Zurawski shines for Attack
OWEN SOUND, Ont. — Cole Zurawski scored two goals, including an empty-netter, and added four assists as the Owen Sound Attack doubled the North Bay Battalion 6-3 in Ontario Hockey League preseason action Wednesday night.
Pierce Mbuyi scored two goals, while Harry Nansi had one goal and three assists and Elliot Arnett provided the other goal.
Overage goaltender Ryerson Leenders made 33 saves as the Battalion carried much of the play at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre. Owen Sound has a won-lost-extended record of 2-1-0 in exhibition games.
Arseny Pronin scored two goals for North Bay, which erased a 3-0 deficit. Ryder Carey contributed one goal, and goaltender Owen Loftus, making his OHL debut, gave up five goals on 19 shots. The Troops are 1-1-0.
Carey tied it 3-3 at 5:49 of the third period, taking a neutral zone turnover to the high slot and wristing the puck past Leenders.
Mbuyi scored the winner at 13:01 from the slot, his shot deflecting off a defender’s stick. Nansi and Zurawski assisted.
Zurawski struck 27 seconds later after Loftus hesitated in playing the puck on a dump-in by John Banks. Zurawski completed the scoring into the empty net at 19:48.
Owen Sound scored two goals early in the second period for a 3-0 lead, ignited by Mbuyi at 28 seconds. He banged home the rebound of a sharp-angle shot by Zurawski that bounced along Loftus’s pad and rolled to the far side.
Nansi connected at 2:44, sweeping a one-timer to the short side off a pass from Zurawski.
Pronin replied with a pair of goals 1:05 apart starting at 8:30 when he one-timed the puck from the slot on an assist by Carter Kunopaski.
Adrian Manzo then sent Pronin in alone on a long stretch pass for a shot that beat Leenders low to the blocker side.
Owen Sound took a 1-0 lead at 10:53 of the first period when defenceman Arnett shoveled the puck home from the left circle on a feed from behind the goal line by Nansi. Zurawski had the other assist.
North Bay dominated the first frame, outshooting the hosts 12-5 after taking an early 10-1 lead.
The Battalion plays host to the Sudbury Wolves at 2 p.m. Sunday in the third of four exhibition games.
BATTALION BULLETS: The Battalion went 0-for-3 on the power play. Owen Sound was 0-for-4 … Opening lines included Cam Warren centring left winger Max Crete and right winger Parker Vaughan, Evgeny Dubrovtsev pivoting left winger Shamar Moses and right winger Carey and Nolan Laird centring left winger Rene Van Bommel and right winger Pronin. Lincoln Edwards centred left winger Austin Brekelmans and right winger Kam Hodgson … Defence pairings saw Aaron Enright with Hayden Barch, Alexander Karmanov with Kunopaski and Oskar Konobelj with Manzo … Mike McIvor backed up Loftus, North Bay’s first-round pick in the OHL Priority Selection in June … The Battalion was without Cole Vreugdenhil, Jonathan Kapageridis, Kent Greer, Declan Gallivan, Alexandre Saulnier, Jax Pereira, Easton Poe and Nikolas Rossetto … Poe served a one-game suspension for drawing a second game misconduct as the aggressor in a third-period fight with Ty Daniels in a 2-1 road win Sunday over the Brampton Steelheads … Laird and Van Bommel again were designated as alternate captains … Among Owen Sound’s scratches was Jacob Therrien, who’s injured … The Attack acquired Leenders from the Brantford Bulldogs in a June 2 trade … Drew Jackson and Mac Nichol were the referees.
