Offensive depth helps Greyhounds in road win

Both teams entered action with eight wins in their last 10 games but it was the Soo Greyhounds that managed to keep the ball rolling.

Having won six-straight entering the day, the Greyhounds wrapped up a three-game Ontario Hockey League road trip with an 8-3 win over the Oshawa Generals at the Tribute Communities Centre.

“The guys stuck to it,” said Greyhounds Coach Drew Bannister. “I’ve been saying this all along that we weren’t getting rewarded earlier on in the season but we started to stick to the process and now guys are getting rewards and that’s why offensively we’re starting to create opportunities.”

Bannister also spoke of the Greyhounds ability to keep the Generals down after the home team had opportunities to get back in the game.

Shortly after the Generals had a goal called back due to an offside in the first period, the Greyhounds rebounded to make the score 2-0 thanks to a goal by Boris Katchouk with 1:44 left in the frame.

In similar fashion in the second period, after the Generals managed to get on the board at 3:36 of the frame to make it 4-1, Otto Makinen beat Kyle Keyser to make it 5-1.

“It goes back to our mental toughness,” Bannister said. “Some people bag on how physical our game is but for me it’s more important to be a mentally tough team. In those opportunities when a team gets a goal back that we’re able to answer back as quickly as possible. Being mentally tough in the game these days is more important than just being tough.”

Calvin Martin had a pair of goals for the Greyhounds. A native of Peterborough, Martin had family and friends in attendance at the game and said that having them at the rink made the day “extra special.”

Katchouk, Otto Makinen, Tim Gettinger and Jack Kopacka added a goal and an assist each. Colton White also had a two-point night with a pair of assists. Bobby MacIntyre and Morgan Frost also scored for the Greyhounds. In total, 15 players registered a point for the Greyhounds.

“It just shows how deep this team is and how many good players there are,” Martin said. “It’s good when everyone is getting points, it means everyone is working hard and playing well.”

“That’s one thing we have to our advantage is the depth on our team, especially up front,” Bannister said. “When all four lines are rolling well and you get them out and get them involved, you can see how dangerous we can be on the offensive side of the puck.”

MacIntyre, Katchouk and Zach Senyshyn, who had an assist in the win, each have point streaks that hit seven games in the contest.

Joseph Raaymakers got the start, stopping 23 shots for the Greyhounds.

Jeremy Brodeur got the start for the Generals but was pulled after surrendering four goals on 21 shots. Kyle Keyser came in and stopped 16 of 20 shots the rest of the way.

Joe Manchurek had two goals and an assist for the Generals. Kenny Huether had a goal and an assist to round out the scoring for the Generals.

Oshawa falls to 16-7-0-2 with the loss.

The Greyhounds improve to 18-7-1-0 – which includes a 13-2-0-0 record on the road – and sees its winning streak extended to seven games. The team also takes over sole possession of top spot in the OHL’s West Division with the win. The Windsor Spitfires fell in overtime in Kingston on Sunday afternoon to allow the Greyhounds to gain the point. The Spitfires have two games in hand on the Greyhounds as the two teams prepare to meet on Wednesday night at the Essar Centre.

The game against Windsor on Wednesday opens a short two-game homestand that will see the Greyhounds host the Barrie Colts on Friday. Puck drop for both games is set for 7:07 p.m.

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OTHER SCORES

In Kingston, Jason Robertson’s goal at 3:25 of overtime gave the Kingston Frontenacs a 3-2 win over the Windsor Spitfires. Linus Nyman and Justin Pringle also scored for Kingston. Warren Foegele assists on a pair of Frontenacs goals. Connor

In Sudbury, David Levin had two goals and an assist as the Sudbury Wolves beat the Niagara IceDogs 6-4. Ryan Valentini also scored twice for the Wolves. Liam Dunda had a goal and an assist while Alan Lyszczarczyk assisted on three goals for Sudbury. Dmitry Sokolov and Kyle Capobianco had two assists each for Sudbury. Akil Thomas scored twice for Niagara. Pavel Demin and Kyle Langdon also scored for the IceDogs. Matthew Philip assisted on two Niagara goals.

In Saginaw, Damien Giroux, Hayden Hodgson and Mitchell Stephens had a goal and an assist as the Saginaw Spirit beat the Guelph Storm 4-2. C.J. Garcia also scored for the Spirit. Goaltender Brendan Bonello made 27 saves. Isaac Ratcliffe had a goal and an assist for Guelph while goaltender Liam Herbst made 36 saves. Givani Smith had the other goal for the Storm.

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AROUND THE OHL

The Sudbury Wolves have been hit hard by suspensions of late.

Forward Drake Pilon was handed an eight-game suspension after a hit in a game against the Barrie Colts on Nov. 17.

The team has lost three more players to suspension after a game against Niagara on Friday night.

Michael Pezzetta was hit with a 10-game suspension following a match penalty for a hit on Niagara’s Aaron Haydon that will keep him out until the end of December. Zach Wilkie received a five-game suspension while C.J. Yackimowicz has been suspended indefinitely after being tossed from the game for abuse of official.