Greyhounds take 2-0 series lead

To open a playoff series on the road, the ideal situation is always to return home with a split.

The Soo Greyhounds assured itself of that on Friday night.

Thanks to two solid periods and a key performance in goal in the third period, the Greyhounds will return home with a 2-0 series lead thanks to a 5-2 victory over the Sarnia Sting at the Sarnia Sports and Entertainment Centre on Sunday evening.

The win means the Greyhounds return home in the enviable position in the Western Conference quarter final series following the two victories.

Brandon Halverson made 39 saves for the Greyhounds, including 22 in the final period.

“We knew coming in as the underdog in the series that we’re going to need great goaltending to come out on top,” Greyhounds captain Blake Speers told TVCogeco. “Halvy’s got a lot of playoff experience and he’s a veteran presence in our room. It’s unbelievable the way he’s played for us so far.”

“He was fantastic in the third for us,” Greyhounds Coach Drew Bannister said. “There were a couple in the second there where he made some really good saves for us. Again he was outstanding.”

“He’s a gamer and every time he goes into the net, he wants to win.” Bannister also said.

Speers would also talk of how the Sting push in the third period was a spot where the home team had “nothing to lose.”

“At 4-0, (Sarnia) had nothing to lose going into the third period,” Speers said. “That’s a pretty dangerous thing in playoff hockey. We knew we had to weather the storm. They gave us a good push and had us reeling a little bit but we got a break at the end and extend the lead.”

Zach Senyshyn scored a pair of goals to pace the Greyhounds offensively which included a goal with just under six minutes remaining to seal the win.

“They built some momentum there in the third. They got the goal there and they were able to carry it over into the power play goal (to make it 4-2) and then we were trying to weather the storm,” Bannister said. “(Senyshyn’s second goal) certainly calmed our bench down. Then we got back to the way we needed to play and it gave us a little more breathing room.”

Boris Katchouk added a goal and an assist while Gustav Bouramman assisted on two goals. Bobby MacIntyre and Tim Gettinger also scored for the Greyhounds.

Anthony Salinitri and Matt Mistele scored for the Sting.

“We were really responsible, our forwards were not giving them any opportunities off the rush,” Bannister said of keeping the Sting leaders off the scoresheet. “As long as you can do that, and limit the chances they get because they’re so dynamic. Our forwards have to be really responsible coming back and being able to track and push pucks to the outside.

Charlie Graham got the start for the Sting, stopping 18 shots in two periods of work. Justin Fazio came in for the third period and stopped two of the three shots he faced.

The series now shifts to Sault Ste. Marie for games three and four beginning with game three on Tuesday. Game four is set for Thursday. Both games are 7:07 p.m. puck drops.

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OTHER SCORES

Saturday

In Kingston, Warren Foegele scored four times as the Kingston Frontenacs took a 2-0 series lead on the Oshawa Generals with a 7-3 victory. Lawson Crouse scored a pair of goals while Spencer Watson had a goal and three assists. Michael Dal Colle assisted on five goals for the Frontenacs. Domenic Commisso scored a pair of goals while Joe Manchurek had the other Oshawa goal.

In Kitchener, a three-goal third period lifted the Kitchener Rangers to a 6-4 win over the Windsor Spitfires. The Rangers take a 2-0 series lead with the win. Brandon Robinson had two goals and an assist for Kitchener. Miles Liberati chipped in with a goal and an assist for Kitchener. Nick Magyar, David Miller and Connor Bunnaman also scored for Kitchener. Mikhail Sergachev scored a pair of goals for Windsor. Mads Eller and Jalen Chatfield also scored for the Spitfires while Gabriel Vilardi assisted on two goals.

In London, a 23-save performance from Michael McNiven helped the Owen Sound Attack blank the London Knights 2-0 to even their best-on-7 series at one-game apiece. Josh Sterk and Ethan Szypula completed the Owen Sound scoring. Tyler Parsons made 27 saves for the Knights.

In St. Catharines, Brendan Perlini scored a pair of goals as the Niagara IceDogs beat the Ottawa 67’s 5-3. Pavel Jenys and Josh Ho-Sang added a goal and an assist each for the IceDogs, who take a 2-0 series lead with the win. Christopher Paquette also scored for Niagara. Dante Salituro had a goal and an assist for Ottawa while Nevin Guy and Travis Barron also scored. Stepan Falkovsky and Nathan Todd had two assists each for the 67’s.

In Barrie, Julius Nattinen had a goal and two assists as the Barrie Colts beat the Mississauga Steelheads 5-2 in the opener of their Eastern Conference quarter-final series. Dylan Sadowy had a pair of goals while Kevin Labanc had a goal and an assist for the Colts. Greg DiTomaso also scored for Barrie. Anthony Stefano assisted on a pair of Barrie goals. Damian Bourne and Josh Burnside completed the Mississauga scoring.

Sunday

In North Bay, Greg Betzold, Jonathan Ang and Hunter Garlent had a goal and an assist each as the Peterborough Petes beat the North Bay Battalion 5-3. Eric Cornel assisted on a pair of goals for Peterborough, who evens the first round series at one with the victory. Logan DeNoble and Steven Lorentz also scored for the Petes. Mike Amadio had a goal and an assist for North Bay. Kyle Wood and Cam Dineen assisted on two goals each for North Bay. Steve Harland and Maurizio Colella had the other North Bay goals.

In Erie, Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome had a goal and two assists each to lead the Erie Otters to a 7-3 win over the Saginaw Spirit. The Otters take a 2-0 series lead over the Spirit with the win. Kyle Maksimovich had a goal and an assist for Erie. Jordan Sambrook and Travis Dermott also had two assists for the Otters. Patrick Fellows, Taylor Raddysh, Kyle Pettit and Mitchell Byrne also scored for Erie. Jesse Barwell, Connor Brown and Brady Gilmour scored for Saginaw.