Hishon Roofs Shootout Winner for OHL

SUDBURY, Ont. — Fans at the Sudbury Community Arena didn’t mind seeing Casey Cizikas score this time.

The Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors forward scored short-handed in the third period and Owen Sound’s Joey Hishon added the clincher in the shootout Monday as the Ontario Hockey League all-stars defeated Russia 2-1 in the fourth game of the Canada-Russia Super Series.

With the victory, the OHL tied the series 2-2, after winning both of the games on the Ontario leg. Russia swept the first two against the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

Cizikas said he was surprised to be cheered by Sudbury fans, especially after he scored Friday night in Mississauga’s 8-4 road win over Sudbury.

“The fans were great tonight. They came out and they supported us,” Cizikas said.

Sudbury’s Marcus Foligno and Ryan Ellis of the Windsor Spitfires also scored in the shootout for the OHL.

The fans were especially noisy when hometown captain Foligno took to the ice for his shootout attempt.

“I didn’t hear the whistle before the penalty shot, because it was so loud,” Foligno said.

Cizikas’ goal was set up by Majors teammate Justin Shugg, who regularly kills penalties in the OHL.

Cizikas goal was the turning point in the game, as the OHL all-stars could not solve Russian goaltender Igor Bobkov in the first two periods.

“I just saw the puck hop up there and I did a move I do all the time,” he said.

Artem Voronin scored a second-period goal for the Russians off a defensive-zone mistake by the OHL’s Tyler Doherty. Nikita Dvurechensky picked up the assist.

With the victory, the OHL remains undefeated in the series with a 16-0 record in eight years.

Cizikas was named the OHL’s player of the game.

Bobkov was spectacular, stopping 38 of the 39 shots he faced. He was named Russia’s player of the game.

“He was amazing, he almost hit forty shots and we only got one by him,” Cizikas said of Bobkov.

 

Mark Visentin of the Niagara IceDogs played the first 30:37 of the game before being replaced by Mississauga’s JP Anderson.

Anderson let in a goal on only the third shot against him, but was spectacular in the shootout, where he saved three of the four shootout attempts.

The crowd went wild as Wolves forward Foligno skated out to centre ice for his shootout attempt.

Foligno deked to his forehand before sliding the puck onto his backhand and roofing it past Bobkov, giving the OHL a 2-1 shootout lead and setting the stage for Hishon’s clincher.

Maxim Kitsyn had the only goal in the shootout for the Russians.

The OHL outshot the Russians 39-22, including 13-1 in the third period.

“In the change room before the third, we came together as a team, Cizikas said. “We got pucks deep, we did what we had to do, and came away with the win.”

OHL defenceman Erik Gudbranson was impressed with the Russians’ physical game.

“(The Russians) were super skilled, and they were a lot bigger than the Russians I had played in previous years and previous tournaments,” he said. “They were very physical. They played a Canadian-style game.”

The series heads to British Columbia for two final games against the Western Hockey League all-stars. The Russians are in Kamloops on Wednesday before wrapping up in Prince George on Thursday.

 

*Story Courtesy of Sportsnet.ca