Peach Kings End Blues Playoff Run
Grimsby played probably their best game of the series, and Dundas couldn't seem to catch a break, as the Peach Kings romped to a 4-0 win Monday night, taking the Niagara District East Division title four games to two.
An effort by the Blues to force the series to a seventh and final game back in Grimsby hit a roadblock from the start as the Peach Kings pressed hard with a strong fore-check and seemingly insurmountable penalty-kill.
Dundas never seemed to get its powerplay clicking, repeatedly finding themselves buried deep in their own end even with a man advantage. The home team was unable to convert on eight powerplay opportunities.
Grimsby slowly built a lead with a goal in the opening period and one in the second frame. They put the game away with two powerplay goals in the final frame, while keeping Dundas off the scoreboard all night long.
Dundas outshot Grimsby over the second two periods, 21 to 19, but couldn't solve Grimsby netminder Mike Tardif - who stepped up to foil several Dundas scoring chances. Other shots and loose pucks didn't bounce the Blues' way and Grimsby was strong enough to withstand all late attacks.
Tardiff stopped all 28 Dundas shots on net for the shutout win, and Dundas' Cam Graham stopped 30 of the 34 shots he faced.
Several Dundas players were slow to leave the ice following the game, perhaps not quite ready to say goodbye to the season - and an exhilarating east division final series that saw them win two games at home, and lose two tight overtime games in Grimsby that could have gone their way.
The Dundas Blues came a long way in this, the team's 50th anniversary season. The players and coaching staff may not quite be ready to hear it after a disappointing loss in a series they came very close to winning - but the Blues overcame a poor start to rack up two separate eight game winning streaks, the two second longest winning streaks in the entire Niagara league.
Dundas was evenly matched with Grimsby during the division final, pushing the regular season champs to overime on their own ice - where they owned the best home record in the league - twice in the series
Grimsby won five of the six regular season games against Dundas.
