A four-goal third period lifted the Soo Greyhounds to a series-opening victory in the Ontario Hockey League’s Western Conference semi-final.
Coming off a sweep of the Saginaw Spirit in the opening round of the playoffs, the Greyhounds proceeded to begin round two with a 7-4 win over the Guelph Storm thanks to four goals in the third period.
The Greyhounds overcame a physical start to the contest by the Storm as Guelph played a physical game throughout the opening period.
“We dealt with it pretty well with the exception of some of our emotions getting out of control at times and getting into some penalty trouble,” said Greyhounds Coach Sheldon Keefe. “For the most part, we dealt with it well. We moved the puck by them. They’re coming fast. We expect them to be physical, we expect them to be on us on the forecheck. We did a good job of getting through it for the most part.”
Zach Senyshyn got the Greyhounds on the board just over five minutes into the second period when he exited the penalty box and took a feed from Gabe Guertler. The rookie forward would beat Storm goaltender Justin Nichols high glove side to open the scoring.
“It was huge,” Keefe said of the goal. “It got us going. There was a lot of back and forth in the game. Both teams are finding a way to break loose and get something going and that seemed to get us going.”
Nick Ritchie scored a pair of goals for the Greyhounds while Bryan Moore, Michael Bunting, Sergey Tolchinsky and Justin Bailey also scored.
Anthony DeAngelo assisted on three goals for the Greyhounds while Guertler and Hayden Verbeek assisted on two goals each.
Goaltender Brandon Halverson made 21 saves.
Despite giving up three goals in the final period, both coaches credited Halverson for his play early in the game.
“He was solid,” Keefe said. “They had a couple of really good scoring chances with really good players too and he was right there for us. That’s what you need, especially early in a series when you’re feeling your way through things. He was there and allowed us an opportunity to score first.”
“Quite frankly, in the opening 40 minutes, I thought (Halverson) was the difference,” Storm Coach Bill Stewart said. “He made some huge saves.”
C.J. Garcia had two goals and an assist to pace the Storm offensively. Jason Dickinson and Givani Smith also scored for Guelph while Garrett McFadden picked up three assists. Nichols made 31 saves.
“We competed really well today,” Stewart said. “I don’t think there are too many teams that come into this building and put on the display we did in the first 30 minutes. Having said that, we know what we’re up against here. We’re up against the best team in Canada. We have to play for 60 minutes.”
Game two is Thursday night at 7:07 p.m. at the Essar Centre. The series shifts to Guelph on Sunday for game three.
(PHOTO: Soo Greyhounds players celebrate a goal during game one of their playoff series agains the Guelph Storm on April 8, 2015 at the Essar Centre in Sault Ste. Marie. Kenneth Armstrong/SooToday)