Advertisement

Saginaw Spirit oust Sting, Mark Scheifele knocked out of game; OHL post-game questions

Neate Sager

The playoffs will go on without Alex Galchenyuk and Nail Yakupov, whose team was bounced in six games by the Saginaw Spirit. Meantime, home teams won all three Game 5s on a busy Saturday. On with the post-game questions.

Saginaw 3 Sarnia 1 (Spirit win Western Conference series 4-2) — How long does the disappointment linger in Sarnia? It will come down to whether Galchenyuk andor Yakupov move up too the NHL to say and how the younger players coach-GM Jacques Beaulieu sacrificed pan out with other teams. The Sting selling the farm and getting a total of three home playoff dates is nowhere near as adject as the Sault St.e Marie Greyhounds missing the playoffs after being eight-piece trade for goalie Jack Campbell. The Sting battled injuries all season, plus loading up on older players made sense for a team which could not count on the dynamic duo returning once they are selected. Plus, as you know, Galchenyuk and Yakupov were in the lineup together only six times all season — the six playoff games.

In the final analysis, what element did the Sting lack besides having their two stars healthy? For all the wheeling and dealing Beaulieu made, the Sting's defence corps probably was sufficiently physical with Saginaw, whose M.O. is personified by good-sized skilled forwards such as Brandon Saad (series-high 12 points) and Josh Shalla (second with eight). Phoenix Coyotes first-round choice Connor Murphy has a bright future, but as independent scout Ryan Yessie pointed out, he's more about positional play than pushing around foes.

Which Sting veteran deserves the most empathy? Fourth-year veterans JP Anderson and Ryan Spooner were each knocked out of their likely final junior games with injuries. There are probably bigger and brighter things ahead for Spooner, a Boston Bruins second-rounder. However, he'll likely finish without ever getting past the first of the playoffs. Two seasons in a row, he was traded to a team that was ostensibly girding for a deep playoff run and ended being a one-and-done team. A case of mononucleosis in December also cost him a chance to try out for Canada's natioanal junior team.

Anderson rated better than being knocked out of the game after taking a puck on the side of the head. It was an abrupt end for someone who was one of the OHL's best goalies for the past three seasons and played in a MasterCard Memorial Cup final.

Plymouth 9 Guelph 3 (Whalers lead Western Conf. series 3-2-) — Are the Storm running out of gas faster than Patrick Brazeau did in his boxing match vs. Justin Trudeau? By the end of opening 20 minutes, the Storm had been outscored a whopping 18-5 across the past seven periods.

The series always had the potential to go that way. Plymouth, which was led by Stefan Noesen's five-point night, simply took its time to start rolling. The fact Guelph got the first two games is a credit to Scott Walker's coaching job.

What did cross-sport analogy did Scott Walker use this time? Following Game 5, when he believed Plymouth got away with a few dives, Walker called the Whalers "a bunch of a soccer players." He had another gem for a game where Plymouth scored four short-handed goals.

"This one wasn't a soccer game, it was a football game: I needed a touchdown to win it and I wanted to decline penalties." (Guelph Mercury)

Barrie 2 Mississauga 1 (Colts lead Eastern Conf. series 3-2-) — d? Is Mark Scheifele all right? The Colts, with centre Zach Hall already day-to-day with a head injury and leading scorer Tanner Pearson done for the season with a broken fibula, lost star centre Mark Scheifele has he was cross-checked face-first into the glass. There's not much out there yet about his status for Monday's Game 6.

From Stephen Sweet:

The Colts forward, going into the corner for the puck, took a cross check into the back of the shoulders and his head went forward, hitting the glass.

He appeared woozy when leaving the ice and did not return.

"We won't know yet," said [coach Dale] Hawerchuk on Scheifele's condition. "We'll assess him tomorrow." (Barrie Examiner )

That is what happens in the playoffs. Sometimes the better team is the onlo who's the most fortunate with injuries.

Niagara 5 Oshawa 3 (IceDogs lead Eastern Conf. series 3-2-) — Why does this Niagara win put the past two games in a different light? There has been a distinct pattern throughtout the second half of the season. All of their rare losses seem to come when they massively outshoot the opponent (50-34 in Game 3 and 47-23 in Game 4). They simply had to keep shooting on rookie goalie Daniel Altshuller, who was bound to betray some vulnerability eventually. The breaking point was likely Carter Verhaeghe's third-period go-ahead goal, where he followed his wrist shot and popped in the rebound.

What does Niagara have to be on the lookout for heading in Game 6 on Sunday? The tight turnaround means no practice between games. That might make it harder for Niagara coach-GM Marty Williamson to tighten up his team's defence. The IceDogs have allowed 14 goals in the past three games, which is why there's an opening for Oshawa to force a seventh game.

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Contact him at neatesager@yahoo.ca and follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.