Mistakes costly as Greyhounds open road trip

Soo Greyhounds coach John Dean is ok with mistakes.

It’s when the same mistakes are being made that it begins to get frustrating and that was the case on Thursday night.

The Windsor Spitfires scored three times in the third period to beat the Greyhounds 6-4 at the WFCU Centre in Windsor on Thursday night.

It was a game in which the Greyhounds started well but a tough stretch to start the second period and struggles in the final 20 minutes led to defeat and the message is simple heading into the weekend.

“We can’t be a team that makes the same mistakes over and over again,” Dean said. “Mistakes are ok. We’re consistently making the same mistakes from the same players and it’s frustrating. The group has to make a decision to get better every day and learn from their mistakes and it we don’t, we’ll continue to see games like this.”

The Greyhounds started strong and led through the opening period thanks to goals by Tye Kartye and Rory Kerins in the opening four minutes and a power play goal by Cole MacKay late in the period.

“I loved our first period,” Dean said. “It was unfortunate to only be up 3-2. We played a really structured first period. The big conversation between periods was that two turnovers cost us two goals against. It was simple stuff we talk about every day, no box out in front of the net cost us a goal against.”

The Greyhounds struggled to start the second period but would come out of the period with a 4-3 lead thanks to a goal by Marc Boudreau with just over four minutes to go in the frame.

“In the second period, the first eight minutes was a disaster,” Dean said. “We had turnovers in our own end consistently, which is tough to swallow because we addressed it between periods, but I really loved our bounce-back in the second period.”

Curtis Douglas tied the game for the Spitfires just under five minutes into the third and Thomas Stevenson scored the eventual game-winner midway through the frame.

Connor Corcoran, Kyle McDonald, Cole Purboo, and Luke Boka had the other goals for the Spitfires while Tyler Angle assisted on a pair of goals.

Goaltender Kari Piiroinen made 18 saves for the Spitfires.

“It was a resilient effort all night from our group,” Boka said in an interview with RogersTV.

Boudreau had a goal and an assist for the Greyhounds.

“Marc Boudreau listens, he does what he’s asked,” Dean said of the rookie forward. “He works exceptionally hard. He really understands what we’re preaching here.”

Jaromir Pytlik assisted on two goals.

Goaltender Ethan Taylor stopped 24 shots.

The loss drops the Greyhounds record to 6-6-1-0 heading into action on Saturday night in Flint against the Firebirds.

Windsor improves to 8-3-1-0 following Thursday’s game.

In other action around the OHL on Thursday night, in Peterborough, Ethan Langevin made 41 saves as the Sarnia Sting beat the Peterborough Petes 4-2. Justin Nolet and Sean Josling had a goal and an assist each for Sarnia.

In Barrie, a power play goal by Matej Pekar at 11:22 of the second period was the game-winner as the Barrie Colts beat the Owen Sound Attack 3-2. Arturs Silovs made 40 saves for the Colts.