Otters outlast Greyhounds (5 photos)

After starting the season with eight straight wins, the Soo Greyhounds have hit a bump in the road.

The team has lost three of their last four games with the latest loss being a 6-4 setback at the hands of the Erie Otters on Friday night at the Essar Centre in Ontario Hockey League action.

The team has struggled recently with losses against the Belleville Bulls (9-2-0-0), Oshawa Generals (11-1-1-0) and Erie (10-0-0-1).

“We’re starting to learn that we’re not that good a team,” said Greyhounds Coach Sheldon Keefe. “We need to win a big game. This isn’t good enough.”

Keefe also spoke of the need to find another level in the loss.

“The effort was fine but our overall energy level could have been better and rise to the occasion,” said Keefe, “I didn’t like how we didn’t find another level and another gear in our game. The game overall was quite even but the different was we gave pucks to them and they capitalized on their chances. From our goaltending out we just weren’t quite good enough.”

Blake Speers had a goal and two assists to lead the Greyhounds offensively while Colton White, Darnell Nurse and Jean Dupuy also scored.

Goaltender Brandon Halverson stopped 29 shots for the Greyhounds.

“Our best players tonight weren’t our best players and theirs were very good and that’s the difference in the game right there,” Keefe said. “We’re playing the best offensive team in the league and the most dynamic player in the world (Connor McDavid) and you’re going to have to get a good goaltending performance. It was really the first true test for (Halverson) and we needed him to be better than that. It’s a really good chance for him to grow.”

“I didn’t think they got any good goals tonight,” Keefe also said. “Whether it was a result of us giving them the puck or on the first and third goals from really tough spots, we need saves there.”

The Greyhounds turned over a number of pucks leading to Erie chances in the game.

“We gave them the puck and they capitalized,” Keefe said.

“(Forcing turnovers) is just being in the right position and reading the play,” said Otters coach Kris Knoblauch. “There were a couple times where they were making plays and just didn’t quite execute and if our coverage is terrible they might still execute. We did create some turnovers but they were able to break our forecheck throughout the night.”

Dylan Strome had a pair of goals to lead the Otters attack offensively. Taylor Raddysh, Trent Fox, Nick Betz and Connor McDavid also scored while Patrick Murphy and Alex DeBrincat set up two goals each in the win.

“We have to go into these games knowing that these elite guys are going to get chances,” said Keefe. “We knew we had to get a great goaltending performance tonight and we didn’t. We knew we needed to get a great performance from our best players tonight and we certainly didn’t.”

Devin Williams stopped 25 shots for the Otters.

“Early on in the game, the Greyhounds could have had the lead but (Williams) came up with some big saves,” Knoblauch said of the veteran. “When we needed him, he was outstanding.”

Despite being held to one goal, McDavid was a major factor for the Otters in the win.

“Every time he was on the ice the ice was tilted in our direction,” Keefe said of McDavid. “He was a factor in the game. He was quite dynamic and whether he was on the scoresheet or not, his presence was felt.”

The Greyhounds wrap up their homestand on Saturday night when they host the Peterborough Petes.

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OTHER SCORES

All 20 teams were in action around the OHL on Friday night.

In Kingston, Joseph Blandisi’s shorthanded goal at 7:17 of the third period was the winner as the Barrie Colts beat the Kingston Frontenacs 5-4. Blandisi scored three times in the win while Andrew Mangiapane had a goal and two assists for the Colts. Spencer Watson set up all four goals for Kingston while Robert Polesello scored three times in the loss.

In St. Catharines, Alex Henriksson scored a pair of goals as the North Bay Battalion beat the Niagara IceDogs 5-2. Jared Steege had a goal and two assists for the Battalion. Ray Huether set up two goals in the win.

In Plymouth, Alex Nedeljkovic stopped all 16 shots he faced as the Plymouth Whalers blanked the Mississauga Steelheads 5-0. Matt Mistele had two goals and an assist for the Whalers. Sonny Milano set up three goals for Plymouth while Will Bitten scored a pair of goals.

In Sarnia, Brett Welychka and Jordan Subban scored shootout goals to lead the Belleville Bulls to a 4-3 win over the Sarnia Sting. Goaltender Charlie Graham stopped 43 saves for the Bulls while Subban and Remi Elie had a goal and an assist for the Bulls.

In Guelph, Pius Suter scored three times to lead the Guelph Storm to a 5-2 win over the Windsor Spitfires. Zac Leslie, Jason Dickinson and Adam Craievich set up two goals each while goaltender Justin Nichols stopped 35 shots. Sam Povorozniouk scored twice for the Spitfires.

In Kitchener, Petrus Palmu and Kyle Platzer scored shootout goals to lead the Owen Sound Attack to a 4-3 win over the Kitchener Rangers. Goaltender Jack Flinn made 30 saves for the Attack in the win while Kitchener goaltender Matthew Greenfield stopped 31 shots.

In London, recently-acquired forward Aaron Berisha scored a pair of goals to lead the London Knights to a 5-2 win over the Ottawa 67’s. Max Domi and Mitchell Marner set up three goals each for the Knights. After taking over to start the second period for starting goaltender Liam Herbst, Leo Lazarev stopped 32 of 34 shots in the final 40 minutes.

In Sudbury, Nick Ritchie and Steven Varga had a goal and an assist each as the Peterborough Petes beat the Sudbury Wolves 6-4. Dominik Masin, Eric Cornel and Matt Spencer had two assists each for the Petes. Nick Baptiste made his return to the lineup for the Wolves and scored a pair of goals in the loss. Pavel Jenys set up three goals for Sudbury while goaltender Samuel Tanguay stopped 40 shots.

In Oshawa, Mitchell Vande Sompel had a goal and four assists to lead the Oshawa Generals to an 8-5 win over the Saginaw Spirit. Hunter Smith chipped in with a goal and two assists while Cole Cassels scored twice for Oshawa. Connor Brown scored three times for the Spirit in the loss.

(PHOTO: Soo Greyhounds forward Tim Gettinger and Erie Otters defenceman Patrick Murphy battle for position during a game at the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie on October 24, 2014. The final score was 6-4 for the Otters. Kenneth Armstrong/SooToday)