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Thunderbirds winning streak hits 10 games

A three-goal opening period set the tone for the Thunderbirds
2022-03-04 Thunderbirds vs. Cochrane NOJHL (1)
NOJHL action between the Soo Thunderbirds and Cochrane Crunch at the GFL Memorial Gardens on March 4, 2022.

The Soo Thunderbirds winning streak hit double digits on Friday night.

The Thunderbirds scored three times in the opening period and cruised to a 6-1 win over the Cochrane Crunch in Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League action at the GFL Memorial Gardens.

Russell Oldham had a pair of goals in the opening period for the Thunderbirds, opening the scoring seven minutes into the contest and adding a power play marker in the final minute of the frame.

Michael Chaffay had the other goal in the opening period for the Thunderbirds, which saw the locals outshoot the Crunch by a 16-2 margin.

Though the teams traded goals in the second period, it was more of the same from the Thunderbirds, who mirrored the opening period with another 16 shots on Cochrane goaltender Michael Nicholau.

Kelsey Ouellet scored on the power play with just over six minutes to go in the period to give the Thunderbirds a 4-0 lead though Ryan Matthews would get the Crunch on the board just 2:07 later with his fourth goal of the season.

Chaffay and Dharan Cap rounded out the scoring for the Thunderbirds with goals in the final period.

In addition to two-point nights for Chaffay and Oldham, Ouellet and Cap also had multi-point nights with a goal and an assist each in the win.

Nicholau made 39 saves for the short-staffed Crunch in the loss.

Noah Metivier made 10 saves for the Thunderbirds.

Originally scheduled to face the Hearst Lumberjacks on Friday, that game was postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak within the Lumberjacks roster.

The win improves the Thunderbirds record to 30-5-2-3.

The Crunch, who have lost 28-straight games, have a record of 2-34-1-2 following the loss. The losing streak has seen the club go 0-26-0-2.

The Thunderbirds are scheduled to return to action on Tuesday night on the road against the Soo (Mich.) Eagles at Pullar Stadium.



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Brad Coccimiglio

About the Author: Brad Coccimiglio

A graduate of Loyalist College’s Sports Journalism program, Brad Coccimiglio’s work has appeared in The Hockey News as well as online at FoxSports.com in addition to regular freelance work with SooToday before joining the team full time.
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