Erie Snaps Seven-Game Point Streak for Brantford, Win Grudge Match 4-3
Brantford, Ontario – November has arrived, and the month of thankfulness would welcome Erie to the Brantford Civic Centre for the only time this season in a battle against a very-recently successful Brantford Bulldogs team. Coming in with points in seven-straight games, Brantford would look to continue their success at home against the Otters – who closed out October with three points in three games. With a short bench for the Otters, they would look for a quick start to help goaltender Noah Erliden against a strong Brantford offense.
Erie would be up to task to open this exciting cross-conference affair. Just over four minutes into the contest, Erie would earn its first power play, and Wesley Royston (4, PPG) would be the stick-swinging goal-scorer with his second PPG of the season to put Erie up 1-0. The Otters would dominate from here, allowing just four additional shots from this point while firing 14 more of their own. Just past the halfway mark of the period, Alexis Daviault (3) would be a do-it-all from the left wing side, behind the net, to the right wing, and fire the puck in from a nothing angle to put Erie up 2-0. The Otters would export 1:29 of additional power play time into the second period, already up 2-0 with an astonishing 19-5 shot advantage.
Despite being unable to convert on the early power play, Erie would succeed offensively in the opening two minutes as Carey Terrance (3) would fire a roof shot over Leenders shoulder. With barely any time passed in the second period, the Otters would suddenly find themselves up 3-0. However, the good times would not last for the Otters for long, as the Bulldogs would bite back. In the span of 2:30, the Bulldogs would find three goals from Jake O’Brien (6), Luca Testa (3), and Zakary Lavoie (2) to get things knotted up 3-3. Game flow would even out a bit following the hectic stretch of goals in the opening five minutes, as the Bulldogs would find just five shots for the rest of the period. With a late power play opportunity for the Bulldogs, it would be Erie who would capitalize on the moment as Malcolm Spence (6, SHG) would record his first short-handed goal of the season and sixth of his OHL career. The goal would swing the momentum pendulum back to Erie, as they would take a 4-3 lead after 40 – with a 32-15 shot advantage for the road team. As the teams would skate off for intermission, a not-so-civil discussion would see members of both teams assessed 10-minute game misconducts.
Period three would go to the defense rather than the offense, and it would have to be a strong defenseive effort from Noah Erliden and Erie, as they were outshot 12-5 in the final frame. Erie would bend and not break, killing off their final penalty of the night to go 3/3 on the night’s penalty kill. The bell would be answered by Erie, and they would take the win 4-3 in an absolute slugfest. Erie would snap Brantford’s seven-game point streak and start November off 1-0.
The Erie Otters will close out the opening weekend of November at home, taking on the Barrie Colts for the second-and-final time this season. Erie will look to continue their success against the upstart Colts for the team’s Country Night (pres. by 93.9 The Wolf) – the first 1500 fans in the arena will receive a FREE Pop-Up Cowboy Hat. Fans are also encouraged to bring monetary donations and non-perishable food items to assist in the Put Hunger in the Penalty Box Food Drive alongside Wegmans to benefit the Second Harvest Food Bank
