READING, PA – All but one of the OHL playoff series had ended prior to Tuesday nights Game 7 that pitted the Ottawa 67’s against the Niagara IceDogs who had some unfinished business to take care of before the rest of the teams moved on to the second round of the OHL playoffs. 
Niagara won the first game of the series, and neither team won back-to-back games in the series. Formed held true as Niagra won in dramatic fashion 4-3 on Andrew Agozzino scored 13 seconds into overtime for the come-from-behind victory. Going into Tuesday night’s game, Julien Demers, a fifth round pick of the San Jose Sharks in 2008, leads all playoff scorers with 10 assists for Ottawa. Marco Insam leads the IceDog offense with 4 goals and 4 assists. Niagra will now take on the top seed in the Eastern Conference, the Bellville Bulls, while the Brampton Battalion takes on the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors. In the Western Conference, the Windsor Spitfires will take on the Plymouth Whalers on Thursday night to begin their series. The London Knights are set to take on the Saginaw Spirit. Below is a preview of the Western Conference matchups. Windsor Spitfires Vs. Plymouth Whalers Windsor’s Taylor Hall, the leading candidate to be the first overall pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, had seven goals and 5 assists in Windsor’s four game sweep of the Owen Sound Attack. Hall leads all OHL scorers with 7 goals and 5 assists for 12 points. Teammate Eric Wellwood chipped in with 4 goals and 4 assists as well. The Whaler offense is lead by Tyler Seguin (11 points), Chris Terry (10 points) who is a fifth round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes in 2007, and Matt Caria (9 points). This series will pit the top two goaltenders in the playoffs. Spitfire goaltender Josh Unice, a third round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2007, is second overall in goals against average (1.50) and save percentage (.950) allowing only two goals on 40 shots in two games played. Plymouth goaltender Matt Hackett is first overall in goals against average (.98) and save percentage (.970). Playoff Schedule Game 1 – Thu Apr 2 7:05 PM Plymouth at Windsor Game 2 – Sat Apr 4 7:05 PM Windsor at Plymouth Game 3 – Sun Apr 5 TBD Plymouth at Windsor Game 4 – Tue Apr 7 7:05 PM Windsor at Plymouth Game 5 – Thu Apr 9 7:05 PM * Plymouth at Windsor Game 6 – Sat Apr 11 7:05 PM * Windsor at Plymouth Game 7 – Mon Apr 13 7:05 PM * Plymouth at Windsor London Knights (2) Vs. Saginaw Spirit (3) The Spirit finished third in the conference with the Knights holding a 3-1 edge in the regular season series. Knights Zac Rinaldo is sitting out most of the series due to a six game suspension for a hit on the Erie Otters’ Ryan O’Reilly. The Knights have John Tavares, who is projected to be the first overall pick in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft in June. Tavares had four goals and four assists against Erie , as did teammate Nazem Kadri, where the Knights took the series in five games. Phil Varone leads the team in points with 10 points on five goals and five assists. Trevor Cann, a second round pick of the Colorado Avalanche in 2007, is fourth in the playoffs in goals against average (2.01) and third in save percentage (.940). Saginaw is led by Jack Combs who has six goals and three assists. Edward Pasquale is ninth in goals against average (2.01) and eighth in save percentage (.927). Playoff Schedule Game 1 – Thu Apr 2 7:00 PM Saginaw at London Game 2 – Sat Apr 4 7:11 PM London at Saginaw Game 3 – Sun Apr 5 7:00 PM Saginaw at London Game 4 – Tue Apr 7 7:11 PM London at Saginaw Game 5 – Thu Apr 9 7:00 PM * Saginaw at London Game 6 – Sat Apr 11 7:11 PM * London at Saginaw Game 7 – Mon Apr 13 7:00 PM * Saginaw at London Source: http://www.ontariohockeyleague.com/ Contact the author at Brian.Jennings@prohockeynews.com
You must be logged in to post a comment.