CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. – The Charlottetown Islanders continue to prove the pundits wrong.
They said they wouldn’t make the playoffs.
They did.
They said they would get eliminated in the first round by the Quebec Remparts.
They didn’t.
They said they didn’t have a chance against the high-octane Halifax Mooseheads.
Wrong again.
Keith Getson scored the series-clinching goal with 5:26 left in the third Wednesday as the Islanders defeated the Mooseheads 4-2 to complete the quarter-final sweep.
“Once I scored, the crowd absolutely erupted and I just went into a complete blur, so it was unbelievable,” said the longest-serving member of the Islanders.
Getson scored it, but it took a couple of nice plays to enable it to happen. Sam King battled Max Fortier for the puck in his own zone and got it to Daniel Hardie.
“He made an unreal pass through skates to me and I just got it on my backhand and I made a move and just tried to put it on net and it was lucky to go in,” Getson explained.
Filip Zadina and Joel Bishop scored in the first 6:22 of the second period to give the visitors a 2-0 lead.
It was the second night in a row the Isles fell behind 2-0, but it didn’t faze the home side.
“All year we’ve been playing games like this,” Getson said. “We’ve had adversity all year and we’ve dealt it with really well. I think, during the regular season, we’ve had so much of it that when we face it in the playoffs now it’s just like another game. When we’re down 2-0, it honestly feels like the game is tied and it feels like we can do anything. . . I’m really proud of the guys.”
Hardie scored a power-play goal with 2:04 left in the second period, and rookie Nikita Alexandrov with his sixth of the playoffs 1:18 into the third tied it while his teammates were going for a line change.
“It was a real coming-out party for Nikita in this round,” head coach Jim Hulton said. “A lot of scouts (were) here to scout the other team, but I think he’s going to be pretty high up their radar based on what he’s done.”
Derek Gentile scored the empty-net goal unassisted to ice the game with 1:15 remaining.
Matthew Welsh made 26 saves for the win, including many that kept the game 2-0 and a few more with the team protecting the one-goal lead.
“They pushed extremely hard tonight, and Welshy needed to be big at times and he was big all night,” Getson said. “Welshy has been huge for us all year.”
Alexis Gravel stopped 30 shots in the loss.
Hulton admitted to being utterly speechless and in disbelief after the game.
“Really, I don't know what to say, (I’m) just so proud of this group,” he said.
What is often considered a hindrance in the playoffs – lack of rest – might have helped the Isles, the coach thought. The Islanders needed seven games to win the first-round series while Halifax was fresh after eliminating Baie-Comeau in five.
“We didn’t have any time to think about it. We just kind of rode the wave of momentum.”
Mooseheads coach Jim Midgley said the Islanders refused to quit.
“They found another gear and they used their experience from last year,” Midgley told The Chronicle Herald. “They have guys that went to the semis last year. Winning is hard in this league and each round when you’re getting closer to playing for the President’s Cup, it gets more difficult.
“I think our young guys learned a lesson on how hard it is to win in this league and they (the Islanders) worked hard for this. We also worked hard but they worked harder.”
RELATED: Click here for the full Chronicle Herald story.
The fact Getson, who plays in all situations and is a leader on and off the ice, scored the winner wasn’t lost on Hulton.
“What better guy to get the winner than Getson?” he said, noting he was part of the team’s first trip to the second round since 2004. “Winning has just followed him since then. When he’s wearing a letter and epitomizing what your team is all about, you can’t help but fall in line.”
Getson has made two trips to the second round, and this will be his second to Round 3. Unprovoked, he mentioned the guys who taught him the ropes early in his career.
“I’ve had wonderful leaders all the way through,” he said. “Ryan MacKinnon, Kam Kielly, Ross Johnston, (Oliver) Cooper – a bunch of those guys — they just led the path for me and it's been really good.”
The team has been counted out so many times already this season, what’s their chances of getting into the final?
“We have to worry about Game 1 of Round 3 first,” Getson said.
“Everybody has counted us out all year. . . Ever since the very first day of training camp, we were pegged to be 18th place in this league. That fuels our fire. If people have us losing (in) the next round, it’s going to fuel our fire even more, so I hope they count us out.”
Highlight reel
A look at the Game 4 statistics from the Charlottetown Islanders-Halifax Mooseheads second-round playoff series Wednesday at the Eastlink Centre.
Outcome
Halifax – 2.
Charlottetown – 4.
Goals
Halifax – Filip Zadina and Joel Bishop.
Charlottetown – Daniel Hardie, Nikita Alexandrov, Keith Getson and Derek Gentile (empty net).
Assists
Halifax – Xavier Parent 2, Otto Somppi and Connor Moynihan.
Charlottetown – Hunter Drew, Taylor Egan, Cam Askew, Brett Budgell and Daniel Hardie.
Goalies
Halifax – Alexis Gravel, 31 saves on 34 shots.
Charlottetown – Matthew Welsh, 26 saves on 28 shots.
Power play
Halifax – 0-for-5.
Charlottetown – 1-for-3.
Faceoff wins
Halifax – 35.
Charlottetown – 29.
Attendance – 3,639. “The support has been unbelievable,” Getson said. “It helps us out so much and it gives us that extra momentum.”
50/50 – $6,060.
Injury – Thomas Casey left the game with a shoulder injury in the third period and did not return.
Did you know? Two brooms were thrown on the ice with the Islanders up 4-2.
History didn’t repeat itself? The Mooseheads fell behind 3-0 against the Quebec Remparts during the second round of the 2012 playoffs before reeling off four straight wins to advance. They won Game 4 on Wednesday, April 11. The Herd, which included Islanders Darcy Ashley and Brent Andrews, lost in the semifinal. The next year they won the Memorial Cup.
Last meeting – The last time the Isles and Mooseheads met in the playoffs, Halifax swept the Isles in 2014. The final game was an 11-3 win at the Eastlink Centre with a listed attendance of 1,418 due to a snowstorm.
Potential next opponents – If Blainville-Boisbriand beats Moncton they play Charlottetown. If Moncton defeats Blainville-Boisbriand, the Isles play the winner of Victoriaville-Drummondville
