Portsmouth downed the Cumberland Clippers 3-2 Friday evening at the Abbey to take Game 1 in the best of three Quarterfinal Series of the D2 Championship playoffs. 

 

Rafe Dionne scored twice, including a shorthanded goal while Luke Brule added the game winner on a power play late in the third period.

 

Dionne opened the scoring midway through the first period.  While the team was on a penalty kill, he won a battle for the puck in front of the Patriots bench and raced down the left side of the rink and into the Clippers’s zone.  There he fired a shot from the left faceoff circle that beat the Cumberland goalie.

 

Portsmouth’s lead lasted until the second period when Cumberland scored two unanswered goals.  First at full strength to tie the game and then again on a power play to take a 2-1 lead.

 

Dionne tied the game four and a half minutes into the third period.  He picked up a short tip pass from Becket Snyder in front of the Patriots bench and charged across the ice to the right side.  Once into the Clippers' zone he hooked around to the left and scored with a shot from midway up the slot.

 

Brule’s game winning goal was scored on a power play with a shot from just inside the blue line. The puck found its eway through traffic in front of the net and across the goal line.  With the lead once again and less than three minutes remaining in regulation time, Portsmouth had one more challenge to face before the period ended.

 

With just over a minute remaining the Patriots were called for a penalty.  Cumberland pulled its goalie for the extra skater and set up in Portsmouth’s zone with a six on four advantage.  Ben Humm in goal for PHS faced a hail of shots in that final minute and stopped every one of them to preserve the lead and earn the all-important win in the first game of the series.

 

In addition to Snyder’s assist on Dionne’s second goal, Connor Rogers and Hadrian Dougherty both assisted on Dionne’s first goal and on Brule’s game winner.

 

The Patriots outshot the Clippers 26-23.  Fifteen of Cumberlands shots were taken in the third period.

 

Portsmouth and Cumberland will play Game 2 of the series tonight at the Rhode Island Sports Center / Route 146 Rink at 8:00 PM.  Come to the game and root for the Patriots.

 

See you at the rink