Guelph, Ontario – Back in the Storm City for the first time since November, the Erie Otters would hope to expel their previous demons against Guelph, looking for their first win in their fourth meeting. Coming off a 3-1-1 record during a five-game homestand, Erie holds itself in control of its destiny to secure a playoff spot. Guelph, falling in four of their last five games, looks to secure its spot in 5^th place in the OHL Western Conference.

A slow start for the Otters would find them being outshot 2-0, and down 1-0 just :61 into the game as Sasha Pastujov (28) would net the first goal from an open-net opportunity. An early penalty against Erie would seem to continue the team’s early struggles, but just nine seconds into the kill, Daniel D’Amato would feed a perfect-puck up to Brendan Hoffmann (18), who would net the shorthanded goal for Erie, and make it 1-1 just 3:32 in. From there, Erie would take over in the first. The rest of the stretch, Erie would lead in shots 13-5, and finish the period in a 13-7 shots advantage. With the assist on the Hoffmann goal, both Dan D’Amato and Christian Kyrou would earn their 50^th points of the 2021-22 season. Erie and Guelph would be knotted up at 1-1 after one.

The Otters would continue their momentum shift in the second period, as they would once again strike for an early goal. This time, it would be Brett Bressette (15) with a top-corner snipe to beat the stick-side of Jacob Oster and give Erie its first lead of the night, 2-1. Just under four minutes later, Carey Terrance (7) would give the Otters a 3-1 lead just before the halfway mark of the game. Despite the early goals in the second, it would be Guelph that would control the offensive flow in the second period, outshooting the Otters 16-5. It would take nearly two full periods following the first goal, but the Storm would finally strike for their second goal of the night with :26 left in the second. Captain Brayden Guy (18) would rip one past Lalonde with a wicked backhander to make it 3-2 Erie after two, Guelph leading in shots 23-18.

Guelph’s dominant finish to the third period would continue to remain in full-force to start the final frame. Just 3:22 into the finale, Cam Allen (12) would tie things up at 3-3. Nearly 11 minutes into the third, Brayden Guy (19) would score his second of the game, and what would turn out to be the final goal of the night. The offense of the Storm would dominate the rest of the way, allowing just one shot for the Otters in the final minutes, taking a 4-3 win on home ice. Erie would be outshot 30-8 in the final two periods.

Erie, dropping its fourth of the year against Guelph, looks ahead to a three-in-three weekend back in Ontario starting on Friday night, when the team travels to Kitchener to face their division rival Rangers. Erie is 2-0 this season against Kitchener. The team will then load up for its only trip to Owen Sound this season, looking to sweep the season series against the Attack on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.