Kirill cashes in OT winner
by Peter Ruicci (Independent Media) | Photo by Natalie Shaver (OHLImages)
Determined to be more assertive offensively this season, Kirill Kudryavtsev did that – and more – on Saturday.
The veteran defenceman went coast-to-coast in overtime, before beating Saginaw netminder Jacob Brown high to the stick side at the 1:07 mark.
The dramatic goal gave the Hounds, who trailed 3-0 after 20 minutes, a 6-5 victory over the Spirit in front of 3,502 at Dort Financial Center.
“I can’t believe I just scored. I still can’t realize how huge it was,” said Kudryavtsev, a native of Yaroslavl, Russia, who also contributed two assists on what was a shaky night for the Hounds.
“That was one of the most beautiful goals I’ve ever seen, no joke,” said head coach John Dean, whose club was a 5-4 shootout winner in Saginaw on Friday and takes a 9-5-0-0 record into weekend action against Windsor. “It was absolutely incredible.”
Kudryavtsev’s second goal in as many nights and third on the season also impressed his defensive partner, Arttu Karki.
“Amazing goal,” said Karki, who notched a pair himself in the victory and stands second in OHL goal production with 12 in 14 games. “That’s a play you don’t see too often in 3-on-3 overtime. Give him big credit on that one.”
In his third season with the Hounds, Kudryavtsev, a signed Vancouver Canucks prospect, spoke of grabbing the puck behind the Soo goal.
“I saw room in front of me and just jumped in and had a breakaway,” he added. “There’s always room to improve and hopefully, I can keep playing well the rest of the year.”
“He’s focused this year on being a guy who can finish,” said Dean, whose club scored five times in the second period to erase the three goal deficit. “He wants to be relied upon and that’s two big goals two games in a row. But this one was obviously special.”
The Soo endured a rough opening period. Karki said he and his teammates weren’t as ready as they should have been.
“We thought we were a much-better team than Flint,” he added.
For his part, Dean thought his club struggled all night.
“Very sloppy for the entire game,” he said. “We were late to everything on our forechecks and we weren’t moving our feet when we did have the puck. We didn’t play to our identity. But the good news is that we’re a very-good hockey team and we found a way to win.”
Trailing 3-zip, the comeback began early in the second period when Brenden Sirizzotti skated down the left wing and snapped a shot past Brown on the short side. Sirizzotti’s third regulation goal in as many games made it 3-1 at the 3:33 mark.
Less than three minutes later, the Hounds sang a familiar tune. On the power play, Karki took a feed from Kudryavtsev in the right face-off circle. The native of Viala, Finland, fired a one-timer that beat Brown on the stick side. The goal, at the 6:18 mark, was Karki’s league-leading eighth with the man advantage.
The visitors tied the game 10 minutes later when Brodie McConnell-Barker notched his first OHL goal. Capitalizing on an odd-man rush, McConnell-Barker went to the net and was found, all alone, by Jordan D’Intino. The young defenceman banged the puck home through the five hole to make it 3-3.
But a Soo turnover led to a Jeremy Martin goal at 18:19. Martin has five goals this season – all against the Hounds.
Trailing 4-3, the Soo scored twice in the final minute of the middle frame. D’Intino was awarded a penalty shot at 19:04 after being hauled down by Tristan Bertucci. On the scoring attempt, the overage winger deked Brown and scored his sixth goal of the season, high to the glove side.
Then, with 1.3 seconds remaining in Period No. 2, Karki took a feed from Christopher Brown and fired from a bad angle on the right wing. The Hounds rearguard cashed in high to the short side. His 12th goal of the season made it 5-4.
“Five goals in the period was a really good reset for the team,” said Karki.
“It’s pretty impressive to go down 3-0 and score five in the second period,” added Dean. “When opportunity strikes, we have the team that can do that.”
Schenkel made a big save midway through the third, poking the puck away from a driving Gavin Hayes.
However, the Firebirds weren’t done. At 15:50 of the third, Bertucci’s shot from the slot was redirected home by Braeden Kressler and the score was tied 5-5.
Flint controlled the opening period scoring the only three goals. Coulson Pitre, at 4:27, Martin, at 5:01 and Hayes, on the power play at 11:01, put the Soo in an early hole.
“That was a really-tough start for us,” said Kudryavtsev. “That’s going to happen in hockey. I’m just glad we had a comeback.”
Thirty-six seconds after Goal No. 3, netminder Landon Miller was pulled in favour of Charlie Schenkel.
“Really tough decision,” Dean explained. “We thought it might give us a lift. We hung Millsy out to dry – there’s no doubt about that. So it was less a Millsy decision and more a team decision to try to light a fire.”
D’Intino finished with a goal and an assist for the winners, who’re slated to entertain the Spitfires both Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
Notes:
Dean and rookie centre Brady Martin are slated to depart on Monday for Prince Edward Island, site of the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge. Martin, chosen third overall in this year’s OHL draft, is a member of Canada Red while Dean is head coach of Canada White. The tourney begins Thursday and wraps up Nov. 11 with action in both in Charlottetown and Summerside.
