»

January 31, 2016

Salituro ejected, Lazarev goes off the rails, 67's still manage two points

The 67's learned the hard way not to lean on a hot hand or a steady netminder in a shootout win over the Oshawa Generals on Sunday.

January 30, 2016

67's lose ground in both standings and draft in 5-2 loss

The 67's had no reason to be as uninspired as they were today against Owen Sound.

Jake Middleton probably didn't want to lose to his old team, Dante Salituro probably didn't want his 100th career goal to be so bittersweet.

As a team, they probably wanted to temporarily jump a Mississauga team that has their number this year in the standings.

And for the man behind the bench, Jeff Brown, with his general manager's hat on as well as his coaching hat, probably didn't want to hand two points to the team whose second-round pick belongs to Ottawa.

January 29, 2016

67's defeat Petes 3-2, but win could come at a cost


The Ottawa 67’s played host to an important interdivisional matchup against the Peterborough Petes in front of the home crowd of 3,218. With only two points separating the clubs from 5th place in the Eastern Conference, the stakes were high.

Noel Hoefenmayer scored the game winning goal at the 12:41 minute mark in the third period and Leo Lazarev made several big saves in the final minute to lift the 67’s to a 3-2 regulation win. The 67’s now hold a 5-2-0-0 record against their division rival Petes.

January 24, 2016

No heartbeat haunts 67's more than Spirit

Jeremiah Addison’s late, third-period goal against his former team wasn’t enough to earn the 67’s the win Sunday evening.

Ottawa fell 3-1 to the Saginaw Spirit in front of a home crowd of 3,082.

January 22, 2016

67's survive defensive breakdowns, elite d-man, win in a shootout

It may not have been pretty, but the 67's managed to squeak out two points and create some separation between themselves and an Oshawa Generals team clinging to a playoff spot.

Potential protégé: Jeff Brown's new-found reliance on Noel Hoefenmayer

It can't be easy for players-turned-coaches not to see a little bit of themselves in their players, no matter how much the game has changed over time.

For years, Brian Kilrea, a long-time gritty center in the minors, made a habit of acquiring tough, shot blocking, two-way forwards for the 67's, the likes of Sebastien Savage and Brody Todd some of his most-sought after mid-season acquisitions.

It appears Jeff Brown is starting to follow the same mould.

January 17, 2016

Salituro and Lazarev lead 67's to 4-1 win over Flint

Injuries and a tough schedule didn’t get in the way of the 67’s drive to win Sunday afternoon, when they beat the Flint Firebirds 4-1 at home.

It was the third game in two-and-a-half days for Ottawa, including a 5-2 win in Peterborough Saturday night

“Tough playing three in two-and-a-half days. (Lazarev) kinda kept us in in the first until we got our legs under us, and then it was a pretty good effort after that,” said 67’s head coach Jeff Brown after Sunday’s game.

Ottawa goaltender Leo Lazarev made 30 saves in the game, earning him second star.

Flint’s Luke Kirwan managed to get the puck past Lazarev 5:56 into the third with the help of Zach Grzelewski, but it wasn’t enough for the Firebirds to stage a comeback.

First star was awarded to Dante Salituro who scored two powerplay goals, late in the first and early in the second, giving the 67’s a 2-0 lead.

Both goals (number 24 and 25 on the season for Salituro) were assisted by Nathan Todd and Evan de Haan. Todd’s performance ensured him third star of the game.

Ben Fanjoy and Nevin Guy both scored within the first four minutes of the third period, padding the 67’s lead to 4-0 before Flint’s only goal.

“I’m sure (Lazarev) wants that goal back,” said Brown.

“All the saves he made, and then the one from behind the net…” he added, smiling sympathetically.

“But listen, we had good goaltending this weekend and you can accomplish great things when you’ve got goalies who are solid in there,” he said, referring to the 67’s earning four of a possible six points over the weekend, despite a tough schedule and injuries keeping top performers out of the lineup.

The newest 67’s acquisition, Sasha Chmelevski, suffered a broken collarbone in Saturday night’s game against Peterborough. According to Brown, the 16-year-old is likely out for the remainder of the season.

“Hopefully he’ll heal up and be as good when he gets back as he was for the four or five games we had him because he was dynamite,” said Brown.


Ottawa’s next game will be at home at TD Place Arena on Friday, January 22 against the Oshawa generals. Puck drop at 7:00pm.

January 16, 2016

67's lost Chmelevski in 5-2 win against the Petes

Jeremiah Addison (Montreal Canadiens) scored a pair of goals to lead the Ottawa 67’s to a 5-2 win over the Peterborough Petes picking up their 12th road win of the season on Saturday night. After going goalless in 5 games, Addison now has 4 in his last 3.

January 15, 2016

67's fall 4-1 to the new and improved IceDogs


NHL draft prospect, Christopher Paquette scored the game winning goal late in the second period to help lift the Niagara IceDogs to a 4-1 victory over the Ottawa 67’s on Friday night sending home 4,973 disappointed Ottawa fans.

January 08, 2016

New-look 67's shut down Petes

A defenceman, not named Cody Ceci, with the 'C' on his chest.  A forward, not named Logan Couture, wearing #89.  A team in Barberpoles that won't know the full result or victor from a fresh blockbuster trade until a decade from now.

It just looked weird, although successful, as Ottawa took a 3-2 decision over Peterborough.  This is the new-age 67's, perhaps playing catch up with some of the top franchises in the OHL, identifying contending windows and taking advantage when a team wants to sell the farm for one of your players.

Friday night was just the first step, but it was a big one regardless.

January 06, 2016

Breaking down the blockbuster with Sarnia

It wasn't going to pan out like this.  Jeff Brown told his captain, one who he held to a higher standard at both ends of the ice, that he was a 67 for his entire junior career.  He wasn't going to gear up for a possible 2018 Memorial Cup.  He wouldn't be a buy-heavy or sell-heavy coach & general manager.

He was going to follow the Brian Kilrea model and just tinker.  But the times have changed and the 67's haven't had the same success rate as the Kilrea days when it comes to asset management, and as such, Brown had to oblige to a deal that knocked the team's socks off, pulling the trigger on a franchise history-altering trade.

To Sarnia:  Travis Konecny, Sam Studnicka, 3rd round pick
To Ottawa:  Sasha Chmelevski, Chase Campbell, three guaranteed 2nd-round picks, two conditional 2nd-round picks, three 3rd-round picks, two 5th-round picks

January 03, 2016

67's wrap up roadtrip with a 1-0 loss to the Steelheads

It was Mike McLeod 'Bobblehead Day' at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga, but it was Jack Flinn who came out as the hero posting a 27-save shutout and a 1-0 win over the visiting Ottawa 67’s. Flinn is no stranger to shutouts and now leads the league with 6 shutouts on the season.