See OHL game summary here. Owen Sound have a game summary here. Some choice bits: And this is interesting considering the stick debate:The 67's put a big blip on our Attack season record back on November 20th by defeating us in Owen Sound 4-3. Same thing today.
[. . .]
We think it is tough in the OHL West, but in the East every game will be a test of where you want to finish the season from now on in. Ottawa so wanted our Attack to defeat the Bulls last night.
IN THE NEWSOn a side note, sticks have been breaking at an allarming [sic] rate lately. Brad took 10 with him for the 3 game road trip and has now broke them all.
From SLAM! Sports 67's rally for win. A quote:
And similar copy in the NHL news (because what else do they have to report on) with this heading, Ottawa 67's rally for 4-3 win over Owen Sound Attack in OHL action. From the Owen Sound Sun Times Bill Walker writes, Attack lose twice on road trip."That was a very important goal for us as a team," Petruzalek said. "The whole team believed we could win. We beat them in their home rink (in November)."
Also from SLAM! Sports Bruce Garrioch writes, 67's survive home Attack. Some good stuff from Killer:
Nice to read positive comments about the guys. Garrioch also wrote in the article that Reid may have broken his thumb."That might be our longest winning streak of the season. We're playing pretty well and we're doing well as a team," said 67's coach Brian Kilrea, standing in the hallway at the Civic Centre with a victory cigar in his mouth.
[. . .]
"The big thing for us right now is confidence," said Kilrea. "When you're struggling and not putting the puck in the net, it can sometimes be tough to find a way to get things going. That hasn't always been the case.
"We're missing guys and we've been getting guys who have stepped up for us and contributed. We've got all our lines going and Battochio was excellent (yesterday). He gives up a fourth goal when we're down 3-1 and we're in trouble."
PRE-GAME NOTES
The game was broadcast on radio (TEAM 1200/Dave Schreiber and AJ Jakubec) and television (Rogers Television 22/Scott MacArthur, Ed Hand, and Lee Versage).
Notes from the TEAM 1200 pre-game show:
* Owen Sound is the second best team in the OHL. They’ve been falling under the radar due to London’s record.
* Mancari is out with a 4 game suspension. Not sure what adjustments Killer will make to the line up. The team is appealing the suspension; trying to drop it from 4 to 2 games.
* Big Snake will not play.
Interview with the Asst. Coaches Bert O’Brien and Vince Malette:
ON Friday’s win against Peterborough, O’Brien: Thought we played well. We were happy with how we played them in Peterborough, and a number of scouts told us that we should have won that game. But we only scored one goal.
ON Battochio’s SO, Bert: He is deserving of a SO. It is nice to have the 2 guys, well 3 with Spezza. With all the injuries that he has had, and with that surgery last year, I hope that the poor guy can stay up the rest of the year.
ON Bonello’s big game on Friday night, Malette: He’s a feisty hockey player and skilled too. Deep down he wanted to play really well to beat Peterborough. He understands the importance of being near the top. The line is playing really well. If we can get 3 lines playing well, the better for us.
ON Mancari’s game on Friday, and suspension, Malette: It was a good effort. He is a big key to our hockey game. He makes a difference to our team. Lawrance is adjusting really well to that line. He cuts down on the defensive lapses the other forwards make. Mancari has to sit out this game, and possibly one other.
ON the game today against Owen Sound, Malette: If you eliminated London, Owen Sound would be the top leader in the league. We need to play solid. We have to lift our level of play. They’ve got a lot of offensive guys. They are not the same team we played in November. Yeah we beat them, but we need to come out and play.
Other notes:
Mancari was interviewed by AJ during the first intermission on the TEAM 1200 broadcast. He explained what happened that led to his suspension: At the end of the period, Brad was crosschecked from behind and the ref missed it. Brad and Hendrikx looked like they were going to fight, and I went over to pull Brad out. I was jumped from behind by Tardif. I’m disappointed with myself because I’m not out there with the team. Killer’s not happy. The team is appealing. They have a tape prepared to send to the league. I’m hoping to get back next w/e for the road trip. The rest of the games this year are huge for us.
Akeson was interviewed by Scott MacArthur during the second intermission on Rogers Television 22 broadcast. Akeson has been out with a wrist and Achilles injury. He said that he injured a couple of tendons in his right hand. He said that he will be working on rehab soon, and hopes to be back for play-offs.
LINE UPS
Forwards: Bickell, Talbot, Hulit; Lawrance, Bonello, Alphonso (started); VanderVeeken, Petruzalek, Kaspar; McGinn, Ouellette, Jarram.
Defensive pairings: Colbert, Joslin; Staubitz, Reid; Beard, Van Herpt.
Starting in goal: Battochio. Guadagnolo on the bench.
Scratches: Akeson (inj-Achilles, -wrist), Lahey (inj-concussion), Mancari (suspension #1), and Spezza (healthy).
