The ups and downs of the Gens’ season finale

By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express

It was a hole too deep to claw out of for a young Oshawa Generals team, but the effort was there until the end.

That end came on April 1, when the Gens were eliminated in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference quarter finals by the Kingston Frontenacs following a 6-0 defeat.

The final loss followed a trend throughout the series that saw the smaller and less experienced Generals overrun by a Frontenacs club that was bigger, stronger and older.

After the first two games in Kingston – which saw Oshawa lose 6-0 and 7-3 respectively – the series turned to the General Motors Centre, where Oshawa seemed to take on a new life.

Game 3 saw a regenerated Oshawa team controlling play and keeping pace with the Kingston team late into the game. However, the end result would be a heartbreaking loss in the final seconds of the game when former captain Michael Dal Colle scored with under half a minute remaining to seal the deal 5-4 and give Kingston a stranglehold on the series.

Oshawa saw goals from rookie Domenic Commisso, Joe Manchurek, Mitch Vande Sompel and Anthony Cirelli in the game.

“It’s a real tough loss,” head coach Bob Jones said following the game, pointing to some uncharacteristic errors that came back to haunt them.

And it seemed the haunting would continue into Game 4, as Oshawa quickly fell behind 3-0.

However, big saves from goaltender Jeremy Brodeur and the Gens powerplay would shine as three straight powerplay goals, first from Lukas Lofquist, followed by Cirelli then Jalen Smereck, would see the game tied at the end of three.

It would be Eric Henderson in overtime who would seal the comeback for the Gens, earning the club their only victory in the series.

“This teams’ resilient,” Jones said following the win. “That room if full of character.”