle Salaway got the home team on the board once again 11:50 into the third on the power play to make it 2-1 before Ben Dalke’s team-leading fifth goal of the postseason unassisted made it 3-1 for Virden at the 14:22 mark. Jeran Knorr would then ice the game less than a minute later (15:16) before Salaway picked up his second of the game and fourth of the playoffs into an empty net at 18:32.
Riley McVeigh had another solid outing in net for the Oil Caps, turning aside 30 shots to pick up the win for Virden, while Hayden Dola made 35 saves in the loss for Selkirk.
Stay tuned to oilcapshockey.com for more in the coming days as the Oil Caps prepare for Round 2 of the MJHL playoffs!
Extra Notes:
- Who will the Oil Caps play in the next round? That’s yet to be determined. If the Portage Terriers come back in their series against the Winnipeg Blues, then the Oil Caps will face Portage. However, if the Blues end up winning the series (Blues hold 3-2 series lead) then Winnipeg will face Steinbach and Virden will face the winner of OCN/Winkler. The Flyers currently hold a 3-2 lead in that series.
- The Twin Valley Co-op three stars for tonight’s game: No. 1 Jeran Knorr (one goal, one assist), No. 2 Kyle Salaway (two goals) and No. 3 Tyler Kirkup.
- The Redfern Farm Services hardest working player: Justin Lee.
- The Oil Caps outshot the Steelers once again tonight, including a whopping 23 shots directed towards Steelers netminder Hayden Dola in the second period.