A five-goal performance by centre Mike Gau earned the Firth Rangers a coveted old-timer hockey title Friday night.

The 41-year-old sniper provided all of the scoring for Firth as they downed the regular season’s best team for the second straight game by a 5-2 score.

After dropping just five games all season, EDI lost the final two games of the playoffs to the upstart Rangers.

Firth held on to win Game 1 by a score of 5-4 last Wednesday.

Held off the scoresheet in that game, Gau made up for it Friday.

He tallied two even-strength goals, then added two more on the power play before concluding his magical night with an empty-net goal with just over three minutes left in the game.

“It was a special game for sure,” Gau told the Star. “For once, I actually converted. ... But the real story is about the shorthanded team we had Friday night and throughout the playoffs.”

Top-ranked EDI downed the Air North Jets, AON Flames and Kilrich en route to the final of the double-elimination playoffs.

Firth took a much longer road after dropping their first playoff matchup to the Flames by a 5-3 score.

That forced Firth to beat Air North, Tim Hortons, Yukon Inn and Kilrich to clinch a berth in the final – all elimination games.

Gau said his team’s win over Tim Hortons turned the tide.

“No one expected us to beat Tim Hortons,” he said.

The secret to success proved to be a systematic change the Rangers made following their first playoff loss.

The alteration saw Gau play high in the defensive zone, giving his teammates a chance to spring him for opportunities with hopes that he would cash in.

“We changed our system in the second game of the playoffs and it helped us beat a lot of d-men,” he said.

In the first game of the final, a back-and-forth affair ended with a frantic final two minutes after defenceman Rob Thomson was sent to the penalty box for tripping.

With their goalie on the bench, EDI furiously pounded the puck on net, but to no avail.

The high-pressure two minutes also saw goalie Rob Clarke stone EDI blue-liner Brian Currie on a breakaway.

Colin Nash’s wrist shot off the inside of the post stood up as the eventual winner for Firth.

Mike Knutson also netted a pair of goals in Game 1, but missed out on a hat trick after losing his footing with the EDI net empty.

In both contests, EDI starter James Billy left the game in favour of backup Rob Green.

Billy, of Carmacks, was struggling with a lower-body injury.

“We were underdogs throughout the playoffs and we finished off the best team in the league,” said Gau.

“This one was special because of the circumstances we faced. ... It came down to our system. We were patient and sat back.”

Gau praised blue-liners Nash, Bill Bohmer and Ken Vickerman for holding the league’s top-scoring team in check Friday.

He also noted the team played with a short bench throughout the playoffs due to a variety of bumps and bruises.

For the final game of the playoffs, Ron Daub, Phil Borgel and Mark Suominen all played through injuries.

Gau also scored five goals in one game earlier this season.

“It’s a pretty rare occasion for me,” he chuckled. “My shooting percentage was higher than usual. ... I got lucky and our system worked out.”

EDI won the regular-season title with a record of 32-5-5.

The team was led by sniper Greg Charlie, who topped the league with 88 points – including 50 goals.

Charlie scored in both Game 1 and Game 2.

Last year, the Klondyke Dental Molars won the league title over Air North.