Storm has raged since Brampton visit
BRAMPTON, Ont. – Getting back on the road for two of three Ontario Hockey League games this weekend shouldn’t faze the Brampton Battalion.
The Battalion visits the Guelph Storm at 7:30 p.m. Friday before traveling to St. Catharines to take on the Niagara IceDogs on Saturday night. That game marks the seventh road date in a span of eight games for the Troops, who have lost two in a row after six straight wins. The Battalion hosts the Kingston Frontenacs at 2 p.m. Sunday.
“I’m excited for the weekend,” said defenceman Cameron Wind. “We’ve been having a good week of practice and we’re up against some good teams, so it will be a good test for us. I think we’re going to bounce back with a couple of good games.”
The Troops, with a won-lost-extended record of 12-10-5 for 29 points, fourth in the Central Division, have been careful not to look past Guelph, 16-8-3 for 35 points and third place in the Midwest Division.
“We’ve got a tough task with the Storm,” noted Wind. “We’ll have a good game if we can shut down their big guys the way we have with other teams we’ve played.”
Left winger Tanner Richard paces Guelph offensively with 33 points, from two goals and 31 assists, in 24 games. Right winger Scott Kosmachuk has scored a team-leading 18 goals and added 14 assists for 32 points in 27 games.
Kosmachuk has produced six goals and two assists in the last three games for Guelph, which defeated the visiting Ottawa 67’s 7-5 last Saturday night in its most recent game. The Storm is 4-0-2 in its last six outings, its last regulation loss coming at the hands of the host Battalion in a 5-1 verdict Nov. 11.
“They’ve been hot for a long time,” said defencemen Zach Bell. “They have a lot of firepower up front. We’ve got a big backstop so, if we stick to what’s made us successful this year, we’ll be in good shape.”
Bell and defence partner Wind, as well as goaltender Matej Machovsky, a former member of the Storm, figure to be relied on to keep Guelph’s key scorers at bay.
“It’s nothing we haven’t seen before,” said Bell. “We’ve gone up against the top lines since being paired together last year. We know what our strengths are as players, and we stick to them and keep things simple.”
Said Bell: “Their lineup has the wow factor with offensive players. Having beaten them already is big for the confidence in the room with the young guys, but it’s a leadership thing, and knowing we’re capable of beating them is big.”
Added Wind: “It’s always different on the road when we can’t get the matchups we want. We’ve played better on the road in the last month than we have at home, so it’s about keeping that going.”
Former Battalion goaltender Keegan Wilson made his Storm debut in the win over Ottawa, which traded him to the Storm on Nov. 12 for a seventh-round pick in the 2013 OHL Priority Selection. Wilson stopped 24 of 29 shots and Kosmachuk scored an empty-net goal against the 67’s.
The game at Guelph can be seen live in Brampton on Rogers Cable 10 and in Caledon and Orangeville on Rogers Cable 63.
