Game five of the Richmond-Delta playoff series this Thursday will either see a continuation to game six or the elimination of the Delta Ice Hawks as the Richmond Sockeyes currently hold a 3-1 lead.
The best-of-seven series winner will advance to the league finals.
Regardless of the season standings, game one saw Payton Hu get Delta on the board while on the power play at 1:52 of the opening period, which was followed up with Rajun Parmar tying the game.
The second period was more tentative with both having chances as Nickolas Noren put Richmond up, only to have Delta’s Mateo Sjoberg pull Delta even. This was short-lived after McKnight gave Richmond a 4-3 lead.
The third period saw Delta score a pair of goals while the Sockeyes put three behind Delta goalie Zach Shaughnessy, taking game one of the series with a 7-5 win.
Game two on Delta home turf
Game two was the following night in Ladner. Sockeyes' Nicholas Noren opened the scoring with a short-handed marker to take a 1-0 after one period. This would remain the score until Austin Kofler evened the game in the dying minute of the second period.
This game was more disciplined with the teams each trading four penalties after two periods. Delta dominated the third period, stealing four goals to take a 5-1 win.
Wednesday was a day off but the series resumed Thursday in Richmond. It would require overtime to determine a winner in a contest that resembled a roller coaster ride.
Delta jumped out to a 3-0 lead after 20 minutes in a period that saw Thomas Popa replaced after the first with Stenvig playing the remainder of the game.
The second period for the most part was all Richmond as they scored six unanswered goals, two being short-handed and one on the power play.
Late in the period, Delta collected a pair on the power play that saw the period end with Richmond up 6-5 outshooting Delta by a 30-26 margin in a period that had a variety of penalties.
Delta pressed and eventually got the tying goal at 4:24 in a more disciplined period that would see the game head to overtime to the dismay of many fans with no one leaving.
After a brief break, Sockeyes Zach Zapanta sent one to the point that saw Justin McKnight drill a bullet that was tipped in by Justin Grant, giving the Sockeyes the 7-6 win and a 2-1 series lead heading to game four in Delta.
Game four of any series is normally the pivotal game of any series that would either see the series tied or one team leading 3-1 in the series.
The start of this contest was no different from the previous game. Delta jumped out to a 2-0 lead after one period with Delta's Ryden Mathieson and Dawson Toledo bringing the hometown fans to their feet.
To the shock of Delta fans, Sockeyes Teo Lin got them on the board eight seconds in the middle period to the disbelief of Delta. The Ice Hawks continued to press on, only to be turned aside by the stellar play of Noah Stenvig.
Richmond’s game plan in the third period was obviously to play fast and aggressive while stopping Delta’s potent aggressive attack which for the most part worked, only to have Richmond grab a pair of short-handed goals 17 seconds apart.
Speedy Teo Lin set up Nicholas Noren on both markers with his first at 8:34 followed by the second at 8:51 a short 17 seconds later.
Delta’s season rests on Thursday’s game four and with the Sockeyes looking to advance to the league finals knowing that Delta will be focused and motivated to keep the series alive.
The four games had Delta outshooting Richmond 153 to 132 with Delta getting two goals on 19 chances while Richmond managed one goal on 12 power-play chances with special teams being non effective.
Game five is at 7 p.m. at Richmond’s Minoru Arena.
- Steve Erickson handles media relations for the Richmond Sockeyes
Got an opinion on this story or any others in Richmond? Send us a letter or email your thoughts or story tips to [email protected]. To stay updated on Richmond news, sign up for our daily headline newsletter.
