KNIGHTS TOP BARRIE 4-2
The Barrie Colts rounded out their season-series with the London Knights Saturday night as they were hoping to defeat one of the top teams in the nation for the second time this year.
The game started with a nice ceremony honouring those players that were away at the World Junior and Under-17 Tournament for both the Knights and the Colts.
In the end it was a trio of Knights forwards that led London to a 3-2 victory.
Vladislav Namestnikov, Seth Griffith and Greg McKegg combined for six points in the Knights win.
Barrie was without forwards Ivan Telegin and Gregg Sutch and goalie Mathias Niederberger, as rookie Alex Fotinos got his second start of the season.
Fotinos stopped all ten London attempts in the first period and the Colts scored on a 5-on-3 advantage to take a 1-0 lead after one period.
Steven Beyers went down to Mark Scheifele who went cross-crease to Colin Behenna who tapped the puck past Michael Houser.
In the second period the Knights came back with a pair of goals to take a 2-1 lead after 40 minutes and it was the newest Knight Gregg McKegg who helped London crack the score sheet.
McKegg and Namestnikov helped set up Seth Griffith for the tying goal, and then it was McKegg breaking in all alone and scoring his second in a Knights jersey, after the forward posted a goal and an assist in his debut one night prior in Sudbury.
In the third the Colts tied the game on Anthony Camara’s first in a Barrie uniform. Zach Hall and Daniel Erlich combined to set up the rugged forward who posted his eighth of the year.
Later in the period the Knights took advantage on a Colts penalty towards the end of the frame and wasted little time in scoring the game-winner. Namestnikov and Griffith set up Tyler Ferry who re-directed the puck past a helpless Fotinos.
Tanner Pearson made his return to the Colts lineup and had his league-best 17 game point streak snapped. Pearson missed eight games while winning Bronze alongside teammate Mark Scheifele in Alberta at the World Juniors. The forward still holds a two-point edge in the overall OHL scoring race.
The Colts will wrap up their weekend in Kingston Sunday afternoon for a matinee with the Frontenacs as they look to avoid their third straight loss.
Tanner Pearson and Mark Scheifele present Howie Campbell with their Team Canada jerseys.
