Colts run wild on weary Petes
Article courtesy of www.gopetesgo.com
After two losses in as many nights, the Petes were poised to get back into the win column on Saturday night against the Barrie Colts. The Colts made the most of their opportunities, while Peterborough couldn’t solve Blackwood early as Barrie earned a 7-2 win.
Peterborough controlled the first five minutes, putting together a confident powerplay and testing Colts starter Mackenzie Blackwood repeatedly. The veteran keeper maintained his reputation early, however, which opened up a chance for Barrie to break the ice. Brendan Lemieux did just that, tipping the puck behind Dylan Wells from Rasmus Andersson and Joseph Blandisi at 6:22.
Peterborough was on the naughty list in the opening period, and Santa left a pile of powerplays under Barrie’s tree. The Colts could only take advantage of such opportunity, but they added to their lead with a goal by Kevin Labanc assisted by Andersson and Andrew Mangiapane.
The Petes got on the board in a big way a few minutes later, though, as Jonathan Ang battled his way into the slot and wristed in the first goal of his OHL career. Cam Lizotte and Nick Ritchie added helpers on the play, making it 2-1 Barrie.
The Colts weren’t done in the opening twenty, though, as Justin Scott and Joseph Blandisi each lit the lamp with assistance from Labanc, who had a three point first period. At the end of the frame, Barrie led 4-1 with a 15-12 shot lead.
Matthew Mancina got the nod to replace Wells in the second period, and both sides of the score sheet got a bit of a rest in the second, although the referees were just as busy calling penalties as the rivalry grew. The action remained on the physical side until there were five minutes to play in the period.
On a Petes powerplay, Blandisi was at it again, scoring a short-handed breakaway goal from Labanc (again), which was followed shortly by a Nick Pastorious marker from Andersson and Givani Smith to put Barrie ahead 6-1 heading into a third period; proving that the visiting Colts were in clear disregard of the 28-22 shot lead.
In the third period, the Petes were again controlling play before Brendan Lemieux poked a loose puck behind Mancina, scoring from Blandisi and Labanc early in the frame. Josh MacDonald got one back for the Petes with just over five minutes to play, scoring the 100th point of his OHL career and drawing assists from Nick Ritchie and Matt Spencer.
Peterborough couldn’t draw any closer, and Barrie hopped on the bus with a 7-2 road win, trailing 39-37 in shots at the end of the game. Labanc (one goal, four assists), Blandisi (two goals, two assists), and Blackwood (37 saves) were the Original Pond Gear first, second, and third stars of the game, while Jonathan Ang.
The Colts will continue their road trip Sunday afternoon as they take on the Ottawa 67’s (13-11-1-1). Puck drop is 2:00pm.
