INNISFAIL – Fresh off their 4 – 3 overtime victory in Innisfail on Friday, Feb. 14, the Devon Barons scored early the next night at home in Game 4 to take a quick lead.
The Barons’ Ty Kolle scored on a power play at 18:40 in the first period after the Birds’ Mike Marianchuck was called for high sticking.
It was a confidence builder for sure for the underdog Barons as they needed just one more win over the Innisfail Eagles to go to the senior men’s North Central Hockey League semifinals.
However, the Eagles’ Dan Vandermeer scored on a Birds’ power play at just over four minutes later at 13:23 to tie the game.
As for Marianchuk he would get his chance to atone for his first period penalty that led to a Barons early lead.
With the game tied 1 – 1 deep in the third period and with the Eagles shorthanded Marianchuk scored an unassisted goal at 8:14 to give Innisfail a 2 – 1 lead.
And the Birds were not done.
At 2:04 Zachary Evans-Renaud scored on another unassisted goal to make it 3 – 1 for Innisfail.
And that is how the game ended.
The Birds have new life and momentum.
The best-of-five quarter-final series is now tied up at two games apiece.
The series' fifth and final game is set for Sunday, Feb. 16 at 3 p.m. at the Innisfail Twin Arena.
Sunday’s game will be the fifth in nine days for both teams.
The game Saturday night in Devon had an unusual first period, unusual because the Birds did not outshoot their opposition.
The shots on goal were even at eight apiece.
But the Eagles turned it on in the second, outshooting Devon by a margin of 17 to 12.
No goals were scored by either team as both goalies, the Eagles’ Chance Griffith and the Barons’ Jordon Cooke, blocked everything shot at them.
In the third period the Birds outshot the Barons 15 to 8.
For the game, the Eagles had 40 shots while Devon fired a total of 28 at Griffith, who claimed the victory.
