SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — If the Campbellton Tigers did not have the attention of the Summerside D. Alex MacDonald Ford Western Capitals and their fans before, they certainly do now.
The defensive-minded Tigers have found a formula that teams in the 12-team MHL (Maritime Junior Hockey League) have struggled to find throughout the 2018-19 season. That is shut down the Caps’ high-octane offence, which scored a 247 goals in 50 regular-season games.
“We have to shoot the puck a lot more when we have scoring chances,” said Caps head coach Billy McGuigan. “We have to start shooting pucks through D.
“All the little things in the game that you have to do, we have to do better here at home. We have lost two games at home and haven’t scored a goal.”
But how are the Tigers neutralizing the Caps?
“It’s team play,” emphasized Tigers goaltender Tristan Gray, who shut out the Caps 2-0 for the second time in three games in Summerside on Thursday night. “Any goalie could play in net with this team.
“Our defence is unbelievable. We defend first, everyone buys into the system. Our defence is just unbelievable, (Francis) Thibeault, (Pierre-Luc) Lurette, (Brendan) Bornstein and everybody back there is always helping me out.”
Thursday’s result gives Campbellton a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven Eastlink North Division final series. Now the Tigers head home to the Campbellton Memorial Civic Centre for Game 4 on Saturday at 7 p.m., and an opportunity to take a 3-1 stranglehold.
“We knew it was going to be tight and we weren’t going to sweep them,” said Gray. “They are a good team, we are a good team, so it’s going to be tight the whole way through.”
The Caps, meanwhile, who have yet to lose in the northern New Brunswick city this season – winning all three regular-season games and Game 2 of this series 4-1 – will look to even the series for the second time and make it a best-of-three. Regardless of what happens Saturday, the teams will be back in Summerside for Game 5 on Monday at 8 p.m.
Goaltending duel
The story of the first three games has been the goaltending of Gray and the Caps’ Dominik Tmej. Gray has stopped 80 of 84 shots in the first three games while Tmej has turned aside 79 of 83 – Campbellton’s other goal was scored into an empty net.
“We have to find a way to get in behind their D and a way to get pucks to the net,” said McGuigan. “We had Grade-A scoring chances here (Thursday) in the first and second periods, and we didn’t get shots off.
“We have to get a little hungrier to get the pucks to the net, and that was the key to the game.”
Gray’s latest performance was a 24-save shutout in a nail-biting 2-0 win in Game 3. Tmej was actually the busier of the two goalies as he faced 27 shots. He delivered multiple point-blank saves to keep the game scoreless in the first period, when the Tigers outshot the Caps 12-5. Gray was simply perfect and delivered a big right-pad save on the goal-line from a quick point-blank shot.
The score remained scoreless until Francis Thibeault’s shot from the right point made its way through traffic with North Bedeque native Coleton Perry providing a screen in front of Tmej to open the scoring at 9:05 of the third period.
“The first goal was a seeing-eye shot and there was no way Dom was going to save it, and there were screens in front of the net,” said McGuigan. “It was a great shot and went in the top corner.
“We will regroup here (Friday) and go back at it.”
The Caps pulled Tmej for an extra attacker with just over a minute and a half remaining in the third period. Although the Caps pressed for the equalizer, they were unable to find the back of the net. Campbellton sealed the win with an empty-net goal with eight seconds remaining.
Asked what it’s like for a goaltender to be playing in tight games with next to no room for error, Gray replied he likes playing under that pressure.
“I look down at the other end and see Tmej, he’s been an outstanding goalie in this league for two years,” said Gray. “It’s really a match for the goalies when it’s 0-0, but the boys came up huge and got one for me.”
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