Drawn and Quartered: Sabres Beat Chill in First Qu

The third-place Lite-Sabres faced-off against the sixth-place Keane Chill on Monday night in the first quarterfinal game of the 2003B season. It was the first time that the two teams have played each other in a meaningful playoff game in the seven seasons that the two teams have been in the league together.

The first period was a nip and tuck battle, with the Sabres opening up a 4-1 lead at one point, only to have the Chill close the gap to 5-4 with Andrew Mercer’s late goal – his third of the period. Mercer’s goal immediately followed a late-period scuffle between Chill forward Craig Mercer and Sabres forward Spiro Bokolas, which saw both players assessed two-minute minors by referee Barrie Harvey.

Chill fans came to life early in the second period when their captain David Watson accepted a breakaway pass from Jason Roland, spun around, and potted a backhand shot in the top corner past a helpless Chris McMaster. Several onlookers were heard murmuring the phrase “Savardian Spinnerama” after the audacious manoeuvre.

But sadly for the Chill faithful, the rest of the game was a one-sided affair in favour of the higher-seeded Sabres. The Sabres proceeded to score eight unanswered second period goals, with Bokolas and Kevin Haddad combining for six of those. A late tally by Dan Frid closed the gap to 13-6 by the time the second intermission arrived.

With the Sabres on cruise-control, the Chill managed to outshoot the Sabres 27-13 in the third stanza. But it was a gorgeous end-to-end goal by Sabres defenseman Matt Monk that was the period’s highlight.

Frid notched two late goals to make the final score 17-8 for the Lite-Sabres. The Sabres advance to face the ADC Lynx in a semi-final match-up on Thursday night.

Bokolas finished the game with 5 goals and 5 assists in his fourth game back after missing the first seven games on baby duty. McMaster, who also captained the Sabres last season when Glen Girard missed several games due to a newborn child, was said to be redirecting his scouts’ focus. “I want to move our scouts out of the gym and into the bedroom,” explained McMaster. He went on to say that he is considering introducing pre-season sperm-count testing, in an effort to retain only the least fertile players.

Notes

Kevin Haddad’s eight goals tied his previous best for a playoff game. He last scored eight goals, four years and six days ago. … Haddad’s eight goals and Bokolas’ five assists were both fourth-best totals in meaningful playoff games. … Haddad’s eleven points and McMaster’s 49 saves were both fifth-best totals in meaningful playoff games. … Rumours swirled after the game that Watson would be fired as the Chill captain. Former captain Michael Griffiths was said to be a prime candidate for Watson’s replacement.