Bulls beat Battalion with late pair
BRAMPTON, Ont. – Daniil Zharkov and Jordan Mayer scored third-period goals to lead the Belleville Bulls to a 2-1 victory Friday night over the Brampton Battalion, ending the Troops’ Ontario Hockey League winning streak at four games.
Mayer scored at 12:21, beating Battalion goaltender Keegan Wilson with a quick shot through the five-hole for a 2-0 lead. Garrett Hooey, emerging from behind the goal line on the right wing, challenged defender Jordan Auld and slid the puck to Mayer for his 15th goal of the season.
Belleville moved its won-lost-extended record to 28-28-1 for 57 points, tied for third place in the East Division and eighth place in the Eastern Conference with the Peterborough Petes, who lost 3-1 to the host Kitchener Rangers. Bulls goaltender Malcolm Subban made 32 saves.
Sam Carrick scored the Battalion goal on the power play at 18:28, while Wilson faced 25 shots before a crowd of 2,392. The Troops are 31-19-9 for 71 points, third in the Central Division and fourth in the conference. The Barrie Colts defeated the host Ottawa 67’s 5-4 via shootout to vault one point ahead of the Battalion in both sets of standings.
“For the first two periods we played pretty well,” said Battalion coach Stan Butler. “I was disappointed with both their goals, because they were a direct result of players getting outworked.
“We talked in the dressing room between the second and third periods that, when you’re in a close game like that, every play on the ice is important and you can’t take anything for granted.
“As far as I’m concerned, on the goals they got they just outworked us, and it’s a shame that you lose a game because your players get outworked. Usually, that’s a trademark for our team; usually we don’t get outworked for goals.”
Said Brett Mackie, a former member of the Bulls: “I really wanted to win tonight. I always want to win, but tonight was one of those games that I would have liked to have the win because it was my last game against them.”
Noted Wilson: “All game we traded chances back and forth, and in the third period they capitalized on their opportunities in front of the net. We just have to bear down on our shots and shoot to score every shot. We need to get in the scoring zones and bury some pucks.”
With Wilson off for an extra attacker, giving the Troops a six-on-four skating advantage, Carrick cut the deficit to one, knocking the rebound of a Mackie shot from the left circle past Subban. Zach Bell had the other assist on Carrick’s team-leading 32nd goal.
Zharkov struck at 8:47, backhanding the puck home from the left lip of the crease after Adam Payerl did the spadework on the end boards.
Mackie had a would-be goal go to video review at 3:33 of the first period. Brandon Robinson chipped the puck to a streaking Carrick, who fired a shot off the right post. Mackie, cruising across the goalmouth, directed the rebound into the net with his right skate, with referee Scott Oakman indicating no goal immediately after the play and upon review.
“It’s always tough getting a goal called back, but I think we were able to work through that in the first period,” said Mackie.
The Battalion had a pair of power plays in the period, with Matt MacLeod enjoying the best scoring chance when he swiped at a loose puck that rolled across the top of the crossbar before bouncing away.
Geoff Bezruchko and Mackie worked a give-and-go from the left corner in the fifth minute of the second period, but Bezruchko’s one-timer was denied by Subban’s right pad, and Carrick rang iron for the second time on a low shot from the mid slot.
Wilson made consecutive saves against Payerl in the sixth minute, batting the puck out of the air after a toe-drag by Joseph Cramarossa was broken up and holding down the left pad to deny the rebound attempt. In the ninth minute, Wilson stretched out his right pad to foil Mack Lemmon.
The Battalion, which dressed 19, one below the limit, scratched Spencer Abraham, Philip Lane, Derek Froats, Barclay Goodrow and Alex O’Neil. Belleville was without John Chartrand, Alex Carnevale, Carter Sandlak and Branden Morris.
The Battalion hosts the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds at 2 p.m. Sunday.
BATTALION NOTEBOOK: The Battalion went 1-for-3 on the power play. Belleville was 0-for-2 … The Battalion is 17-11-2 at home. Belleville is 12-16-1 on the road … The Troops are 12-3-2 against East Division foes and 25-12-5 within the conference … Carrick extended a points streak to seven games, during which span he has scored six goals and added four assists for 10 points. He played his 245th career game, tying Jay Harrison for fifth place in club history. Carrick is ninth on the Troops’ all-time points list with 79 goals and 80 assists for 159 points … Mackie, acquired from Belleville in an Oct. 4 trade for a conditional eighth-round pick in the 2013 OHL Priority Selection, played what, barring a playoff meeting, was his last game against his former team. In three-plus seasons with the Bulls, Mackie registered 18 goals and 18 assists for 36 points in 179 games. He has nine goals and 18 assists for 27 points in 55 games with Brampton … Opening line combinations saw Carrick centring left winger Robinson and right winger MacLeod, Patrik Machac pivoting left winger Ian Watters and Mackie on right wing and Jamie Lewis centring left winger Mitchell Porowski and right winger Andreas Tsogkas. Centre Connor Jarvis and left winger Bezruchko had various linemates … Goodrow, who sat out a 3-1 victory Monday at Peterborough, served the second game of a three-game suspension for a check from behind on Michael Sgarbossa of the visiting Sudbury Wolves in a 5-4 overtime win last Sunday … Rookie Russian import Zharkov has 19 goals and 11 assists for 30 points in 39 games … Carrick and Luke Judson took part in a ceremonial faceoff with a representative from Via Rail Canada … The Battalion went 1-2-1 against Belleville this season.
