Generals Recover From Three-Goal Collapse, Drop 67's in Shootout

With a packed Scotiabank Place watching on, the Ottawa 67’s put on one of their most entertaining performances of the year against Oshawa, coming back from a late three-goal deficit only to lose 6-5 in the shootout.

Clint Windsor came in at the start of the third period, making 10 stops in relief and getting into a scrap with Oshawa’s Josh Brown in the extra frame.

Brian Hughes and Lucas Lessio scored in the shootout, while Sean Monahan and Dante Salituro were unable to convert.

Ottawa got back into the game when Taylor Davis, Connor Brown and Ryan Van Stralen tallied on three seeing-eye wrist shots from far out, all of which eluded Ken Appelby.  Appelby made 19 stops to preserve the win. 

Windsor was forced to make a number of saves early in his relief performance to keep his team in the game.  Scott Sabourin, Adam Lloyd, and Michael Dal Colle had scored in a two-minute span late in the second period to break a 2-2 deadlock and give the visitors a three-goal cushion going into the final frame.

Justice Dundas beat Jacob Blair to open the scoring five and a half minutes in and Lessio, to go along with his shootout clinching goal, had a highlight-of-the-year candidate marker, dancing around Michal Cajkovsky and Blair shorthanded to give his team a 2-1 lead at the time.

Van Stralen and Monahan responded to each of Oshawa’s goals respectively.  Blair stopped 20 of 25 shots he faced before being pulled.

The 67’s will have a chance to play spoiler as they take on the Mississauga Steelheads, who are now tied for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

The game sheet can be found here.

Assorted Notes:

• The Oshawa-Ottawa game on the last Friday of the regular season was that much better when they were fighting for a division title two years ago.  It’s unfortunate that Oshawa had to have their entire top line as healthy scratches for this game to be evenly matched.
• The last time Ottawa picked up points on home ice was against a Spitfires team that didn’t play like a team.  Every play was an individual effort that night, and tonight was similar.  Oshawa tried too many individual plays and it almost cost them.
• Minus the shootout, this game had the feel of an early-2000’s 67’s game; rough-and-tumble, a late comeback, tons of scoring and an overtime thriller.  Unfortunately, the game couldn’t be settled in overtime and was settled by penalty shots.
• For a team trying to send a message going into next year, this was one of the most physical games of the season for the Barberpoles. Taylor Fielding and Andrew Abou-Assaly were a lot more physical than we’ve seen most of this season.
• Furthermore, Ottawa had plenty of fight in them.  Daniel Walsh dropped the gloves with Dundas and John Urbanic was going at it with his former teammates all night, eventually fighting Lloyd.  In overtime, Windsor had enough abuse from Josh Brown and the two exchanged punches.