'That's what we should look like' (20 photos)

It appeared to be as good as the team has played in 40 minutes this season.

The Soo Greyhounds built a 7-2 lead and outshot the Saginaw Spirit 43-10 through two periods on Saturday night en route to an 8-2 victory to take a 2-0 series lead over the Spirit in the first round of the Ontario Hockey League playoffs.

The opening period saw the Greyhounds build a 4-0 lead and cruise to the game two win over the eighth-seeded Spirit.

“When it all comes together, that’s what we should look like,” Greyhounds Coach Sheldon Keefe said of the opening 40 minutes. “We played well. Saginaw wasn’t nearly as good today as they were (in game one). The way we played early didn’t give them much of a chance to get going in the game. It was a very good 40 minutes.”

Forward Justin Bailey, who scored twice for the Greyhounds, credited the Greyhounds defensive game and the plan heading into the series that has allowed the team to generate offence as well.

“For us going into the series we knew that the only way (Saginaw) was going to generate offence was if we give it to them,” Bailey said. “We’ve limited our turnovers and we focused on playing defence first and trusting that our skill and skill will help us generate goals.”

Michael Bunting and Bryan Moore chipped in with two goals and an assist each while Nick Ritchie had a goal and three assists for the Greyhounds. Zach Senyshyn had the other Greyhounds goal while Sergey Tolchinsky set up three goals. Anthony DeAngelo, Jared McCann and Gustav Bouramman assisted on two goals each.

Brandon Halverson got the start, stopping eight of 10 shots in 40 minutes of action. Rookie Joseph Raaymakers played the third period, stopping eight shots.

Artem Artemov and Michael Holmes scored for Saginaw while goaltender Evan Cormier stopped 44 shots.

“We gave them room to use their speed and skill,” said Spirit Coach Greg Gilbert. “We did the opposite of what we did in game one.

“If you’re going to absorb everything (the Greyhounds) are going to throw at you, it’s going to be a long night,” Gilbert added. “Evan can only give us a chance for so long. He’s a battler and wanted to stay in. I wish we had more guys like him.”

Keefe noted that the pace of the game was slower than game one but that allowed the Greyhounds skill to come through a little bit more. It included a four-minute stretch in the second period in which the Greyhounds had the Spirit hemmed in defensively.

“The game slowed down a bit today from (game one) and when that happens it certainly is a benefit to us,” Keefe said. “That played a role but we definitely executed a lot better today. I liked a lot of things about our game.”

“We try to get 30 to 40 seconds hard and offensive zone changes where we’re getting fresh guys out there,” added Bailey. “You saw it there. The line that was out there (for Saginaw) was absolutely gassed. It’s just incredible to watch. That’s the potential that this team has.”

For the Spirit, the series is about “battling for jobs” according to Gilbert.

“It’s about getting people to understand that we’re battling for jobs here for next year,” Gilbert said. “There are some guys that might not be playing major junior hockey next year. This is an opportunity for them to show their courage, their intensity and their compete level and will to win. We’re getting answers and that’s what we’re looking for.”

The series now shifts to Saginaw for games three and four. Game three is Tuesday night while game four is Thursday. Puck drop for both games is 7:11 p.m.

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OTHER SCORES

In Ottawa, Nevin Guy had a goal and four assists as the Ottawa 67’s beat the Niagara IceDogs 8-2, taking a 2-0 series lead in the process. Travis Konecny also had four assists for the 67’s. Dante Salituro scored twice while Jeremiah Addison, Jacob Middleton, Curtis Meighan, Alex Lintuniemi and Nathan Todd also scored. Mikkel Aagaard and Brendan Perlini scored for Niagara.

(PHOTO: Soo Greyhounds players celebrate a goal during game two of their playoff series against Saginaw on March 28, 2015 at the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie. Kenneth Armstrong/SooToday)