OVERALL IMPRESSIONS
In the first period, Lawrance and Hanley (OWE) dropped the gloves at the opening puck drop. They had been having words. Hanley looked like he got the better of Lawrance, but Hanley was bleeding. They both got 5 minutes. It continued being chippy on both sides. Ottawa had some trouble getting the puck out of their zone, and had no luck during the PP. Owen Sound was really strong with the puck. It was a physical game, and I was concerned that the 67s would let it get to them; get them off their game. For instance, Staubitz took a penalty for an after-the-whistle slash, Hulit hitting his stick on the ice. The line ups continued changing: Bickell played with Petruzalek and Kaspar, and with Talbot and Hulit. VanderVeeken played with Bonello and Alphonso, and with Ouellette and McGinn. A lot of moving around. Owen Sound scored first, a PP goal by Sekera, but Ottawa tied it up before the end of the period. Talbot scored - the puck just trickling over the line - with assists to Hulit and Colbert. SOG at the end were 9-7 for Ottawa.
The Attack continued pressing in the second period, but there was some sloppy play for both sides. Ottawa’s rookie line or energy line was doing a great job. They were getting tons of chances, working hard. McGinn scored, with assists to VanderVeeken and Ouellette. There was another fight, this one between Jarram and Koverko (OWE), with Jarram getting the worse. Kaspar was throwing his body around, playing physical. He had a beautiful check on Hanley (OWE), who went skates over head into the 67s bench. During one of the Attack’s PKs, Angelidis (OWE) single-handedly held the puck while fighting off 2 67s players. He ate up a good 30 seconds of that PP himself. A great job. The Attack scored twice, and the 67s once, for a 3-2 lead by Owen Sound. SOG at the end of the period were 17-14 for Owen Sound.
The 67s came out strong in the third period. Colbert scored early in the period, a shot from the blue line. This tied the game. Several minutes later Petruzalek scored, to give the 67s the lead. Another fight broke out between Bickell and Smith (OWE), with Bickell getting this one. Joslin and Angelidis tussled some, each getting a 10 minute misconduct. The 67s held their ground, with Battochio making some game saving moves (as per usual). The Attack pulled their goalie, and the 67s almost got an EN: the puck rolling on its side was swiped away by the speedy skating Lehun just before going in net. The 67s held on to the one goal lead to win 4-3. A great ending to a winning w/e for the 67s. SOG were 33-29 for Ottawa. The 67s went 0/5 on the PP, and the Attack were 1/3.
IMPRESSIONS OF THE 67s
Well, I have to say that I’m pretty impressed with the whole lot of them. There were a few mistakes or bone-headed moves, but they played well for the most part. They kept up their energy, they forechecked, they rushed to the net for chances, they were physical, they didn’t sit back when they were down. They were missing some key guys – Mancari, and Lawrance left the game with an injury – which is basically one whole line gone.
I thought that Bickell stepped up his play in this game. He is such a big guy that he can push through checks, just force his way through. Talbot and Hulit had great games, especially noticed during the PK.
I’m really impressed with the energy line guys: McGinn, Ouellette, and Alphonso. These guys have so much energy when they get on the ice. I noticed this Friday night as well. They play physical, don’t let opponents push them around. They are really fun to watch. McGinn was moving around on different lines, playing hard, had chances, scored 1G. Ouellette was flying out there, had 1A. Alphonso played well, able to work through checks, puck handling, had 1A. Great job.
   |
| McGinn, Ouellette, Alphonso |
IMPRESSIONS OF THE ATTACK
Considering that Owen Sound was playing their third game on the road, these guys looked good. They were really, really good handling the puck and passing. They kept up the pressure right to the last seconds of the game.
Lamb - strong on defence.
Sekera - speedy, scored a goal.
Angelidis - hard working, good puck handling, physical.
Lehun - was everywhere, worked hard, speedy.
Beckham - a physical presence.
Ruzicka - talented, speedy, good with the puck, 1A.
Ryan - a big kid, talented, 2A.
Brown - held up for the first two periods, good with his rebounds, positioning.
Richardson - steady player, scored 1G.
SCORING
OTTAWA
1, Talbot, (24) (Hulit, Colbert), 19:27
2, McGinn, (3) (VanderVeeken, Ouellette), 14:54
3, Colbert, (5) (Alphonso), 03:20
3, Petruzalek, (20) (Hulit, Bickell), 07:20
OWEN SOUND
1, Sekera, (7) (Ryan, Ruzicka), 08:12 (PP)
2, Kyrzakos, (2) (Liske, Brochu), 03:54
2, Richardson, (39) (Lehun, Ryan), 10:37
THREE STARS
OHL three stars were: (1) Petruzalek, (2) Colbert, and (3) Battochio.
TEAM 1200 three stars were: (1) Hulit (a pretty solid effort; a great job late in the game; helped offensively with 2A, and a lot of hard work), (2) Richardson (a solid 2-way game; nice goal off Lehun; really responsible in his own end; coming back hard to back-check; not a physical player, but he is offensively skilled and smart), and (3) McGinn (played outstanding hockey from start to finish; started out on the 4th line, but moved up when Lawrance was injured, he scored a big goal in the second period which really ignited Ottawa, and gave them life). An honourable mention to Battochio, who held the fort when the Attack were pressing late in the game.
REFFING
Kostyk.
ATTENDANCE
9862. Another sell-out; fourth straight sell-out. I can see the remaining home games going the same way, especially when the 67s play like they did this w/e.
NEXT UP
Road trip . . .
Away Friday night (2.25.2005)at Mississauga.
Away Saturday night (2.26.2005) at Erie.
Away Sunday afternoon (2.27.2005) at Brampton.
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