Lots to like as Greyhounds rebound in game against Wolves (video)

Looking to rebound from a disappointing weekend on the road, the Soo Greyhounds saw a team record tied early and a losing skid snapped in doing so.

Tye Kartye scored eight seconds into the first period as the Greyhounds picked up a 6-2 Ontario Hockey League win over the Sudbury Wolves on Wednesday night at the Sudbury Community Arena.

The win comes on the heels of a disappointing weekend that saw the team drop games in Sarnia on Friday night and London on Saturday.

“That feels really good,” said Kartye. “After the first period, we know we can turn it up and we did for the last 40 (minutes). We still have more, but it was a good stepping stone.”

“It feels good to put a pretty good effort in tonight,” added veteran forward Rory Kerins. “It feels good with the two points, but most importantly, it feels good to put in a good effort for a full 60.”

Greyhounds coach John Dean said in the opening period he saw a team that was working to play the right way.

“The first period, we did a lot of good things, but we also showed some of our habits that have gotten us into some trouble,” Dean said. “We were playing really well and then we turn over a puck and get stuck in our own end a little bit, but I also saw a team that was putting a lot of effort in to playing the right way. We’ll take those periods when the compete is there.”

The Greyhounds opened the game up with four goals in the second period to take a 5-2 lead through 40 minutes and the frame was one that Dean commended.

Dean also called special teams an important part of the game as well for the Greyhounds. The team went 1-for-4 on the man advantage while also killing off six Sudbury power plays in the game, including a double minor early in the third with the Greyhounds.

“What I enjoyed was, the guys were cheering on the bench for the right things,” Dean said. “When guys were sacrificing their bodies and blocking shots on the PK and they were being rewarded by their teammates, that is a sign that they understand what’s needed to win those special teams battles.”

“Our penalty kill has been really good in the second half of the year,” Kerins added. “We said coming back from Christmas that we wanted to be one of the top in the league in penalty kill percentage and we’ve been really dialed in and being hard to play against on the penalty kill. Special teams can win you games.”

Kartye opened the scoring for the Greyhounds just eight seconds into the contest as he skated down the right wing and beat Wolves starter Mitchell Weeks stick side.

Sudbury got on the board midway through the period when Kocha Delic beat Greyhounds goaltender Tucker Tynan from the slot after he fanned on his initial shot off a faceoff deep in the Sault zone.

Kerins made it 2-1 Greyhounds at 3:29 of the second period when he took a cross-slot pass from Kartye, who froze Weeks initially by looking shot. Kerins took the pass and scored on an open net.

Defenceman Jack Thompson extended the lead at 5:34 when he beat Weeks from near the top of the right circle stick side.

The Greyhounds took a 4-1 lead at 7:41 when a point shot by Kirill Kudryavtsev was deflected by veteran forward Keegan McMullen in the slot past Weeks.

Delic picked up his second goal of the night for the Wolves to cut the Sault lead to 4-2 when he redirected a back-door pass from Marc Boudreau past Tynan at 12:04.

With 5:31 to go in the period, Bryce McConnell-Barker made it 5-2 Greyhounds with a power play goal that saw him skate the puck into the right circle before beating Weeks from the centre of the circle.

“That’s what we need to do every period,” Kartye said of the middle stanza. “That’s our goal and we have to try to duplicate that for the first and the third.”

“We didn’t like our first too much, so we wanted to come out in the second and respond in a good way,” Kerins added. “Everyone chipped in. We scored goals through hard work and that’s the team we have to be for the next 16 games and playoffs is a team that gets goals through hard work.”

Jordan D’Intino capped off the scoring with 1:28 to go when he skated into the left faceoff circle and beat Weeks high short side for his fifth goal of the season.

Kartye, McConnell-Barker, and Thompson finished the night with a goal and an assist each for the Greyhounds

Kudryavtsev, Robert Calisti, Cole MacKay, and Marco Mignosa assisted on a pair of goals each for the Greyhounds.

Tynan made 19 saves.

Dean credited the veteran netminder for making some key saves at points when a Sudbury goal could “change the course of the game.”

“Tucker was very engaged tonight,” Dean said. “He tracked the puck very well.

Weeks stopped 34 shots for the Wolves.

With the win, the Greyhounds improve to 29-17-6-1. With 65 points, the team leapfrogs over the Windsor Spitfires for second in the OHL’s West Division and move to within five points of the Flint Firebirds for top spot in the division.

The win also snaps a three-game losing skid for the Greyhounds.

Wednesday’s loss drops Sudbury’s record to 19-30-3-2 and the team remains two points behind the Peterborough Petes for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Greyhounds return to action on home ice this weekend with a pair of games against the Kitchener Rangers. The two clubs will meet on Friday and Saturday at the GFL Memorial Gardens. Puck drop for both games is set for 7:07 p.m.

Game notes: As mentioned, Kartye’s goal in the opening minute tied a team record for fastest goal. The record was previously set by Mike Kaszyski in 1975.