(rdnewsNOW file photo)

By Alessia Proietti

Game 2, Round 2

Rebels just miss the mark with 2-1 OT loss against the Blades

Apr 15, 2024 | 8:54 AM

While the Red Deer Rebels came within a hair of their first win this playoff series against the Saskatoon Blades, they lost 2-1 in overtime on Sunday afternoon at the SaskTel Centre.

Round 2 of the playoffs, the Rebels lost 4-1 on Friday in their first best-of-seven series game against the top team in the WHL.

READ: Rebels drop Eastern semi-final opener to Saskatoon 4-1

The Rebels are now down 2-0, having played both games on Blades territory, and return to Red Deer this week for the next two games.

Although a few power play opportunities presented themselves on either side in the first period, none were capitalized on. Saskatoon outshot Red Deer 7-2.

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Halfway through the middle frame, the Blades’ Fraser Minten opened the scoreboard 1-0 with a goal on Rebels netminder Chase Wutzke.

The home team outshot the visitors 21-8.

But with Saskatoon’s John Babcock on a hooking penalty early in the final period, the Rebels’ Lind scored his third goal this playoff season with a deflection as he stood in front of goaltender Evan Gardner’s crease. The power play goal tied the game 1-1 at 4:10, with Hunter Mayo and Carson Latimer claiming the assists.

The score remained tied for the rest of the third period, with Saskatoon slightly outshooting Red Deer 11-10.

Heading into a 20-minute overtime, it wasn’t until the final three minutes when the Blades’ Ben Saunderson scored the game winning goal, making it 2-1 for his team.

Saskatoon outshot Red Deer 10-5 in OT.

Shots on goal

RD: 25

SAS: 49

Power play

RD: 1/4

SAS: 0/6

Three stars

1^st: Ben Saunderson (SAS) – 1G, 1A

2^nd: Chase Wutzke (RD) – 47SV

3^rd: Evan Gardner (SAS) – 24SV

The Rebels will now play their first game against the Blades this playoff season on home ice. Puck drop is at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the Peavey Mart Centrium, with the broadcast live on 106.7 REWIND radio 30 minutes prior.

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