Allard is aces in Hounds comeback win
by Peter Ruicci (Independent Media) | Photo by Bob Davies
Saying goodbye to close friends is never easy.
But Owen Allard offered the Soo Greyhounds a fond farewell on Friday.
On a night when the Hounds didn’t meet a deficit they couldn’t overcome, Allard scored twice and added three assists as the Soo stopped the Kingston Frontenacs 7-5 in front of 3,551 at GFL Memorial Gardens.
“It feels great to contribute, especially when we were down in the game,” said Allard, playing in his final contest before leaving Sunday at 6 a.m. for the Team Canada National Junior Selection Camp in Oakville. “To put up some numbers to help the team get a victory is very satisfying.”
The tryout camp runs from Sunday through Wednesday. Thirty players, including 16 forwards, are vying for spots on the Canadian squad for the 2024 world championships, which begin Dec. 26 in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Adding to his numbers on Friday, Allard produced a plus-minus of plus-4, while firing seven shots on Kingston goalie Mason Vaccari.
Asked about falling behind 3-0 – after a shaky first period – and 4-2, Allard spoke of how he and his teammates rely on a strong mental approach.
“We know we’re the best team in the league when we play our best,” said Allard, who leaves town with a 14-16-30 stat line in 29 games. “That gives us the confidence to come back.”
Head coach John Dean, whose club carries a 19-8-2-0 record into Sunday’s 2:07 p.m. home-ice clash with London, has been singing the praises of Allard since the regular season began on Sept. 29.
As far as Dean is concerned, what more is there to say?
“Owen Allard is Owen Allard,” said the coach, who chuckled when asked about the play of his veteran centre. “There’s no sense talking about him.”
Trailing 3-0 after turnovers helped dig an early Greyhounds hole, Dean said the team maintained a positive approach between the first and second periods.
He noted how “this group doesn’t need to be yelled at,” and how the club talked about making some small adjustments.
“We regrouped in the dressing room and reminded each other that we’re the better team,” said winger Marco Mignosa, who notched his 10th and 11th goals. “We started playing faster when we got behind. The crowd gave us energy and when we’re down, we motivate each other.”
Dean, whose club scored the only two goals of the middle frame, called the final 40 minutes “some of the best hockey we’ve played all season.”
Gabriel Frasca’s power-play goal at 3:10 of the final period staked the visitors to a 4-2 lead.
“It would have been easy for us to break at that point,” said Dean, whose team finished up with a 37-22 shots advantage. “But we’re a resilient, resilient group.”
Two goals down, Mignosa trimmed the Hounds deficit to a single goal at 5:03. Allard moved the puck ahead to Mignosa, who skated in, made a right-to-left deke and beat Vaccari on the backhand.
Just 1:10 later, Kirill Kudryavtsev’s stretch pass to Jack Beck set the stage for Brenden Sirizzotti’s eighth goal. Beck slid the puck across and Sirizzotti went up high to make it 4-4.
Though replay appeared to show the Hounds had six men on the ice, the goal stood.
Frontenacs head coach Troy Mann referred to the non-call as “the turning point in the game. It was a missed call.”
Justin Cloutier’s slick pass from the left side of the goal set up Beck’s power-play marker at 8:51. That gave the Soo its first lead.
And the Hounds made it four goals in a span of 4:12 when Allard notched his 13th of the campaign. Julian Fantino fed Allard who rifled a shot from the left circle, beating Vaccari high to the glove side to make it 6-4.
With Vaccari on the bench for a sixth attacker, Kingston got a power-play goal from Ethan Miedema to cut its deficit to 6-5 with 1:09 left in regulation.
Allard capped the scoring with a late empty-netter.
Beck finished with a goal and two assists while Fantino had a goal and an assist. Kudryavtsev, Caeden Carlisle and Bryce McConnell-Barker had two assists each.
Jacob Battaglia had a goal and two assists in defeat while Gage Heyes and Vann Williamson had the other Kingston goals.
Paul Ludwinski was outstanding with four assists.
Mann, whose team fell to 13-14-1-0, spoke of how he loved the way his team played in the opening period.
“But we got away from that,” he added. “And if you’re going to play Sault Ste. Marie’s style of hockey, you’re going to lose.”
“I thought we were pretty elite after the first period,” said Cloutier. “We gave them nothing in the second and third. The compete level on this team is off the charts. We push each other.”
