May 10, 2008
Omaha's Barry Almeida lets a shot go that will beat Waterloo goaltender Matthew DiGirolamo to make it 1-0 in the first period of game four.
For the Omaha Lancers, Friday's game four of the Clark Cup Finals could be classified as a cliché game. Their backs were against the wall. It was do or die time. They had to play every shift as if it was their last. The Lancers entered the game in elimination mode - the only way they would be hoisting the Clark Cup this year would be to win game four on the road and force game five at the Mid America Center on Saturday.
Goals in the first and second period by Barry Almeida and another shutout performance from Drew Palmisano gave the Young Arena faithful nothing to cheer about, as the Lancers survived to play another day, beating Waterloo 2-0 on Friday.
Almeida, who hadn't been heard from yet in the series, scored his first goal at 13:51 of the first period, taking a wrist shot from the right circle that beat Waterloo goaltender Matthew DiGirolamo on the stick side to make it 1-0. Almeida added his second goal of the game just 1:46 into the second period, knocking a puck out of mid-air that snuck by DiGirolamo to make it 2-0. From there, the Lancers' stifling defense and Palmisano's stellar goaltending shut the door.
Special teams played a huge role in the game, as Waterloo was held scoreless on 11 power play attempts, including an extended 5-on-3 advantage early in the game. The Black Hawks, who entered the series with the top power play in the playoffs, were completely shut down by Omaha's perfect penalty kill. The Lancers went 0-4 on the power play.
Palmisano made 35 saves in picking up his second shutout of the series and fourth of the playoffs. The performance helped the Michigan State recruit set the USHL record for shutouts in a playoff year. At the other end, DiGirolamo made 18 saves for Waterloo.
The teams will now head west for game five tonight in Omaha. The puck will drop at the Mid America Center at 7:00 p.m. and can be viewed live on B2 Networks. Following the game will be the presentation of the Planet Hockey Clark Cup MVP Award as well as the Clark Cup.
