Thunderbirds push Atlantic Division Final To a winner-take-all Game 5 after 2-0 shutout win over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
The Springfield Thunderbirds will simply not go down quietly.
Heck, the St. Louis Blues' AHL affiliate doesn't want to go down at all, and why would the Thunderbirds, considering how they have played down the stretch of the regular season and slaying two of the top teams in the Atlantic Division (Charlotte and Providence) in the Calder Cup playoffs.
The T-birds forced a winner-take-all Game 5 when they were able to avoid their season coming to an end with a 2-0 win over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (Pittsburgh Penguins affiliate) on Thursday in Game 4 of the Atlantic Division Final at the Thunderdome in Springfield, Mass.
Dillon Dube and Marc-Andre Gaudet (fifth round pick, 2022 NHL Draft) scored goals for Springfield, and Georgi Romanov, who the Blues signed to a one-year, two-way contract from the San Jose Sharks this past offseason, made 20 saves.
The Thunderbirds, the sixth seed from the Atlantic, were able to win a winner-take-all game on a best-of-three series against the Checkers in the opening round, winning on the road -- all three games were played in Charlotte -- in Game 3.
They then took down the Boston Bruins' AHL affiliate and top team in the AHL this season, winning that series 3-1.
The teams have alternated wins and losses in the series and Game 5 will take place on the road for Springfield on Saturday at 5:05 p.m. (CT).
Dude, who now has eight points (five goals, three assists) in 11 playoff games, opened the scoring with a power-play goal in the second period:
And with Romanov doing his bidding, Gaudet gave the tendy the insurance he would need in the third period by doubling up Springfield's lead to 2-0:
And with Steve Ott behind the bench orchestrating it all, the T-birds have the chance to do something unprecedented on Saturday. The winner advances to the Eastern Conference Final against the winner of the North Division Final between Cleveland and Toronto, which the Monsters currently lead 2-1.
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