A small crowd was on hand on a fine late summer afternoon to watch the last game of the pre-season. The 67s and Belleville Bulls tied it at 3. There wasn't even a shootout like there was in Gatineau.
By my reckoning they finish the preseason with a record of 2 wins, 3 losses and a tie.
Forward Combos:
Lindsay-Toffoli-Merrett
Smith-Martindale-Nesbitt
Janes-Anderson-Carnevale
Graovac
D-pairs
Hartwick-Gibbons
Birkhoff-Ceci
Hanes
Goal
Perugini
Scratches: Zanetti, Schinkelshoek (suspension from Friday's fight), Nigro, Sointu (on the roster for main camp for Tampa), Demers, Cowick, Cuma (main camp Wild)
Both teams played with short benches - Ottawa played with 10 forwards and 5 defenders; Belleville had 12 forwards and 5 defenders. Belleville was looking for redemption from their 5-0 shut out earlier in the week.
It was all Ottawa in the fist period with the 67s getting 2 goals on 5 shots. The first came just under 7 minutes into the game while Braeden Goddard was in the penalty box for hooking. Cody Lindsay at the top of the crease took the feed from Andrew Merrett and had it past Grubauer before he knew it. Brian Birkhoff got the other assist.
Before the goal announcement was finished, Thomas Nesbitt put the 67s up by two on a play that started with a sliding block by Derek Hartwick to break up a three on one play by Belleville. Hartwick then fed the puck to Nesbitt. Nesbitt wired it from the face-off dot past Grubauer on the far side. Tyler Graovac got the second assist.
After 20 minutes, the score was 2 - 0 Ottawa with SOGs 12 - 3 for Ottawa. Belleville just didn't get organized.
But that was not the case in the next two periods.
Belleville picked it up and scored the only two goals in the second period. The first one came 7 minutes in when the puck was deflected by Ceci over Perugini. Scott Howe was credited with the unassisted goal.
The Bulls then tied it up with just 5.9 seconds left in the game when Andy Bathgate buried a deflection into an open net. Jan Kaminsky and Stephen Silas had the assists.
After two periods, it was tied at two with SOGs 26-13 for Ottawa.
Rookie Tyson Teichman replaced Phillip Grubauer in net in the third period.
Tyler Toffoli gave Ottawa the lead with a sick goal just 56 seconds into the final frame. He came around the net, put the puck between the feet of the defender, turned around and shot it over the shoulder of Teichman. Cody Lindsay got the assist.
The lead was short-lived as Dylan Goddard tied it up a couple of minutes later when he Brett Mackie picked up the rebound and fed it to Goddard. Steven Strong had the second assist.
Belleville picked up their game and Ottawa didn't match it. It ended it a tie at 3 with the final SOGs 34 - 26.
Random Thoughts:
- Not sure if the 67s ran out of a bit of steam towards the end with a short bench. They didn't play with the same intensity and skill as the first period.
- The 67s have had a number of PPs in the last couple of games but have not converted them into a lot of goals. They had a full 2-minute 5-on-3 today that was underwhelming. They managed only three shots on goal. It seemed very slow.
- Tippof is a bit crabby - took shots at playes after the whistle a few times.
More Pictures:
See you in a couple of weeks at the home opener!!
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