NWPA AHEC WEEKEND PREVIEW: Otters Say Howdy to November Hockey
Erie, Pennsylvania – November hockey welcomes the Erie Otters with two games in the month’s opening weekend.
The Erie Otters take to the road on Friday and meet the Brantford Bulldogs for the first time this season – and only at the Brantford Civic Centre. They will return home to the Erie Insurance Arena on Saturday and take on the Barrie Colts for the second-week-in-a-row, and final time this regular season.
AHEC YEAH!
NWPA AHEC’s Weekend Preview brings the latest news, promotions, and what YOU need to know before YOU go into the new weekend.
Northwest Pennsylvania Area Health Education Center is a non-profit organization committed to helping communities in Northwest Pennsylvania meet their primary health care needs and enhance the quality of health in our region especially the rural and underserved communities.
‘AHEC’ maintains partnerships with community, government, and educational agencies and institutions that will connect students to careers, professionals to communities and communities to better health.
Head to nwpaahec.org to learn more or to apply!
LAST TIME OUT
Erie left last week with three points from three games.
On the road, the Otters faced the Barrie Colts in the Canadian Hockey League Game of the Week, and forced a hard-fought 2-1 victory to kick the week off on the right foot.
The Kitchener Rangers were next up on the agenda, both on the road and at home. On Friday at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium, the Otters fell in a tough 6-2 decision. They would return to Erie, the Rangers following them close behind, and battle out a 4-3 overtime loss to secure a point.
THIS AIN’T YOUR FIRST RODEO!
The first home game of November is a rootin’, tootin’ good time for Country Night (pres. by 93.3 The Wolf) at the Erie Insurance Arena! The Otters will look to tame the Barrie Colts on home ice, and the first 1500 to enter the arena will receive a Pop-Up Cowboy Hat courtesy of The Wolf.
This town is big enough for the two of us, as we support Wegmans “Check Out Hunger” campaign with our very own collaborative “Put Hunger in the Penalty Box” Food Drive benefitting Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest PA. Bring out a collection of non-perishable food items and/or monetary donations to support the Food Bank’s efforts ahead of the holiday season.
WHO TO WATCH
Matthew Schaefer’s triumphant return to the ice is as rewarding as we thought it would be. In his first week back since preseason, the top-defensive prospect picked up three points in quick succession. Against the Barrie Colts, Schaefer broke through the deadlock on a power play and put the Otters up 1-0 with just under nine minutes left to play in the first period. On Saturday at home against the Rangers, Schaefer picked up two assists in the third period to force an overtime and ensure the Otters walked away with a point.
Living up to that ‘A’ rated NHL prospect status is Malcolm Spence! Against the Barrie Colts on Thursday, Spence earned Second Star honors with his game-winning goal less than two minutes into the final frame to secure an Otters’ victory. Away against the Kitchener Rangers, Spence found his fifth goal of the season and cut the Rangers’ lead down 3-2 before the Otters ultimately fell. At home against the Rangers, Spence assisted Pano Fimis in the final thirty seconds of the first frame to put the Otters up 1-0 going into the second.
KNOW THE FOE
The Brantford Bulldogs have forced extra periods in their last four games, with three overtime results and one shootout. They’ve split these last four games 2-2, most recently having beat the Peterborough Petes 4-3 in a shootout. Players to watch for the Bulldogs include Nick Lardis, with three goals in his last three games, and Cole Brown, who picked up three goals and two assists in the last three games.
The Barrie Colts have won five of their last six games. Their only loss? The Erie Otters. Players to watch for the Colts include KaShawn Aitcheson, an ‘A’ rated NHL prospect, and Brad Gardiner, with six points (4G+2A) in the last two games.
HOW TO WATCH, LISTEN, & FOLLOW ALONG
WATCH:
“OHL Live” is the Ontario Hockey League’s broadcast home on CHL TV! OHL Live delivers a high-quality viewing experience while providing access to more than 700 OHL games streamed across a range of platforms including:
- PC and/or Tablet on Safari and Google Chrome web browsers
- iOS / Android mobile devices.
