Spruce Grove Saints (2-2) vs. Winnipeg Blues (1-3)
For the Spruce Grove Saints it was a win and you are in, lose and you are out, and the Saints are moving on to the semi finals following a 5-3 win on Thursday afternoon.
Nathan Smith (assists to Tristan Sieben and Geoffrey Crisfield) got the Saints on the board when he tapped the puck past Blues’ goaltender Byron Spriggs at 5:17 of the first period.
Just 26 seconds later (5:43) Paul Lovsin (assists to Colton Leiter and Carson Samoridny) took a cross ice pass and beat Spriggs to make it 2-0 Saints.
The Saints would outshoot the Blues 8-6 in the first period.
Early in the second period the Blues picked up their first goal of the game on the power play thanks to Brent Brooks (assists to Ryan Bittner and Liam Bilton) snapping a shot over Saints’ goaltender Kenny Cameron at 2:07.
The Saints restored their two goal lead late in the second period as Jake Mykitiuk (assist to Cameron Hughes) fired a shot to the net that found its way past Spriggs to make it 3-1 at 15:27.
Shots favored the Blues 14-13 in the period, but the shots were 24-21 Saints after two periods.
Winnipeg once again got within one early in the third period as Jackson Keane (assists to Ryan Bittner and Warren Callis) wristed a shot that found its way past Cameron on the power play to make it 3-2 Saints at 5:55.
The Blues tied the game midway through the third period (9:38) as Kamerin Nault (assist to Clay Tait) banked the shot off the post and into the net past Cameron.
Spruce Grove took the lead back later in the third period as Dylan Hollman (unassisted) forced a turnover and out waited Spriggs to make it 4-3 at 12:39.
Winnipeg would pull their goaltender but, Cameron Hughes (assist to Geoffrey Crisfield) put the puck into the empty net at 19:27 to make it 5-3.
The Blues outshot the Saints in the third period 14-11, shots favored the Blues 37-35.
Story by Chris Colwell