McCallum has Three Assists, McCoy Scores Winner as Petes Beat Battalion in OT
On Thursday, November 16, the Peterborough Petes traveled to North Bay to kick off their first northern road trip of the season against the North Bay Battalion. This was the first meeting between the Petes and Battalion since the 2023 Eastern Conference final, which saw the Petes win in seven games. Peterborough entered the game tied for the Eastern Conference lead and would look to take advantage of a struggling North Bay defence that has allowed 65 goals in 18 games this season. With a win on Thursday night, the Maroon and White would take a solo lead atop the Eastern Conference.
The Petes came out firing in the first, controlling the play from the drop of the puck. On the opening shift, they got multiple chances to take the lead, but could not beat Dominic DiVincentiis early. Even with Peterborough’s dominance, a defensive miscue saw the Battalion take an early lead on a goal by Anthony Romani at the 3:04 mark of the first. The Petes would not let the goal get them down, and would keep pressing. Just 22 seconds later, on the power play, Jonathan Melee tee’d up a Jax Dubois pass and fired it past DiVincentiis to tie the game at 1-1. Two and half minutes later, Braydon McCallum made a drop pass to Owen Beck who snapped a shot home to give the Petes the 2-1 lead. The Petes continued to put the pressure on after the goal, but would not be able to find another in the opening frame. With just over two minutes left in the period, on a North Bay power play, Romani scored his second of the game to tie it up at 2-2 heading into the break.
It would be a dream start to the second period for the Petes. On a power play carried over from the first 20, Sam McCue buried a loose puck to put Peterborough up 3-2 a minute into the middle frame. After taking the lead, the Maroon and White kept piling on the pressure. Two minutes later, Brody Partridge tipped a Cam Gauvreau shot past DiVincentiis, but the play would be reviewed for a high stick. After a lengthy review, it counted and Partridge was awarded his first OHL goal. After the goal, things would take a turn. Five straight penalties for the Petes would hand the Battalion an opportunity to get right back into the game, and that’s what they did. Within one minute of each other, both on a five on three advantage, Ty Nelson and Romani both scored to tie the game at 4-4. That would be all for the second, and both teams entered the final 20 all tied up.
The third period would be a battle the whole way through. Eight minutes into the final frame, Ethan Procyszyn scored the go ahead goal for the Battalion to give them a late lead at home. The Maroon and White would not be fazed. Three minutes later, Sam McCue scored his second of the game to tie it up at 5-5. With neither team able to go ahead in the last ten minutes, the game would head to overtime.
The Petes are no stranger to overtime this season, with eight of their 17 games this season needing an extra period. With three minutes gone in OT, Donovan McCoy made a couple spectacular moves and scored a highlight reel goal to give the Petes the win and the solo lead atop the Eastern Conference.
DONOVAN MCCOY ANKLE-BREAKER 🔥
The @PetesOHLhockey win their second-straight game in overtime thanks to their captain 🫡 pic.twitter.com/fU3xomVoWq
— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) November 17, 2023
The game would see multiple major milestones for the Petes. Sam Mayer’s second assist of the game brought him to a total of 100 career OHL points. Brody Partridge scored his first career OHL goal, and Brennan Faulkner picked up his first OHL point with an assist on Sam McCue’s game tying goal in the third period.
Braydon McCallum led the way for the Petes with three assists, while Sam McCue scored twice. Jonathan Melee and Owen Beck each had a goal and an assist, as Sam Mayer picked up two assists. Donovan McCoy scored the OT winner, and Brody Partridge rounded out the scoring. Brennan Faulkner, Cam Gauvreau, Jax Dubois, and Chase Lefebvre all had an assist on the night. Liam Sztuska stopped 27/32 in the win.
The Petes are back in action on Friday, November 17, when they travel to Sudbury to face the Sudbury Wolves. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m at Sudbury Community Arena. Fans can catch the game at the Official Road Game Watch Party at Shoeless Joe’s Peterborough. The game will also be broadcasted on YourTV Peterborough and Freq 90.5.
