Photo Credits: Charles Warburton
The Mississauga Steelheads split games three and four in Sudbury, winning game three 4-2 and losing game four 5-3. The Steelheads trail the series 3-1.
Although Mississauga won game three, one issue that has plagued the club is its propensity for taking penalties. The Steelheads took six penalties in game three, but fortunately, they only allowed one goal. However, this was different in game four. As I pointed out in my series preview, if the Steelheads didn’t maintain discipline, Sudbury would have capitalized on the power play, and that’s exactly what happened. Mississauga took 13 penalties, and Sudbury scored on four of them.
Penalties have been Mississauga’s Achilles heel this season, and if they don’t fix this issue, it could cost them their season.
Mississauga’s offence has been relatively quiet this postseason. Players like Porter Martone, Luke Misa, and Angus MacDonell led the Steelheads’ offence throughout the season but have been relatively quiet in this series. While they are contributing points, their scoring prowess, which the team relies on, has been lacking.
The Steelheads’ depth has been their strength in terms of goal-scoring. Players like Lucas Karmiris, Finn Harding, Marc Boudreau, and Adam Zidlicky found the back of the net.
Martone, Misa, and MacDonell will need to shoulder more of the offensive burden to keep their season alive, especially since Sudbury’s offensive players have been performing as expected.
Tomorrow night could be their final game, so the team must play desperately and maintain discipline if they hope to extend their season.