- Amazon Fire
- Apple TV
- Roku platforms
For less than $2/game, OHL Live provides live game action all season long, plus free-to-access video-on-demand content and a user-friendly interface that is easy to navigate. For more information, head to watch.chl.ca/ohl!
LISTEN:
Listen to Otters Hockey all across Lake Erie on the league’s largest radio network! The Otters Radio Network gives fans the most-accessible and highest-quality way to experience every moment of Otters’ game night – from pregame to postgame.
Every game can feel like a home game as a fan with the Otters Radio Network. With live-game broadcasts of all 68 Regular Season games, fans can always hear the action as it happens. Thanks to the Broadcast Home for Otters Hockey, iHeart Media Erie, fans can listen to every game LIVE on the iHeart App from ANYWHERE in the world! From Pennsylvania to Transylvania and everywhere in between, you’ll always be in range to hear Otters Hockey.
The Otters Radio Network is larger than ever before on terrestrial & digital radio – from Southeast Michigan to Southwest New York!
- iHeart Media (Erie, PA) is the Flagship Station for the Otters on WJET 1400 AM, and home to Otters Hockey in Pennsylvania. Games can be heard on terrestrial radio on 96.7 FM/1400 AM in Erie and surrounding communities of NWPA, or can be livestreamed worldwide on the iHeart App.
- Media One Radio Group – Ohio (Ashtabula, OH) is home to Otters Hockey in Ohio on ESPN 970 WFUN. Games can be heard on terrestrial radio on 970 AM in Ashtabula and surrounding communities of Northeast Ohio and NWPA, or can be livestreamed worldwide on WFUN’s website.
- Media One Radio Group – New York (Jamestown, NY) is home to Otters Hockey in New York State on Legends 1340 WKSN. Games can be heard on terrestrial radio on 1340 AM in Jamestown and surrounding communities of Southwest New York and NWPA, or can be livestreamed worldwide on WKSN’s website.
- ESPN Radio Michigan Regional Sports Network (Flint, MI) is home to Otters Hockey in Michigan. Games can be livestreamed worldwide on MRSN’s website.
Fans can also listen to the game on any of the Otters’ four radio-homes on the Listen Live page. The Otters Hockey Pregame Show starts 20 minutes prior to puck drop, hosted by the Otters broadcast team of Shawn Bednard and Trevor Kubeja.
Make sure to tune in weekdays from 11 A.M. to 5 P.M. on Fox Sports 1330, Happi 92.7 FM, WERG 90.5 FM, 106.3 FM WCTL, Kinzua County 104.3 FM (Warren, PA), Channel 98.9 FM & Sunny 105.7 FM (Corry, PA), FOX Sports Radio Oil City 1120 & 104.1 FM (Oil City), ESPN 970 WFUN (Ashtabula, OH), WKSN 1340 AM & WQFX 103.1 (Jamestown, NY), and ESPN Radio MRSN (Flint, MI) to hear the ‘Otters Daily Update’, giving you all the insight on your Otters.
FOLLOW ALONG
If you want to follow along in-real-time to the weekend’s games, make sure you’re following the Otters on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. From live tweets of the action, scoring updates, photos, and highlights, Otters’ social media is the best way to keep up with the team wherever they are.
UP NEXT
It’s another three-game week coming up for the Otters! They’ll play the Niagara IceDogs for the first time this season on the road on Thursday. They’ll stay on the road on Friday and play their divisional foe, the Guelph Storm, before returning home on Saturday to take on the Sarnia Sting for the first time this season.
Saturday’s game against Sarnia will be the team’s annual Military Appreciation Night (pres. by Your Central Western Pennsylvania Toyota Dealer), with the first 1500 fans in the arena receiving a free Camo Otters Hat.
