A bounce back game is something both the Ottawa 67’s and
Sudbury Wolves will be looking for when the two clash this afternoon. Both squads suffered a big loss on Friday
night.
The 67’s fell 5-1 to the visiting Guelph Storm. Brendan Bell had the lone goal. Coach Chris Byrne was happy with the effort
level, but not the end result. The loss came
at a bigger price when both Adrian Sloboda and John Urbanic left the game with
injuries. Sloboda was hit and fell
awkwardly into the boards injuring his knee.
He is expected to miss 7-10 days.
Urbanic took a puck to the elbow on a clearing attempt but his status is
unknown as they had to take x-rays. With
Mike Vlajkov already out for an extended period of time, this could be a taxing
loss – especially on a young blueline.
 |
| A shot from last season's game in October 2012 |
The Sudbury Wolves had a game they would like to forget. They were slaughtered 10-1 against the powerhouse Kingston Frontenacs. After scoring a goal in the first 50 seconds, the Frontenacs just continued to pour it on. With 20 shots in the first period, the score was 5-0 within the first 13 minutes. Veteran goaltender Franky Palazzese was pulled after allowing 4 goals on 13 shots. Jacob Harris potted the lone goal for the Wolves early in the third period when they outshot the Frontenacs for the first time in the game (17-9).
The last time these two teams met was a 4-3 shootout win for
the 67’s on November 3, 2012. Much has
changed since then. The top 4 leading
scorers in the series for the 67’s are no longer with the team. For now, that includes Sean Monahan who had 5
points in 2 games vs the Wolves last season.
The Wolves are also missing their top two series scorers including
Michael Kantor & Joshua Leivo who combined for 9 points in two games.
The Wolves are in a similar position as the 67’s where they
have a lot of returning players but with a lot of young experience. Many of these players were rookies last
season and were able to log a lot of ice time requiring them to play in bigger
situations and learn more.
FORWARDS
Michael Kantor
is the only Wolves forward to graduate from the OHL. Returning are their top 3 scorers veterans
Matthew Campagna, Orleans native Nathan Pancel and Ottawa native & Sabres prospect Nicholas
Baptiste. A low scoring but well
balanced attack, they combine for 71 goals and 172 points.
The Wolves will
look to sophomore Dominik Kahun to step into a bigger role with OHL
experience under his belt and posting 40 points in 58 games.
Add in Habs prospect Connor
Crisp and remove Cory Genovese.
The two were involved in a big trade early September. New additions also include rookies Austin
Veleke and David Zeppieri.
Veleke is a 10th round selection in 2012 that really
impressed during camp. Zeppieri was
selected in the 3rd round in 2013.
DEFENSEMEN
Remove Charlie Dodero and add in Jimmy McDowell. Dodero graduated from the OHL and
McDowell was another part of the Genovese/Crisp deal in September.
McDowell comes in as an overager and will help mentor a
young blueline with team captain Kevin Raine and associate captain Jeff
Corbett. The extra experience will be
helpful especially in the case of first round selection Kyle Capobianco.
Stefan Leblanc is the final addition to the blueline. The 7th round pick (2012) is off to a great start.
He has 6 points in 4 games and is tied for 6th in OHL rookie
scoring.
GOALTENDING
Returning is overage Franky Palazzese who is coming off a
solid season behind the pipes. Last
season he posted a 0.922 save percentage and 2.61 goals against average good
for 4th and 5th place respectively in OHL rankings. Palazzese will be backstopped by rookie Troy
Timpano. The second round selection has gotten
off to a rough start. He has only played
3 games so far this season but has allowed 15 goals for a goals against average
of 6.81.
Tayor Dupuis is the odd man out and was traded to the Sarnia
Sting earlier this season. He played 18
games for the Wolves and had a 5-6-1-1 record with the club.
COACHING
After taking a job in the AHL, Trent Cull’s coaching job was
taken over by Paul Fixter who spent the past 5 seasons as the Associate Coach
for the Kitchener Rangers.
