Determined not to let a slow start beat them on back-to-back nights, the Soo Greyhounds successfully answered their latest challenge on Friday.
After surrendering two early power-play goals 54 seconds apart, the visitors scored six unanswered goals to beat the Kingston Frontenacs 6-2 before 2,949 at the Leon’s Centre.
Bryce McConnell-Barker’s short-handed marker sparked the comeback for Hounds, who received outstanding netminding from Samuel Ivanov, a game-winning goal from defenceman Kirill Kudryavtsev and the first tally of rookie Christopher Brown’s OHL career.
“I’m beyond proud. I’m so happy for our guys,” said head coach John Dean, whose team got markedly better as the game went on. “These guys need to experience success. They need to experience what it feels like to score a bundle of goals, to work hard and be rewarded for it.”
“That was a big bounce-back win for sure,” added McConnell-Barker, whose team gave up three goals in 6:13 in the opening period on Thursday, eventually dropping a 6-2 decision in Peterborough.
However, 24 hours later, “we were competitive all over the ice and we were dialed in to our systems,” the captain added.
With his team down 2-0, McConnell-Barker made a beautiful individual effort, scoring short-handed at 18:23 of the opening frame. The London, Ont., native stole the puck in his own zone, carried it up the ice and beat Frontenacs netminder Ivan Zhigalov high to the glove-hand side.
There’s little doubt that goal, which cut the Soo’s deficit in half, provided an immediate lift.
“It was definitely a good momentum builder to get one going into the second period,” said McConnell-Barker, who also notched an empty-netter, finishing the night with two goals and an assist. “It brought some life to our team.”
“We look to him for big moments like that and he’s come through game-in-and-game-out,” Dean said of McConnell-Barker, a New York Rangers prospect who has six goals on the season.
With the score tied 2-2, Kudryavtsev notched his second of the season as the trailer on a Greyhounds rush. After a feed from Alex Kostov, who assisted on two goals for his first OHL points, Kudryavtsev skated alone to the front of the net.
He wound up beating Zhigalov to the glove-hand side. The goal, at 2:59 of the third period, gave the visitors a one-goal lead.
“That felt very good. I’m very proud for myself and my teammates,” said the Vancouver Canucks prospect, whose club snapped a six-game losing streak (0-2-3-1), while improving to 3-4-3-1 heading into Sunday’s trip-ending, 1 p.m. start in Ottawa. “This was very big for us. We had lost six in a row. Hopefully, we’ll feel more confident and start winning after this.”
Asked about the scene in the Hounds dressing room, Kudryavtsev spoke of how “the guys were very happy. It was unbelievable, like we had won the Stanley Cup. Everyone was so excited.”
While not overly busy on a night when the home team held a 29-28 edge in shots, Ivanov read plays impressively and made a series of big saves in tight.
The Richmond Hill, Ont., native made a nifty sliding stop on Paul Hughes midway through the second period, before robbing Paul Ludwinski at the side of the goal with 9:37 left in regulation.
“It feels good to be back winning,” said Ivanov. “I stayed patient tonight and read the plays the best I could. This is big for our team. It’s a definite confidence booster.”
“He was fantastic,” Dean said of the second-year netminder. “I still think we gave up too much, but Sammy was there when we needed him.”
With the Greyhounds trailing 2-1, Brown converted on the power play midway through the second period. The team’s first-round draft choice in 2022 gobbled up a McConnell-Barker rebound and deposited the puck into the yawning cage.
Later, with the score 3-2, Luc Brzustowski fired home an insurance goal, scoring through traffic from the left point with 9:15 left in regulation.
Just 15 seconds after McConnell-Barker’s empty-netter, Landon Hookey notched his first of the season to cap the scoring. Harrison Ballard drew an assist for his first OHL point.
Francesco Arcuri, at 5:01, and Jacob Battaglia, at 5:55, connected for first period power-play goals to stake the Fronts to their early lead. The loss dropped Kingston to 6-3-0-1.
Asked about the difference in his team’s play over a 24-hour span, Dean spoke of how the Soo “was very, very aggressive on the forecheck,” in Kingston. “We flipped the switch midway through the first period and that helped everything. The way we were relentless and engaged on the forecheck and in the offensive zone was probably the best we’ve seen all year.”
by Peter Ruicci (Independent Media) | Photo by Robert John Boucher
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