In the second night of back-to-back games against some of the Ontario Hockey League’s top teams, the Soo Greyhounds are taking the positive of coming away with a point.
In what was a tight game throughout, the Greyhounds dropped a 4-3 shootout decision to the Oshawa Generals on Saturday night at the GFL Memorial Gardens.
Despite the result, the point is critical for a team battling for a playoff spot in the OHL’s Western Conference.
Calling the Generals, “the best team in the Eastern Conference”, Greyhounds coach John Dean credited his team in the setback.
“Extremely happy to get a point,” Dean added, saying that assistant coach Brendan Taylor spoke to the players after the loss to tell them “the sign of a good team is to find a way to get a point even when they’re not playing their ‘A game’.”
“We definitely looked tired and made some tired mistakes, but find a way to get a point,” Dean said.
Dean also said he was happy with the way his team “battled and scrapped” in the game.
“We were very disconnected,” Dean said. “A lot of gap between our D and our forwards, which ultimately ended up in them stuffing us and doing a really good job of transition against us.
“At the same time, a lot of spurts of some really good things too,” Dean added. “Some good O zone shifts. Some good transition. For the most part, it looked like a tired hockey game for us, but we dug in.”
After struggling with puck management at times a night earlier in a loss to the Sudbury Wolves. Oshawa interim coach Brad Malone talked about the lessons his team learned from that game that transitioned into Saturday’s come-from-behind win.
“Tonight we did a better job of managing pucks and putting things behind the net and trying to hold onto things and making them defend as long as possible,” Malone said.
With his team down by a pair of goals in the second period, Malone said that little needed to be said to his team prior to Oshawa getting back into the game.
“They knew,” Malone said. “The meeting this afternoon was pretty indicative of getting two points here. I was looking for a response from everybody. You play a 17-year-old goaltender instead of going back with (Jacob) Oster, it puts a little more of a fire under everybody to defend first. For the most part, we did that.”
After a scoreless opening period, the Greyhounds opened the scoring in the second period as Marco Mignosa grabbed the puck inside the Oshawa blueline on the right wing, skated into the faceoff circle and beat Generals goaltender Isaac Gravelle stick side at 4:55.
The Greyhounds took a 2-0 lead as Noel Nordh deflected a shot in the slot from Spencer Evans at the point past Gravelle at 7:02.
Oshawa pulled to within one when Brooks Rogowski got the puck while going to the net from Matthew Buckley and beat Nolan Lalonde in tight 2:38 later to make it a 2-1 game.
The Generals proceeded to tie the game with 14 seconds to go in the period as Noah Powell took a turnover from Greyhounds defenceman Caeden Carlisle and beat Lalonde on the power play.
In the third period, the Greyhounds took a 3-2 lead as Nordh took a pass while going to the net from Justin Cloutier and beat Gravelle in close at 11:50.
Oshawa tied the game 52 seconds later as Lauri Sinivuori converted a feed in close from Luca Marrelli in the right corner to tie the game at three.
Goals from Marrelli and Owen Griffin in the shootout were the difference for the Generals with Nordh being the lone Sault shooter to beat Gravelle in the shootout.
In addition to the two-goal night from Nordh, Cloutier and Spencer Evans picked up a pair of assists each for the Greyhounds.
Lalonde made 42 saves for the Greyhounds in the loss.
Dean called Lalonde “the best player on the ice.”
“He thrives in these situations,” Dean also said. “He likes to be leaned on.”
At the other end, Gravelle stopped 25 shots for Oshawa.
With six games to go in the regular season, the Greyhounds are on the road for four straight games next week before returning home for a pair of games on the final weekend of the OHL regular season.
The Greyhounds return to action on Thursday night in Windsor with a game against the Spitfires.
With a 24-34-2-2 record on the season, the Greyhounds gained a point on the Owen Sound Attack to move into sole possession of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
The Attack dropped a 7-3 decision to the Erie Otters in Erie on Saturday night.
The Greyhounds also gained a point on the seventh place Sarnia Sting, who also lost on Saturday night. The Sting have a game in hand on the Greyhounds, but the two clubs have two more games left against each other before the end of the regular season with one game in each city.
For the Generals, who are in a battle for positioning atop the Eastern Conference, Saturday’s victory gives the team a 38-19-4-2 record.