The 2013-14 Regular Season Record
Ottawa 67's: 4-5-0-0
Sudbury Wolves: 3-2-3-0
2013-14 Preseason Record
Ottawa 67's: 3-1-0-0
Sudbury Wolves: 3-0-0-0
2012-13 Regular Season Record
Ottawa 67's: 16-46-0-6
Sudbury Wolves: 29-27-5-7
2012-13 OHL Playoffs
Ottawa 67's: Did not qualify
Sudbury Wolves: Eliminated in the Eastern Conference
Semfinals by the Belleville Bulls in 4 games
Players to watch
Ottawa 67's
Joseph Blandisi - drafted 6th round to Colorado in 2013
Jacob Middleton - NHL draft eligible 2014, NHL Central
Scouting B list
Alex Lintuniemi - NHL draft eligible 2014, NHL Central
Scouting C list
Travis Konecny - 1st overall pick in OHL, NHL draft
eligible 2015
Sudbury Wolves
Connor Crisp – drafted in the 3rd round by the Montreal
Canadiens in 2013
Nick Baptiste – drafted in the 3rd round by the Buffalo
Sabres in 2013
Dominik Kubalik – drafted in the 7th round by the Los
Angeles Kings in 2013
Stefan Leblanc – tied for 6th in rookie scoring with 6
points in 8 games, NHL draft eligible in 2015
Overagers
Ottawa 67’s: Ryan Van Stralen, Philippe Trudeau
Sudbury Wolves: Jimmy McDowell, Kevin Raine, Franky
Palazzese
Leadership Squad
Ottawa 67’s: Sean Monahan (C), Taylor Fielding (A), Ryan Van
Stralen (A), Joesph Blandisi (A)
Sudbury Wolves: Kevin Raine (C), Jeff Corbett (A),
Nicholas Baptiste (A), Mathew Campagna (A)
Potential Scratches
Ottawa 67's: Sean Monahan (NHL camp), Michel Vlajkov
(IR), Adrian Sloboda, John Urbanic (unknown). Also scratched last game: Trevor Dulong, Connor
Graham, Taylor Davis.
Sudbury Wolves: unknown
*follow us on twitter (@msconduct or @A_Quevillon) for game
day scratches
Sudbury Wolves
Who's Gone?
Charlie Dodero – graduated from the OHL
Michael Kantor – graduated from the OHL, playing with
Hartford in AHL (as free agent)
Matt Schmalz – did not make the team
Mackenzie Braid – did not make the team
Cory Genovese – traded to the Erie Otters with picks for
Connor Crisp & Jimmy McDowell
Taylor Dupuis – traded to Sarnia Sting this season for a 6th
round pick
Chad Thibodeau – released this season
Who's New?
Austin Veleke – drafted into the OHL in the 10th round by
Sudbury in 2012
David Zeppieri – drafted into the OHL in the 3rd round by
Sudbury in 2013
Kyle Capobianco – drafted into the OHL in the 1st round by
Sudbury in 2013
Stefan LeBlanc – drafted into the OHL in the 7th round by
Sudbury in 2012
Troy Timpano – drafted into the OHL in the 2nd round by
Sudbury in 2013
Jimmy McDowell – acquired from the Erie Otters with Connor
Crisp for Cory Genovese, a 3rd round pick and a 4th round pick.
Connor Crisp – acquired from the Erie Otters with Jimmy
McDowell for Cory Genovese, a 3rd round pick and a 4th round pick.
Ottawa Connections:
Nicholas Baptiste – native of Ottawa, ON - played for the
Cumberland Grads in the CCHL
Nathan Pancel – native of Orleans, ON - played for the
Gloucester Rangers in the CCHL
Evan de Hann – native of Ottawa, ON - played for the
Pembroke Lumber Kings in the CCHL
David Bell – (coach) played 4 seasons with the 67's
2012-13 Head-To-Head Stats
Record: 1-0-0-1 Sudbury
Combined score: 9-8 for Sudbury
Top scorers
Ottawa 67's
Sean Monahan – 2 goals, 3 assists in 2 games
Tyler Graovac – 1 goals, 2 assists in 2 games
Steven Janes – 1 goals, 2 assist in 2 games
Cody Ceci – 1 goal, 1 assist in 2 games
Taylor Fielding – 1 goal, 1 assist in 2 games
Sudbury Wolves
Michael Kantor – 3 goals, 2 assists in 2 games
Joshua Leivo – 3 goals, 1 assist in 2 games
Nathan Pancel – 1 goals, 3 assists in 2 games
Matthew Campagna – 1 goal, 1 assist in 2 games
Dominik Kahun – 1 goal in 2 games
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