Saturday, February 26th, 2022 Dynamiters 7 Rockets 2
Saturday evening at the Plywood Palace was a ‘must-win’ situation for the Golden Rockets, as they entered Game 4 of their playoff round against the visiting Kimberley Dynamiters down three games to none.
The Nitros have put on a strong display of solid defence against the Rockets the entire series, allowing only limited scoring opportunities while keeping the slot area clear for their netminders. And, utilizing their exceptional speed on offence, the Dynamiters have significantly outshot the Rockets each contest. Game Four was no exception.
The action in the first period began much the same as the previous three matchups. End-to-end action for the opening minutes, with play fairly even. Golden was the first to hit the scoreboard in this one , at 8:36, when Aidan Ballance worked his way deep into Kimberley’s end, drew the defenceman to his side, then fed a pretty pass through the crease to Gavin Kennedy, who tucked it neatly into the net.
By the end of the frame however, Kimberley managed to strike for a pair of tallies (Christian Mealey and Kade Leskosky) to take a 2-1 lead.
Much the same unfolded in the middle stanza, as the Dynamiters struck twice more, answered late in the period with a Jordan Lario goal. The Rocket’s captain, (who has been one of the team’s bright spots throughout the playoffs), worked his way free after taking a breakaway pass from Gavin Kennedy, and banged home a shorthanded marker to run the score to 4-2.
The third period belonged to the Nitros. The Rockets found themselves in penalty trouble several times in succession and, as a result, the southern centre sealed up the series win with two powerplay goals and a shorthanded effort of their own.
Final score was 7-2. Kimberley outshot Golden 55-26.
The Dynamiters now await the winner of the Columbia Valley/Fernie series.
