WEEKEND PREVIEW: East and West Home Weekend

Erie, Pennsylvania — Following one of their busiest stretches of the season, the Otters are back on home ice this weekend as they prepare for a more conventional Friday, Saturday home weekend. 

It all begins Friday as the Oshawa Generals make their one and only trip to town for Get Hooked on Hockey Night presented by Fish USA. Saturday sees the Kitchener Rangers make their third and final visit to Erie for Mascot Mania presented by Chick-Fil-A Erie. A big weekend with plenty on the line.

AHEC YEAH!

NWPA AHEC’s Weekend Preview brings the latest news, promotions, and what YOU need to know before YOU go further into the new year.

Northwest Pennsylvania Area Health Education Centre 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 would kick-off a stretch of four games in six days Wednesday as the Owen Sound Attack would come to town for their first of three visits this season. The Attack would find the score board first in the contest but it would be Erie who would explode offensively following this early goal. Ulysses Lombardi would score his first OHL goal before Kayden Edwards would score twice in-a-row, the first multi-goal game of his OHL career, to give Erie the advantage. Following a tally from Luc Plante, the Attack would get one back to start the second and make it a 4-2 game. Erie would respond with two quick tallies right after as Andrew Kuzma and Michael Dec, scoring against his former team, would strike to make it a 6-2 game. The visitors would pull one back right before the second intermission but in the third, Kuzma would score his second and Jackson Schouten would add one more as the Otters would defeat the Attack 8-3, scoring their most goals this season and winning by their largest margin. 

The Otters would continue their weekend Friday as they would travel to Brantford for the final time to battle the Bulldogs. Erie would get on the board first in the game as Evan Headrick would strike to make it a 1-0 game. The Otters would carry this lead with them into the second period but the Bulldogs would strike early to tie the game. Another four goals from there would see one of the top teams in the OHL take over and down the Otters by a score of 5-1.

Saturday would see the Otters welcome the Flint Firebirds to town for the second and final time this year. The Firebirds would get themselves on the board early but the Otters would respond. Kayden Edwards would get Erie’s offense going on the night before Michael Dec would strike off the rush to give the Otters a 2-1 lead that Erie would take with them into the second period. In the middle frame, Flint would strike with two goals right away to make it a 3-2 game. The Otters would respond with two of their own as Dec would score his second and Evan Headrick would strike to give Erie a 4-3 lead heading into the third period. In the final frame, Flint would tie the contest at 4-4 with an early goal. Edwards would come to the rescue for the navy and gold as he would find the back of the net with his second of the night and give Erie a late lead. Another goal from Headrick, clinching his first career multi-goal game, plus late-game heroics from goaltender Charlie Burns would see the Otters skate past the Firebirds to the tune of a remarkable 6-4 win.

The weekend would conclude for Erie at the Sleeman Centre in Guelph for the final road game of the season between the Otters and Storm. Ulysses Lombardi’s second career OHL goal would give the Otters the start they were looking for and a 1-0 lead heading into the second period. From here, the Storm would come alive offensively, scoring five-unanswered on their way to a 5-1 victory as Erie would take four of eight possible points on the weekend.

GOOD TO BE HOME

Erie kicks off their weekend with a Friday night tilt with the Oshawa Generals looking to earn a split in the season series.

The weekend concludes Saturday as the Kitchener Rangers make their third and final trip to town for a Saturday night battle.

WHO TO WATCH

Since combining him with Ritter Coombs and Jackson Schouten, Kayden Edwards has unlocked something in his game and has been a true force for the Otters. Last weekend Edwards had back-to-back two-goal games in the two home games that Erie played. Knowing the team will be on home ice this weekend should be a good sign for the Scarborough, ON native as he looks to keep his hot stretch rolling. A player that will be in an Erie uniform for a long time to come, Edwards will hope to finish the season strong, building confidence ahead of his third season in the league.

Ulysses Lombardi has been a player of interest for the Otters since they picked him up in December and now he has the goals to back it up. Scoring his first goal last Wednesday at home against Owen Sound and his second goal Monday in Guelph, Lombardi will hope to keep his scoring ways rolling for Erie. These goals should give the Aurora, ON native a confidence boost heading toward the season’s finish line as he knows his services will be counted on in the Flagship City for seasons to come.

KNOW THE FOE

The Oshawa Generals have had a rough ride after they made the OHL Final in back-to-back season. Gone are the days of Beckett Sennecke and Calum Ritchie, but in are the days of a young team looking to get back to that level. Up-front, Owen Griffin, a player who was a part of last season’s team, leads the way. In net, Matthew Humphries has been terrific since being picked-up from the Niagara IceDogs. This Generals team has an eye toward a very exciting future after championship glory was just out of reach over the last few years.

One of the OHL’s best outfits in the Kitchener Rangers comes to town to conclude the weekend Saturday. Though the Otters have only defeated the Rangers once this season, they have been in every game this season between these two Midwest Division rivals, including their last contest that went to overtime. Dylan Edwards has been terrific for the Rangers but has had an up-and-down time against his old team. Jack Pridham has been unstoppable for the Rangers against the Otters as he has at least a goal in every game he’s played between the two teams, totaling seven goals in the four games he’s played. The Rangers are looking to make a deep run this season and are chasing the number one seed in the West.

HOW TO WATCH, LISTEN, & FOLLOW ALONG

The new home of Otters hockey is Flo Hockey!

Delivering a high-quality viewing experience, Flo Hockey provides access to more than 700 OHL games, and games from the QMJHL, AHL, ECHL, and more, streamed across a range of platforms, including PC and Tablet on Safari and Google Chrome web browsers, as well as iOS and Android mobile devices.

Fans can also see the NHL’s stars of tomorrow on the Amazon Fire, Apple TV, V and Roku platforms – right from the comfort of their homes!

For more information, head to flohockey.tv!

:

• PC and/or Tablet on Safari and Google Chrome web browsers
• iOS / Android mobile devices.
• Amazon Fire
• Apple TV
• Roku platforms

Flo Hockey 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 flohockey.tv.

 

LISTEN

Listen to Otters Hockey all across Erie County with iHeart Media Erie and the Otters broadcast network!

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.

• 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 the surrounding communities of NWPA, or can be livestreamed worldwide on the iHeart App.

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, the Otters’ social media is the best way to keep up with the team wherever they are.

UP NEXT

The Otters look forward to another three-game week next as they travel to Niagara Thursday to take on the IceDogs before welcoming in the Owen Sound Attack for the annual back-to-back weekend at home and the season’s first Sunday home game.