Chase Wheatcroft had no idea where the shot went.
He just saw the red light flash behind Tri-City Americans goalie Tomas Suchanek and the roar of the partisan CN Centre crowd of 5,383 confirmed it was the overtime winner the Prince George Cougars needed to post their first WHL series win since 2007.
Wheatcroft’s delayed wrister finished off a 2-on-1 setup from Jaxsen Wiebe, 2:31 into OT, to give the Cats a 5-4 Easter Sunday win in Game 6 that ended the Americans’ season. Wiebe led the rush after Cougar defenceman Ephram McNutt forced a turnover deep in Cougar territory.
“I kind of blacked out and got teary-eyed afterwards, it’s unbelievable, such a special feeling, but I don’t think we’re done yet, I think we have a lot to prove and we’ll take that into next weekend,” said Wheatcroft, who led the led the Cougars this season with 47 goals and 107 points.
The noise coming from the stands while Wheatcroft was getting mobbed by his teammates conjured up memories of frenzied fanbase that got behind a Cougar team that went three rounds deep into the playoffs 16 years ago.
“We have the best fans in the league,” said Wheatcroft. “They were unbelievable. I can’t even think after I score a goal or make a hit, they’re a huge key to our success.”
Zac Funk cashed in a net-front backhand feed from Riley Heidt to score the go-ahead goal for Prince George two minutes into the third period, Funk’s team-leading fourth of the playoffs, but the lead evaporated with five minutes left, when Jake Sloan fired in a rebound behind Ty Young to force the overtime session.
Young, a Vancouver Canucks draft pick who took over the Cougars’ net in the third period of Game 3 when Tyler Brennan suffered an ankle injury, won three of the four games in the series. He made 34 saves on Sunday and kept the Cougars’ lead intact for most of the game and the crowd let him know his efforts were appreciated.
“It’s pretty exciting, we’re just happy to have all the fans back in the building and with that noise tonight I don’t think it was possible for us to lose,” said Young. “(On the winning goal) I was just thinking, please score, I don’t need a shot in overtime, and I was pretty excited when I saw the red light go on.”
The Cougars built a 3-1 lead in the first period on goals from Heidt, Cole Dubinsky and Fischer O’Brien, while Reece Belton countered for Tri-City. The Americans pushed the pace in the second period and were rewarded with strikes from Ethan Ernst and Tyson Greenway to even the count before the second intermission.
Each team scored once in an entertaining back-and-forth third period that produced numerous quality chances at both ends.
Caden Brown’s sixth point of the series came off a perfectly-timed pass to Dubinsky, who crashed the net to score the second Cougar goal for a 2-0 lead, 7:57 in. O’Brien’s goal late in the period was also set up by Brown, who streaked in on a partial breakaway and fanned on his shot but caught up to the loose puck to send a backhand feed in front to O’Brien, who put the puck into an open net.
Early in overtime, O’Brien flattened Americans centre Elouann Lemonnier with a clean hit in the corner of the rink and got into a fight with Deagan McMillan just before Wheatcroft scored. O’Brien, a Prince George native, knows Cougar fans have waited ages for the series win they witnessed Sunday.
“I was four the last time, so that’s a long time,” said the 20-year-old O’Brien. “It’s just special for the city, I grew up here so it’s nice to put something back into it. Hopefully we can more people back in for Round 2. It gives us lots of energy and makes us want to be here. It’s the best thing that could happen for us.”
The Cats advance to the Western Conference semifinal against a Seattle Thunderbirds team that won a franchise-best 54 games.
The T-birds, who swept Kelowna in the first round, will host the first two games on the best-of-seven series Friday and Saturday in Kent, Wash. The series switches to CN Centre for Games 3 and 4 Tuesday and Wednesday.
