Manitoba Moose

MANITOBA EXTENDS WINNING STREAK TO 10 STRAIGHT GAMES

By Christina Caligiuri

Tied at three goals a piece with four minutes left to play, Michael Grabner scored his second of the night to give the Moose a 3-0 series lead in the Western Conference Final over the Houston Aeros. This 4-3 victory put Manitoba on a 10-game postseason winning streak – the longest in franchise history. The Moose will look to sweep the Aeros in Game 4 on Wednesday night at the Toyota Center.

Goaltenders Cory Schneider and Nolan Schaefer manned opposite ends of the ice as Game 3 of the Western Conference Final got underway at the Toyota Center.

Manitoba’s powerplay unit made their first appearance at 7:30 when Krys Kolanos was penalized for holding. The visitors claimed the shot lead on their opening man-advantage but couldn’t break Schaefer before play returned to even-strength.

The Moose struck first at 13:47. With a bounce in front of the Aeros crease, Captain Mike Keane batted the puck out of mid air and into the net to put the Moose up 1-0.

Raymond Sawada’s unsportsmanlike conduct penalty at 15:36 gave Houston a chance to tie the game; however, the home team wasn’t able to register a single shot on their first powerplay.

Houston received their second powerplay 1:36 into the second period when Nathan McIver was put away for holding. A defensive slip-up by Houston allowed Alexandre Bolduc to escape on a two-on-one resulting in his second shorthanded goal this postseason, 2-0.

On their third powerplay of the night, Houston broke their goose-egg. With the puck free after Krys Kolanos initial shot, Matt Beaudoin tipped in the rebound for a 2-1 tally.

The Moose earned their two-goal lead back a mere 1:30 later. With a sleek pass from Jason Jaffray, Michael Grabner snapped the disc in the backdoor to put the Moose up 3-1.

1:11 into the third period Corey Locke squeezed the puck between Schneider’s legs to put the Aeros within a goal, 3-2.

Manitoba embarked on their third powerplay at 6:14 when Benoit Pouliot was sitting out for roughing. A short 16 seconds into the man-advantage Danny Irmen found the loose puck and snuck it between Schneider’s five-hole to knot the game at three shorthanded.

With less than four minutes left in the game, a pass from Jason Jaffray allowed Michael Grabner to wire the puck into the mesh to put the Moose on top 4-3.

With over a minute remaining, the Aeros pulled Schaefer and opted for an extra attacker. Cory Schneider robbed Houston of all their last minute attempts and the Moose earned a 4-3 victory and 3-0 series lead over the Aeros.