Flyers sweep LaSalle, will face Lincolns in West final

By C. Scott Holland

By C. Scott Holland

Few teams have ever advanced to the West Conference finals with an 8-0 record and last Wednesday night the Flyers joined that club. To add to that rarity, their opponent, the St. Marys Lincolns, also carry a per- fect 8-0 record. It is only the second time in West history that two clubs have met with perfect records heading into the finals. It wasn’t an easy task for the Flyers to accomplish that feat.

Last Wednesday night in LaSalle, they fell behind 2-0 in the opening period before getting one goal back and then allowing the Vipers to grab a 3-1 lead. But that was all Leamington would allow their cross-county rivals. They etched another goal to make it 3-2 heading into the final 20 minutes where it was the one-man wrecking crew of Connor MacPherson who decided the contest. MacPherson fired a natural hattrick to give the Flyers a 5-3 victory.

The game did not start well for the Flyers and goalie Bryce Walcarius. The Vipers took the lead on a powerpay goal from the right wing. That was followed up by Cole Dais blasting a left lane shot that eluded Walcarius.

Throughout the first period the Flyers’ puck control and accurate shooting were not as prevalent as in previous contests.

That situation was rectified in the second when Owen Holmes was parked on the doorstep and netted Ryan MacPherson’s pass to cut the lead to 2-1.

A breakaway goal returned the Vipers two-goal lead but also ignited the Flyers into playing better both defensively and offensively. At 12:15, Holmes converted his second of the game while alone in front of Michelone and suddenly the Flyers were only one shot away from tying it before the end of the second.

At one point late in the frame, it did appear as though they had knotted the game but the goal was negated.

In the third, the talent of Connor MacPherson shone brightly as he collected a natural hattrick which tied the contest and gave the Flyers a lead plus an insurance marker as well.

MacPherson’s goal splurge began at 2:50 when brother Ryan and Ryan Clark set up Connor, who collected a rebound and backhanded past Michelone to vault the Flyers into their first lead of the contest.

The next few minutes, both teams jockeyed for that all-important goahead goal.

At 5:05, a broken play around the Vipers’ net ended with Connor MacPherson shoveling Koen Taves’ feed into the net.

It was a lead they would not relinquish.

Down 4-3, the Vipers lifted starter Ian Michelone for an extra attacker with 2:05 left, but the Flyers’ defense put up a wall and stymied the Vipers’ scoring chances.

With just under a minute left, MacPherson, while just a foot inside his own blueline, banged Gabe Piccolo’s pass into the vacated Vipers’ net to seal the victory and put the Flyers’ Red Brigade into the West Conference finals.

Bryce Walcarius finished the game, stopping 36 of 39 shots while Michelone halted 28 of 34.

Correction: In last week’s Sun, the photo caption contain a wrong sweater for Ryan MacPherson. It should have said #8 instead of #9.