Rangers Punch Their Ticket to the Western Conference Finals with a 5-1 Game 5 Victory
OHL Kitchener Rangers

Rangers Punch Their Ticket to the Western Conference Finals with a 5-1 Game 5 Victory

Published on April 17, 2026 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Kitchener Rangers News Release


Kitchener Rangers shake hands with the Soo Greyhounds
Kitchener Rangers shake hands with the Soo Greyhounds
(Kitchener Rangers)

Kitchener, Ont. - The Kitchener Rangers have punched their ticket to the Western Conference Finals for the second consecutive season by defeating the Soo Greyhounds by a score of 5-1 in Game 5. Sam O'Reilly led the way with a four-point night, securing the victory with two empty net goals.

For the first time in this series, the Greyhounds opened the scoring coming just 54 seconds into the game. The Rangers settled in and found the equalizer through Cameron Arquette to level the score after 20 minutes of play. In the second period, Jared Woolley was sprung in for a mini breakaway and was able to squeak the puck through the right arm of Carter George to give the Rangers their first lead on the night. That goal stood as the game winner.

Kitchener learned their lesson from a game ago, not allowing an of space to the Greyhounds, shutting them down in the final frame and limiting them to just four shots. Sam O'Reilly netted two empty net goals in the final three minutes of the contest to secure the game and series win for the East Avenue Blue.

Attendance: 6.927

Scoring Summary:

First Period

SOO 1 - KIT 0

0:54 Quinn McKenzie (5) - Noah Laus, Harris Pangretitsch

SOO 1 - KIT 1

4:55 Cameron Arquette (2) - Haeden Ellis, Cameron Reid

Second Period

SOO 1 - KIT 2 - GWG

7:41 Jared Woolley (1) - Dylan Edwards

SOO 1 - KIT 3 - PPG

13:38 Dylan Edwards (8) - Alexander Bilecki, Sam O'Reilly

Third Period

SOO 1 - KIT 4 - ENG

17:05 Sam O'Reilly (9) - Gabriel Chiarot, Jared Woolley

SOO 1 - KIT 5 - ENG

19:39 Sam O'Reilly (10) - Alexander Bilecki, Dylan Edwards

The Numbers Game:

Shots: SOO 16 - KIT 34

Power play: SOO 0/3 - KIT 1/3

FO%: SOO 48% - KIT 52%

The Starting Goalies:

Carter George (SOO) - 29/32 Saves, Three Goals Against, Loss

Christian Kirsch (KIT) - 15/16 Saves, One Goal Against, Win

UP NEXT:

The Rangers have punched their ticket to the Western Conference finals where they will take on the Windsor Spitfires in a re-match of last year's second round series. Stay tuned for a schedule announcement in the coming days.

Check out the Kitchener Rangers Statistics

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Images from this story

Kitchener Rangers shake hands with the Soo Greyhounds
Kitchener Rangers shake hands with the Soo Greyhounds
   



Ontario Hockey League Stories from April 17, 2026


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