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Pirates romp, push Monarchs to the limit

Francis Wathier scored two more goals and Louis Domingue stopped 28 shots as Portland defeated Manchester, 5-0, in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series at the Cross Insurance Arena on Thursday night.

The eighth-seeded Pirates and regular-season champion Monarchs are now tied at two games apiece, with the decisive Game 5 scheduled for Saturday night in Manchester.

Wathier, who scored three goals in his first 56 career Calder Cup Playoff games, now has three in his last two games, netting the game-winner in the closing seconds of Game 3 before his two-goal effort in Game 4.

Defensemen Brandon Gormley and Patrick McNeill also scored for Portland, and Brendan Perlini, Arizona’s first-round pick (12th overall) in the 2014 NHL draft, netted his first professional goal.

Domingue (2-1), who came on in relief for the Pirates in both Game 1 and Game 2, stopped 12 shots in the first period, seven in the second and nine more in the third to win his second consecutive start.

Manchester, which owned the AHL’s top-ranked power play in the regular season, was 0-for-6 in Game 4 and fell to 3-for-23 (13.0 percent) in the series. Portland, 27th in the regular season, went 1-for-3 and is now 4-for-15 (26.7 percent) in the series.

Eastern Conference Quarterfinals – Series “A” (best-of-5)
1-Manchester Monarchs vs. 8-Portland Pirates
Game 1 – Thu., Apr. 23 – MANCHESTER 5, Portland 2
Game 2 – Sat., Apr. 25 – MANCHESTER 6, Portland 2
Game 3 – Sun., Apr. 26 – PORTLAND 3, Manchester 2
Game 4 – Thu., Apr. 30 – PORTLAND 5, Manchester 0
Game 5 – Sat., May 2 – Portland at Manchester, 7:00
   *if necessary… All times Eastern