Springfield is offside entering the offensive zone seconds before scoring in overtime to win Game Three.

After a historic regular season, the heavily favored Providence Bruins crashed and burned in the playoffs, losing to the Springfield Thunderbirds, three games to one, in the Atlantic Division semifinals.

What was expected to be an exciting postseason run was over before it started. It was the most disappointing end to a season in franchise history.

In Game Three on Tuesday in Springfield, Providence lost, 3-2, in overtime on a goal that was clearly offside. The linesman blew the call, plain and simple, but there is no review of offside in the AHL, so the goal stood.   

For the league, it was the most embarrassing outcome in recent history.

In Game Four on Thursday, Springfield clinched the series with a 1-0 overtime win.

And just like that, Providence’s season was over.

Full credit to Thunderbirds coach Steve Ott, captain Chris Wagner, goalie Georgi Romanov and the rest of the roster. Springfield was the better team.

Providence looked nothing like the team that rolled to an AHL-best 54-16-2 record in the regular season.

“It’s obviously disappointing. I’m more disappointed for the players. I know they wanted ultimately to have success, but at the end of the day we just didn’t execute,” said coach Ryan Mougenel.

“Losing a couple of the guys on the back end (Christian Wolanin and Victor Soderstrom) hurt our puck-moving abilities. We just couldn’t get out of our own end. That was an issue.

“But (Springfield) played really well. They played us harder. I take responsibility. As somebody that leads the group, it’s important to understand the desperation. I just don’t know if it was there,” he said.

Regarding the blown offside in the third game, “How we lost was obviously tough to swallow, for sure,” said Mougenel.

“The guys worked. It was a great group (this season). We just didn’t get it done.”

Here’s the good, bad and ugly.

GOOD

— After putting up a .930 save percentage in the regular season, Michael DiPietro posted a .931 save percentage in the playoffs.

— Matt Poitras led the team in scoring with 1-3-4 in four games.

BAD

— Providence scored only six goals in the four games. Hard to win that way.

— After going 9-2 in overtime in the regular season, the P-Bruins lost both OT games in the Springfield series.

— Despite what happened at the end of Game Three, you can’t use bad officiating as an excuse for losing. Having said that, the players and fans deserve much, much better than they got from the officials in this series.

— In hindsight, Providence didn’t have the depth for a playoff run. They used two ECHL players on PTOs against the Thunderbirds.

UGLY

— Losing a playoff series to a team that you finished 38 points ahead of in the regular season is as ugly as it gets.

— Injured: Christian Wolanin, Victor Soderstrom, Dans Locmelis