67’s clinch playoff berth with rout of IceDogs
For the ninth straight season, the Ottawa 67’s have clinched a spot in the Ontario Hockey League playoffs.
The blue line led the way in the clinching road win, Thursday night, with Matthew Mayich, Frankie Marrelli, Henry Mews, and hometown boy Derek Smyth all scoring in a game where Ottawa took the lead, and never looked back. Hardly tested in goal, Ian Michelone did his part to the tune of 24 saves, as the 67’s cruised to an 8-2 win over the Niagara IceDogs.
Not to be outdone by their blue-liners, Cooper Foster scored twice, Braeden Kressler hit the twine, and captain Luca Pinelli added his team-leading 41st of the season for good measure. Setting everyone up was Jacob Maillet, with four assists.
Head Coach Dave Cameron has now guided the 67’s to the playoffs in all three of his seasons with the team, including a Hamilton Spectator Trophy win a season ago.
Despite being on their heels to begin the game, a Mayich point shot fooled Owen Flores with just under five to play in the opening frame, putting the 67’s up 1-0.
Just under three minutes later, Marrelli took a Maillet pass into the offensive zone, and rifled home his fifth of the campaign for a 2-0 lead.
Early in the second, Foster made a gorgeous backhand saucer feed to Mews at the side of the goal, and the outstanding 17-year-old made no mistake with a wide open cage.
It took all of 38 seconds for Ottawa to make it 4-0. Will Gerrior forced a turnover with a terrific back-checking effort, and Kressler converted on a wrist shot after a give-and-go with Pinelli.
Foster banged home a bouncing puck 59 seconds before the midway point of the frame, and with the score at 5-0, that was the end of the night for Flores, who was relieved by Charlie Robertson in the IceDogs goal.
Ryan Roobroeck got the home team on the board in the late goings of the second, but Foster’s second of the night in the early third made it a 6-1 game, quelling any hopes of a Niagara comeback.
From there, the St. Catharines native Smyth scored his first in 111 games on a wrister from the blue line, and Pinelli converted off the ensuing faceoff, bringing the score to 8-1.
Kevin He was awarded a penalty shot at the 14:51 mark, and scored his 29th, but that was as close as Niagara would get to catching the Barber Poles.
In a tight Eastern Conference race, the 67’s will now play for seeding, beginning with a visit to the Mississauga Steelheads tomorrow night at 7:00pm.
