Wolves upend Greyhounds in overtime (video, 12 photos)

With the Ontario Hockey League regular season heading into the homestretch, every game takes on some added importance as the season winds down.

For the Soo Greyhounds, an opportunity was there to pick up two crucial points in the standings.

Instead the team dropped a 6-5 overtime decision to the Sudbury Wolves at the GFL Memorial Gardens.

Greyhounds coach John Dean called the loss “disappointing.”

“It doesn’t matter who we’re playing, these are games that you need to win,” Dean added. “These are all important games at this point. Not finding a way to get two points tonight is tough.”

“That’s definitely not one of our better games,” added rookie forward Owen Allard. “It just goes to show that we have to play a full 60-minute game every night from here on out. Points are getting tighter so we have to dial it in and start on time.”

Allard added he felt the team needs to “be more hungry from the start.”

“We really have to start on time,” Allard added.

The Wolves rebounded on three separate occasions in the game after falling behind. Dean said it was

“You have to make sure that you play the same way at all times and we let them climb back into the game,” Dean said.

For Wolves coach Craig Duncanson, the win was a worthwhile one for a young Wolves team.

“Our guys have been really scratching and clawing the last six games or seven games now and have been in every game,” Duncanson said. “We’re young and a little bit immature at times when the games get close. It’s nice to hang on against a well-disciplined and experienced team like the Hounds.”

Owen Allard opened the scoring for the Greyhounds just 1:53 into the contest when he beat Sudbury goaltender Mitchell Weeks short side from the left circle.

The Wolves got on the board at 6:04 of the second period when Landon McCallum beat Greyhounds goaltender Tucker Tynan shortly after the Wolves killed off a Greyhounds power play.

Sudbury would make it 2-1 when Nick DeGrazia picked up a mishandled puck by Greyhounds forward Rory Kerins in the Greyhounds zone as the veteran Sault forward was falling down. The puck eventually found its way to Ethan Larmand who proceeded to beat Tynan to give the Wolves the lead.

With the Greyhounds on the power play, Robert Calisti tied the game on a one-timer from the right side. Cole MacKay hit Calisti with the pass from below the goalline on the play.

Kerins then gave the Greyhounds the lead at 14:35 of the second when he beat Weeks from the left circle, also on the power play.

The Wolves would tie the game at three at 17:24 when Tynan stopped Evan Konyen initially, but the rebound deflected in off Greyhounds forward Kalvyn Watson.

With 1:11 to go in the period, Watson redeemed himself by batting in a rebound past Weeks to give the Greyhounds a 4-3 lead.

Sudbury tied the game at four at 3:16 of the third period when he beat Tynan with a point shot 5-hole through traffic from the point on the power play.

The Wolves then took a 5-4 lead as DeGrazia scored on a breakaway after the Greyhounds turned the puck over at the other end.

Allard would pick up his second of the night to tie the game at five at 15:21 of the third when he took a pass from Bryce McConnell-Barker on a 2-on-1 and beat Weeks.

Nolan Collins gave the Wolves the victory when he took a pass from DeGrazia from below the goalline and beat Tynan high from the slot at 3:52 of the extra frame.

Allard finished the night with three points on the strength of a pair of goals and an assist.

Calisti and Kerins added a pair of assists each while Thompson assisted on a pair of goals. 

Tynan stopped 31 shots for the Greyhounds. 

DeGrazia finished the night with a goal and two assists for the Wolves.

“He was a man all night,” Duncanson said.

Larmand added a goal and an assist while David Goyette assisted on a pair of goals.

Weeks finished the night with 37 saves for the Wolves.

Wednesday’s game marked the return to Sault Ste. Marie for defenceman Jacob Holmes and forward Marc Boudreau, who were dealt to the Wolves as part of the Jack Thompson trade ahead of the OHL trade deadline in January.

“Both Holmer and Boudy have been just a welcomed addition,” Duncanson said. “They’re a positive influence. They’re talented and hard -working young men.”

With the loss, the Greyhounds fall to 27-15-5-1 and sit two pointes behind the Flint Firebirds for top spot in the OHL’s West Division.

Sudbury, in a battle with the Peterborough Petes for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, improve to 17-26-3-2 with the win and sit two points ahead of the Petes.

The Greyhounds return to action for a pair of games this weekend against the London Knights beginning Friday night before wrapping up 24 hours later.

Puck drop for both games at the GFL Memorial Gardens is set for 7:07 p.m.

The Greyhounds played Wednesday’s contest minus veteran defenceman Ryan O’Rourke, who remains out of the lineup after suffering an upper-body injury in a game against the Sarnia Sting on Feb. 11.

Dean said O’Rourke will play on Friday night against London in a game that will also see the team get Tye Kartye back in the lineup after serving a four-game suspension.

Additionally, Dean said goaltender Samuel Ivanov is “progressing,” but said the netminders return is “tough to put a timeline on.”