Flames take two-goal lead home from Fife

Photo: Flyers Images

It will be a 3-1 aggregate lead for Guildford when the Flames host Fife Flyers in the second leg of their Challenge Cup Quarter-Final next week, after a solid road win for the Flames in the first leg in Kirkcaldy.

Guildford started the faster of the two teams and were deservedly two up inside five and a half minutes at Fife Ice Arena. Peter Crinella gently redirected Brett Ferguson's shot past Shane Owen with 3:37 played as the puck trickled back past the Flyers goalie sliding in the opposite direction. Under two minutes later, Patrick Bajkov found the top corner of Owen's net with a well-placed wrist shot to double the lead with only 5:24 gone. Max Humitz bundled the puck over Eamon McAdam's line with 11:29 played, but chances for Ryan Tait and Ferguson could easily have had the Flames three ahead before the home side got on the board.

Crinella stepped inside two Flyers defensemen before releasing an unstoppable shot into Owen's net at 35:26 to re-establish the visitors' two-goal advantage. A last-second block by Bradley Lalonde kept the Flames 3-1 ahead heading into the second intermission.

Troy Lajeunesse had the best chance of the Flyers' first powerplay of the game early in period three without success; while at the other end, Owen made four saves in as many seconds on a Flames powerplay where the visitors also hit the frame of his net. Guildford managed the remainder of the final period very effectively to take a two-goal lead home with them ahead of next week's second leg.