Hounds fail to challenge Schenkel
by Peter Ruicci (Independent Media) | Photo courtesy of @robertjohnboucher
Consistency remains painfully illusive for the 2024-2025 Soo Greyhounds.
Having peppered the Peterborough Petes goaltending tandem on Thursday, the Hounds – just 24 hours later – made life easy for former teammate Charlie Schenkel.
The Soo generated little in the way of chances, falling 3-1 to the Kingston Frontenacs in front of 4,137 at Slush Puppie Place in Kingston.
The Greyhounds used 51 shots to score seven times in blanking the Petes.
But they produced only 16 shots, including a game-high of just six in the final period, while being outshot 34-16 in Kingston.
“It was definitely frustrating. From 51 to 16 is not ideal,” said veteran winger Marco Mignosa, the club’s leading scorer. “It’s nothing to be happy about. I’m angry, yeah, I’d say so.”
“We wanted to be playmakers again, instead of where we found success last night – using our speed,” added head coach John Dean, whose club fell to 17-24-1-0 heading into Sunday’s 2 p.m. start in Ottawa. “We passed up opportunities to shoot the puck. We tried to make plays that weren’t there.”
The Soo coach spoke of how the team is determined to play a style where pucks move quickly through the neutral zone and shots directed at the opposing goal are plentiful.
“But tonight we looked as if we wanted to use a playmaking style and that just doesn’t work for us,” he added.
Dean also credited the Frontenacs for their ability to smother rival attacks.
He spoke of how they invite opponents to try to make plays and then thwart them.
“We have a lot of players who are confident in their ability and sometimes they get carried away with it,” the Soo coach said.
The visitors opened the scoring at 4:51 of the opening frame. Chase Reid’s point shot was redirected in front by Noel Nordh, who beat Schenkel on the stick side for his 10th goal in 21 games.
Minutes later, Vann Williamson’s feed from the point was redirected at the right side of the Soo goal by Cedrick Guindon. Greyhounds netminder Landon Miller got a piece of the puck, but it trickled through his legs and the game was tied.
Midway through the second period, a slick passing play helped give Kingston the lead. Guindon sent the puck in front to a driving Tuomas Uronen who beat his man to the goal.
The puck hit Uronen’s skate and deflected in for a 2-1 Fronts lead.
The Hounds surrendered a crushing goal early in the third.
With the Soo on the power play, Travis Hayes had his shot blocked by Kingston’s Maleek McGowan just inside the Kingston blue-line.
The veteran defenceman skated down the left wing on a 2-on-1 and fired from the dot in the left circle. His blast beat Miller high to the glove side for a short-handed tally and a 3-1 Frontenacs lead at the 3:40 mark.
The Greyhounds had another power play that began with 4:46 left in regulation.
But they were unable to convert.
Dean spoke of how his team’s power play has been a positive of late.
But on Friday “we looked a little disconnected. There was an opportunity for us to get back in the mix.”
He also spoke of how pleased he was with the Soo’s third period pushback.
“I thought our guys went hard right to the end,” the coach added. “The last 10-12 minutes of the third, I was happy with our push.”
Guindon and Uronen led the winners with a goal and an assist each. The victory for Schenkel was his first since joining Kingston at the trade deadline.
With 35 points in 42 games, the eighth-place Hounds are four points ahead of Owen Sound and Guelph in the Western Conference playoff race. Both of those clubs have played 41 times.