BY SCOTT HUNTER HADDOW
The Sudbury Wolves put the nail in the coffin
of the Brampton Battalion last night with a dramatic 5-4 double
overtime win at the Sudbury Arena, eliminating the Battalion
from the playoffs.
 |
| name="valign"
top >
Ben Pouliot was the overtime hero,
scoring the winner at 1:35 of the second overtime
period on the power play. |
Rookie sensation Ben Pouliot proved to be the
hero when he put the puck in the net on the power play at 1:35
of the second period of overtime.
Ryan Hastings, Bobby Chaumont and Nick
Foligno, with arguably the best game of his young OHL career,
also scored for the Wolves.
Foligno finished the game with two goals and
two assists.
Luch Aquino (with two goals), Michale Vernace
and Dan McDonald scored for the Battalion, whose never-say-die
attitude saw them tie the game twice. This included a goal by
McDonald with just 1:10 left in the third period which sent the
game into extra periods.
Wolves goalie Patrick Ehelechner was solid in
the net, making 36 saves.
The Wolves fired 57 shots on Battalion goalie
Daren Machesney.
With the win, the Wolves move on to the
second round of the playoffs for the first time since the
2000-01 season.
The Wolves will meet the Ottawa 67's, and
hold home ice advantage.
The playoff victory over the Battalion was a
major test.
"It was a very difficult series," said Wolves
head coach Mike Foligno. "They (Brampton) would just not let us
off the hook. They made us go right to the wall. The guys kept
the focus and stayed with it. We thought we had the game a
couple of times, but it got away and they kept coming back. It
was just a great effort by everybody in overtime. It was great
play with Ben Pouliot driving it home for the winner."
In the biggest game of the season so far for
the Wolves, everybody showed up, especially on offence.
Veterans, rookies and the defence corps all
contributed to the Wolves victory.
"If you're going to do anything in this
league, you have to have everybody chipping," said Foligno. "We
did. We had great goaltending. The guys are starting to realize
they can accomplish a lot of things out there if they work
together."
Winning a playoff series was sweet,
especially for the veterans.
"It's an unbelievable feeling," said
Chaumont. "I have been waiting for this moment for a long time.
To do it in the fashion we did, with everybody working hard and
not giving up, was awesome. It was a great win."
Nick Foligno enjoyed the limelight with his
four-point night, and credited his teammates for getting the
job done.
"Everybody played unbelievable, and everybody
was firing full force," said Nick Foligno. "The guys came here
to finish the series. Brampton played one heck of a game and
fought tooth-and-nail all night. They were a great test for us.
We know we are doing something special, and hopefully, we can
continue it throughout the playoffs."
