Newcomers contributing
NORTH BAY, Ont. — With trade acquisitions adjusting to their new surroundings, the North Bay Battalion is prepared to embark on a three-game week when the Erie Otters visit at 7 p.m. Thursday.
North Bay sports a won-lost-extended record of 20-14-6 for 46 points, second in the Ontario Hockey League’s Central Division, one point behind the Sudbury Wolves, who hold a game in hand. Erie is 19-16-4 for 42 points, fourth in the Midwest Division.
The Battalion visits the Mississauga Steelheads on Friday night and plays host to the Niagara IceDogs on Sunday.
“Erie’s a good hockey team,” Battalion coach Ryan Oulahen said Wednesday. “They play in a really strong division, and they’re coming in here. They’ve got a good squad, so we’ve got to be at our best tomorrow night.”
The three players acquired in a trade Jan. 6 with the Sarnia Sting all earned their first points with the Battalion in a 6-3 road win Saturday night over the Soo Greyhounds. Right winger Sandis Vilmanis scored the winning goal in the third period, while right winger Andrew LeBlanc had one goal and one assist and twin brother Jacob LeBlanc, a defenceman, contributed one assist.
Rearguard Bronson Ride joined the Troops in a Jan. 7 trade with Niagara.
“All four additions have been really headsy, smart players that have come in,” noted Oulahen.
“I see them as having made some really good additions and added to the chemistry. I wasn’t sure how the line matchups were actually going to be, but they looked good. It looks like some things are starting to click a little bit, especially on the back end, with some of those D pairings.”
Oulahen said three days of practice before the Erie visit have been a bonus.
“It’s been nice getting some reps in, especially in practice but also in the games. To be honest, it takes me a little bit of time, too, to learn the guys. You’re putting out different pairings in different situations, so you’ve got to get the rhythm on the bench back a little bit.”
The Battalion boasts three players on notable points streaks, in linemates Anthony Romani, Dalyn Wakely and Owen Van Steensel.
Right winger Romani, who has scored in the last seven games, is riding a 17-game streak in which he has 17 goals and as many assists for 34 points. In the last nine games, centre Wakely has seven goals and seven assists for 14 points, while in eight games left winger Van Steensel has scored four goals and added five assists for nine points.
With a team-leading 35 goals and 32 assists for 67 points in 40 games, Romani was tied with Hunter Brzustewicz of the Kitchener Rangers atop the OHL scoring race before their Wednesday night visit to the Guelph Storm. In 42 games, defenceman Brzustewicz had eight goals and a league-high 59 assists. Romani’s goals total was second to Kitchener centre Carson Rehkopf’s 37.
Wakely is second in Battalion offence with 19 goals and a team-leading 35 assists for 54 points in 39 games, while Van Steensel has 19 goals and 25 assists for 44 points in 38 games. Left winger Justin Ertel has scored 15 goals and earned 27 assists for 42 points in 39 games.
Centre Pano Fimis, whom Niagara took second overall in the 2020 OHL Priority Selection after North Bay chose defenceman Ty Nelson, paces the Erie offence with 12 goals and a team-leading 35 assists for 47 points in 39 games.
Left winger Malcolm Spence has scored 10 goals and earned 29 assists for 39 points in as many games, while centre Carey Terrance, a member of the United States team that won gold this month in the World Junior Championship in Sweden, has a team-high 23 goals and 13 assists for 36 points in 31 games.
Also on the roster for Erie, coached by longtime Battalion bench boss Stan Butler, is defenceman Matthew Schaefer, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 Priority Selection from the Halton Hurricanes U16s. The Stoney Creek, Ont., resident has two goals and 10 assists for 12 points in 33 games.
Otters goaltender Ben Gaudreau, a Corbeil product, was a first-round selection, seventh overall, by Sarnia in 2019.
“He is a good goaltender, and he’s played well against us,” allowed Oulahen.
The Erie game features Bell Let’s Talk Night, dedicated to promoting mental health.
