RUSSELL CUP FINAL

BOBCATS GET THE OVERTIME BOUNCE TO SEND THE SERIES TO GAME 7!

April 1, 2011

It was just your average dump-in, a play that happens hundreds of times over the course of the season, but in this case, a twist of fate turned this one into the winning overtime goal that will send the Russell Cup Final to Game 7 for the second consecutive season!

The Elliot Lake Bobcats had battled back from a 2-0 deficit to send the send Game 6 to overtime, and when Clancy MacNeil sent the puck into the South Muskoka zone, he couldn't have been thinking he'd be the night's hero!

MacNeil's shot into the zone took a cruel bounce off the backboards behind the Shield net and into the goalcrease, the puck deflecting off the pad off startled goalkeeper Rob Sutherland, slipping behind him over the line for the winner just 1:49 into the extra frame.

The win makes it two in a row for the Cats, who trailed the Final 3 games to 1, and sends the series back to Elliot Lake on Saturday night for Game 7.

After a scoreless first period, Dylan Sontag to put the Shield up 1-0 with a power play goal , and the 1300 plus crowd went crazy.  Only 30 seconds later, with the Shield keeping up the pressure, Greg Gardiner wired one to the top corner over Tyler Ross' shoulder to put South Muskoka up by 2, and the crowd must have been thinking they'd get to erase the memory of last year's bitter defeat to Deseronto, and see their team hoist the Cup on home ice.

Well, the Bobcats were the league's top team for a reason, and the battle didn't let up.

With less than two minutes to play in the second, and the Shield's Mike Telford off for charging, defenseman Michal Pastor scored on the power play to get the Elliot Lake on the board, and set up an intense 3rd period.

The Cats' efforts were rewarded when Filip Winkler tied the game at 7:45, and it was a whole new game.

Only 25 seconds later, though, and things looked shaky for the Cats when David Sefcik was assessed a 5-minute major for highsticking, putting the Shield on a power play that could have put the game away.  However, Elliot Lake's aggressive PK style kept South Muskoka at bay, registering few if any quality shots.

Both teams became a little tentative after returning to even strength, neither wanting to make a mistake, and you could cut the tension with a knife.

There were a couple of close calls for both teams, but Ross and Sutherland were steady down the stretch and closed the door at both ends.

Going to the 4 on 4 overtime period, the small group of Bobcats supporters behind their team's bench, along with the large pro-Shield crowd, were all holding their breath and crossing their fingers - the Cats of course hoping for Game 7 at home in Elliot Lake, and the Shield hoping to raise the Cup for their second title.

Then, it was over so quickly!  Less than 2 minutes in!  A strange bounce!  A surprised goalkeeper!  A stunned crowd!  And a jubilant group of Bobcats piling on each other at centre ice!

MacNeil credited with a goal that many would call controversial as to whether the puck crossed the line, but called immediately by the referee at the bottom of the circle with a perfect view of the goalline behind Sutherland.  His arm pointed directly at the net, and there was no hesitation!

So, a series many predicted to go seven games will do just that - go to Game 7!

Saturday night, April 2, 2011, 7:30 pm, Centennial Arena, Elliot Lake - for all the marbles!

Best of luck to both teams, and whomever comes out on top in this tightly contested series, they will be a worthy Russell Cup Champion!