Petes Win Third Straight, Edge Steelheads 4-3
The Peterborough Petes hosted the Eastern Conference rival Mississauga Steelheads on Thursday night for the teams’ first match-up of the season. The Petes played another solid all-around game and ultimately beat the Steelheads 4-3 on the back of strong goal-tending by starter Andrew D’Agostini.
Mississauga got off to a quick start in the first frame, as underager “exceptional status” defenseman Sean Day scored his second goal of the season assisted by Austin Gerhardt and Everett Clark at the 5:30 mark. The fifteen year old Day played a very good game at both ends of the ice, showing fans that he earned the special status granted by Hockey Canada.
Although the Steelheads dominated the game in the early-goings, the Petes were able to strike back as Captain Connor Boland scored his first goal of the season. Clark Seymour and Stephen Pierog drew assists on the play 15:20 into the first frame. The period would end with Mississauga edging Peterborough 14-13 in shots.
The second period started with both teams flying, but less than a minute in a pane of glass broke which caused a 15-plus minute delay at the PMC while repairs were made. After the Petes weathered a Mississauga storm and continued to prove their short-handed prowess, Nick Ritchie netted his sixth goal of the campaign, drawing assists from Eric Cornel and Jonatan Tanus at 11:52. Just 42 seconds later, Pierog added a goal of his own from Stephen Nosad and Clark Seymour to make it 3-1 Petes.
Mississauga was unable to muster much of an attack through the remained of the frame, and any chances they did have were cleared gracefully by Petes starter D’Agostini. The shot total after the second period was 26-22 in Peterborough’s favour.
The game started to get chippy in the third period, with Boland, Ritchie, and Brandon Devlin each taking minor penalties. Devlin’s penalty proved to be very eventful, as Steve Lorentz scored his first OHL goal in short-handed, unassisted fashion with a hard-working individual effort. Mississauga ended the Petes four goal streak with a marker from Austin Gerhardt assisted by Gregory DiTomaso and Everett Clark on the same penalty, though, making the score 4-2 with twelve minutes remaining in the game.
D’Agostini and crew continued to stand on their collective head with the two goal advantage throughout the third period, but Trevor Carrick found the back of the net for the Steelheads assisted by Brett Foy and Damian Bourne with just 1:52 left in regulation. The Petes, who have played their fair share of overtime already this season, were determined to hold off the Steelheads attack. With several strong chances stopped in the final minute, the Petes won the game by the score of 4-3 in front of an energized crowd of 2,266.
Stephen Pierog was named the game’s first star with a goal and an assist, while Ritchie and Gerhardt earned second and third star honours, respectively. Stephen Nosad was named the Mark Work Wearhouse hardest working player of the game as he helped the Petes improve their record to 6-3-0-1 on the season, which puts them in a tie with North Bay for third place in the OHL Eastern Conference.
The Petes next home game is this Saturday, October 19th at 7:05pm versus the feisty Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, who sit atop the OHL Western Conference tied with the London Knights. Fans are reminded to bring gently used bras to the game in support of the Canadian Cancer Society, and $16 discounted tickets are available, from which $4 will be donated to Bras Around the Building.
Remember to follow the Petes on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram for the latest news and images, and sign up for the Petes Insider to hear exclusive pre-game comments and players to watch from Head Coach Jody Hull.
Photo credit: Cliff Skarstedt/Peterborough Examiner/QMI Agency
