Lessio proves more in Generals’ win
BRAMPTON, Ont. – Lucas Lessio scored one goal and added an assist to power the Oshawa Generals to a 5-2 Ontario Hockey League victory Sunday over the Brampton Battalion, clinching an Eastern Conference playoff berth for the Generals.
Daniel Maggio, Nicklas Jensen, Christian Thomas and Scott Laughton also scored for Oshawa, which moved its won-lost-extended record to 30-28-6 for 66 points, second in the East Division and seventh in the conference. Goaltender Kevin Bailie made 24 saves.
Ian Watters and Mitchell Porowski scored for the Battalion, while goaltender Matej Machovsky faced 21 shots, including a Josh Graves penalty shot, before a crowd of 2,540.
The Battalion is 34-22-10 for 78 points, third in the Central Division and fourth in the conference. The Troops, who no longer can overhaul the Barrie Colts, are destined to finish either fourth or fifth in the conference, meeting either Barrie or, likelier, the Sudbury Wolves in the first playoff round.
Barrie, which needs one point or a Sudbury loss of any kind to clinch third place in the conference, is 39-22-4 for 82 points with a game in hand on the Battalion. Sudbury has two games in hand and is three points behind the Troops at 35-24-5 for 75 points.
“They look like they’re hitting their stride, so you have to give Oshawa credit,” said Battalion coach Stan Butler. “They played a good game and forced us to play not as well as we wanted to.”
Said Butler: “The third goal was a big turning point, because at that point we’re in the game and we make a bad play in our own end and the puck ends up in our net. Now instead of going into the third period down 2-1 with the momentum of scoring the last goal, we go in on a letdown.
“There’s a big difference between being down two goals and one goal, because with one you can play the way you normally play. When you’re down by two or more, you have to do some things that maybe you wouldn’t normally do.”
Jensen scored the 3-1 goal at 19:17 of the second period, seizing a loose puck in the high slot that had deflected off a defender and firing a shot over Machovsky’s glove. The unassisted goal was Jensen’s 25th of the season.
Watters scored at 10:21 of the period. He escaped from Colin Suellentrop on the right-wing boards and fed Philip Lane, who lost control of the puck while trying to carry it from behind the goal line. Watters arrived to jam the disc home from the right lip of the crease.
Defenceman Maggio gave Oshawa a 2-0 lead at 4:29 of the frame, blasting a slap shot from the right point that deflected inside the far post.
Thomas made it 4-1 at 4:09 of the third period during a two-man advantage scheduled to last 1:48 after Butler received a bench minor for comments to linesman Dave Pfohl for a too-many-men call. Thomas hammered a one-timer from the top of the left circle for his 31st goal on assists by Matt Petgrave and Lessio.
Laughton connected at 9:18, firing a high shot inside the far post off a left-wing rush for his 21st goal.
Porowski went to the net to convert the rebound of a Barclay Goodrow shot from the right wing at 19:07.
Machovsky made a sensational save on Thomas in the third minute, sliding across with a two-pad stack to deny the attacker a wide-open net. Laughton sent a left-wing pass to Thomas on a two-on-one opportunity.
Lessio opened the scoring at 3:43 of the first period off a faceoff win by Boone Jenner. He got the puck back to Lessio, who swept home his team-leading 33rd goal.
Graves was awarded a penalty shot at 17:53 of the period after being hauled down on a breakaway by two defenders. On the attempt, Graves skated in from the right side and made a move to his forehand, but Machovsky stretched out his right pad for the save.
The Battalion scratched Spencer Abraham, Geoff Bezruchko, Andreas Tsogkas and Alex O’Neil. Oshawa scratches were Chris Carlisle, John Urbanic, Nick Quinn and Emerson Clark.
The Battalion visits Barrie at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
BATTALION NOTEBOOK: Machovsky’s save against Graves marked the first time in the club’s 14-year history that a Battalion goaltender has stopped the shooter on a penalty shot at home … Machovsky is 23-13-4 with a 2.36 goals-against average, second in the OHL to Mark Visentin of the Niagara IceDogs at 2.02, a .903 save percentage and five shutouts, third in the league … The Battalion went 0-for-3 on the power play. Oshawa was 1-for-5 … The Troops are 19-12-2 at home, while Oshawa is 14-15-3 on the road … The Battalion is 27-14-5 within the conference and 13-4-2 against East Division opponents … Opening line combinations included Sam Carrick centring left winger Brandon Robinson and right winger Goodrow, Watters pivoting left winger Brett Mackie and right winger Lane and Patrik Machac skating between left winger Derek Froats and right winger Matt MacLeod. Porowski centred Connor Jarvis on left wing and Jamie Lewis on right wing … Watters extended a points streak to five games, during which he has scored four goals and earned two assists for six points … Goodrow has a four-game points streak, during which span he has two goals and five assists for seven points … Tsogkas was recognized as the Battalion’s scholastic player of the month for February … Porowski and Graves engaged in a spirited first-period tilt, with both landing heavy blows … The fight came 14 seconds after Oshawa’s Sebastian Uvira was helped off the ice following a hit from Froats along the right-wing boards in the Battalion zone … Robinson left the game in the second period and didn’t return … The referees were Scott Ferguson and Kendrick Nicholson … The Battalion and Generals completed their season series, with the Troops posting a 2-1-1 record.
