Missed chances and miscues prove costly
by Peter Ruicci (Independent Media) | Photo by Bob Davies
PHOTO GALLERY | GAME HIGHLIGHTS
An inability to finish their scoring chances finished off the Soo Greyhounds on Wednesday.
The Flint Firebirds scored the only two goals of the third period and, behind the netminding of Mason Vaccari, stopped the Hounds 3-2 in front of 3,222 at GFL Memorial Gardens.
“We gotta score goals,” said head coach John Dean, whose team generated chances but struggled to find the back of the net. “We probably deserved to win the game in terms of chances.”
And when you don’t capitalize on those opportunities?
“It amplifies mistakes and three costly mistakes cost us goals against,” added the Soo coach, whose club outshot the visitors in all three periods and held a 32-18 edge in shots overall.
“We have to bear down on our chances and score,” added defenceman Chase Reid, who notched his sixth goal late in the third period to draw the home side to within 3-2.
Asked about the play of Vaccari, acquired from Kingston over the summer, Reid thought the overage performed well.
“We just needed to get bodies in front of his eyes,” added the second-year defenceman.
The loss snapped the Hounds three-game win streak, and dropped their record to 11-7-1-0 heading into Friday’s 7:07 p.m. home start against Guelph.
The victory improved the Firebirds to 9-6-1-0.
“I don’t think the shot total was a reflection of how much work Vaccari had. We spent so much time in our own zone,” Firebirds head coach Paul Flache said of his goaltender. “He’s been outstanding and a rock for us all season long and he was solid again tonight. He made some big saves down the stretch.”
“Tough loss to take,” added centre Quinn McKenzie, who had the other Soo goal. “It was one of those nights where we had trouble scoring. That’s one game we would want back.”
Tied 1-1 entering the final frame, Flint connected at 3:23 of the third when Josh Colosimo parked himself in front and redirected a Luka Graziano point shot past Landon Miller low to the glove side.
Less than five-minutes later, Urban Podrekar was about to circle the net when he found Christopher Thibodeau alone in front. Thibodeau redirected a feed that beat Miller through the five-hole to make it 3-1.
Dean lamented how his team failed to box out Colosimo on the second Firebirds goal.
“And we don’t cover the guy who puts the puck away,” the coach said of Thibodeau, on what proved to be the game-winner.
Asked if he thought Miller should have made the save on the third Flint goal, Dean spoke of how “when the puck comes from below the goal-line it’s difficult for goaltenders.”
The Hounds most glaring mistake came on Flint’s first goal. In his own zone, Marco Mignosa made an uncharacteristic gaffe. He sent a sloppy cross-ice pass that was picked off by Nathan Aspinal.
The Flint captain skated into the left circle and scored low to the glove side. That made it 1-0 at 2:33 of the opening period.
McKenzie, a free agent find, tied it at 7:23 of the middle frame. After a pass by Harris Pangretitsch, the first-year centre slipped the puck past one defender to create a 2-on-1.
McKenzie fired from the right dot and beat Vaccari on the blocker side.
Trailing 3-1 late in the game, Miller was on the bench for a sixth attacker when Reid snapped one through traffic from the top of the right circle. His shot beat Vaccari low to the stick side to make it 3-2 at 16:45.
Reid also saved an empty-net marker with 1:40 remaining when he impeded Thibodeau just inside the Soo blue-line.
And with the net still empty, Kaden Pitre rifled one off the post with 23 seconds left in regulation.
On a night when goals were at a premium, the Soo was 0-for-4 on the power play.
“We definitely could have used a power-play goal. We could have used a lot of goals,” said Reid. “We outplayed them. It was a tough loss to take.”
Asked about the Soo’s intensity level, Dean said his players “needed more of a killer instinct.”
Notes:
After being sidelined with mononucleosis and subsequent complications, veteran defenceman Brodie McConnell-Barker made his season debut on Wednesday.
“I’m just happy for him, happy he’s getting an opportunity to play,” Dean said. “He’s going to need a few games to get up to speed but I’m happy to have him in the lineup.”
