Other Previews
Players to Watch
MISS: Michael McLeod The NJ Devils 1st round pick and unquestioned star of the Steelheads had a fantastic opening series vs the 67s His 11 points (including 2 GWGs) played a huge part in allowing the Steelheads to advance vs the pesky 7th seeds. The Generals have done a great job in shutting him down this year holding him to 1 assist in 4 games. He must get going in order to avoid an upset.
OSH Renars Krastenbergs You can count me as a big fan of the Latvian import selection. It seems everytime I watch a Generals game live he does something to stand out. He had a great series vs the Wolves picking up 5 points in 6 games. Continued production from him in round 2 is imperative as the Gens cant match the Steelheads in high end talent so they will have to get contributions from all over and depth them to death.
How they got here
MISS
Dispatched a pesky 67's team in 6 games. It was a series that certainly had its share of chippyness and suspensions. While Ottawa was able to win 2 games Mississauga had control for most of the series and a victory was never really in much doubt.
Playoff Power Play: 4 for 16 25%
Playoff Penalty Kill: 18 for 23 78.3%
Playoff Power Play: 4 for 16 25%
Playoff Penalty Kill: 18 for 23 78.3%
OSH
After falling behind 2 games to 1 the young and resilient Gens fought back to win the series in 6 games. Lots of penalties as the series averaged more than 10 power plays game. Strong goaltending and significantly more depth is what led the Generals to prevail and will have to be their recipe vs the Steelheads.
Playoff Power Play: 3 for 35 8.6%
Playoff Penalty Kill: 22 for 26 84.6%
Playoff Power Play: 3 for 35 8.6%
Playoff Penalty Kill: 22 for 26 84.6%
Key's to the Series
MISS: Mississauga must play their own game. If Oshawa dictates the pace they can limit the effectiveness of the Mississauga stars. If that happens then Oshawa has a fighting chance. The Steelhead stars must assert themselves early.
OSH: They need to get their power play going. Beating Sudbury with an awol power play is one thing but it will be hard to win if the same thing happens vs Mississauga. It is imperative that they make life difficult for young Jacob Ingham. I know it is cliche to say they need to get guys in front of him and make him uncomfortable but that is exactly what Oshawa will need to do.
Season Series
Mississauga 0-2-2
Oshawa 4-0-0
2 games went to extra time while another finished 5-4. The final game of the series was a 5-2 Generals win. This has been a close season series although only 1 game came after the Steelheads had turned their season around. That game happened to be the 5-2 Gens win. Hard to deduce much from the season series since the Steelheads really were a tale of 2 halfs. You have to wonder though if the Generals really do have their number. They will definitely have the belief going in which is something you dont want an underdog to have if you are Mississauga.
Key Numbers
MISS:
2: That is the number of games that Mississauga defender Nicholas Hague got for this vicious play against Ottawa. Originally labeled as indefinite he is now available for game 1 of the 2nd round.
OSH: 18.8% that was the Generals power play percentage during the regular season. The infallible law of averages tells us that their power play this series should be closer to this number than the paltry 8% in the opening round.
Prediction
I think Oshawa can win and I feel the 2-3-2 format of this series favours the Generals. Mississauga has more talent and can put up more goals but my guy tells me that the Generals can limit that and grind the Steelheads down. Because of that I am going with my guy and picking the Generals in 6 games
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