Staff
Just like Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier back in the day, the two titans of the Chinook Hockey League are battering each other right down to the bitter end with neither giving up any ground.
Following a regular season that saw the Bentley Generals and the Stony Plain Eagles establish themselves as the league’s cream of the crop, the two are currently locked in a battle of the ages for the 2009 AAA Provincial title with the winner advancing to meet the Fort St. John Flyers on the road to the Allan Cup Championship to be played in Steinbach, Manitoba.
The weekend’s action between the two teams began last Friday night at the Red Deer Arena where Brett Thurston scored at 1:54 of the first overtime period to lift the Generals to a 4-3 victory. Dairmuid Kelly, Kevin Smyth and Joe Vandermeer also scored for the Gens with Blair Hennes, Blair Zahara and Scott Mackee replying for the Eagles.
Just 24 hours later the two squared off again – this time in the unfriendly confines of the Centennial Arena in Stony Plain where the Eagles rebounded with a 3-2 win to tie the best-of-seven series at two wins each.
Curtis Austring opened the scoring Bentley late in the first period with a powerplay goal to tie the game after Dylan Dellezay had put Stony Plain in front earlier at 5:15 of the opener.
The Generals took the lead at the 10:08 mark of the second period on a goal by Dion Darling however the Eagles responded just a few minutes later on a goal by Trevor Sherban to tie the game at 2-2.
Facing going down in the series three games to one, the Eagles struck early in the third when Tate Locke scored at the 1:36 mark of the third period and held off the Generals the rest of the way.
The series will continue this Saturday, March 21 in Red Deer for Game 5.