Melee Scores Twice as Petes Beat East Leading IceDogs in St. Catharines
PHOTO: Vivid Eye Photography
On Sunday, January 12, the Peterborough Petes wrapped up the season series against the Niagara Icedogs with a matinee matchup at the Meridian Centre in St. Catharines, ON. The Petes were coming off of a heartbreaking loss to Brantford on home ice the night before, which saw them fight back from a 3-0 deficit, ultimately falling in a shootout. The Petes would be looking to take 5/6 points this week with a win over Niagara, after beating the Barrie Colts 5-2 on Thursday and securing a point against Brantford on Saturday. Easton Rye was back in net for the Petes, on the hunt for his seventh win of the season.
Niagara looked to be in control of the game early, but it would be the Petes who were on the board first. Halfway through the opening 20, Braydon McCallum picked off a pass and went five-hole on Owen Flores to cap off a beautiful solo effort and give Peterborough the lead. Five minutes later, the Maroon and White doubled their lead after Colin Fitzgerald connected with Brady Stonehouse, who beat Flores on the backhand to make it 2-0. The goal was Stonehouse’s first as a Pete, and Fitzgerald’s fifth point in his last four games. That would be all for the first, as the Petes took a 2-0 lead into the locker room, despite being outshot 12-6.
Peterborough would pick up right where they left off in the second. Just over 12 minutes into the period, Nico Addy scored his fourth goal in four games to make it 3-0 Petes. That would be followed up by Jonathan Melee scoring on back-to-back breakaways two minutes apart. Melee’s team leading 14th and 15th of the season capped off a three goal period for Peterborough, giving the boys a 5-0 lead heading into the third.
The IceDogs would get two back in the third, but that would be all, as the Petes took down the Eastern Conference leaders on the road by a score of 5-2.
Jonathan Melee led the way for the Petes with his team leading 14th and 15th goals of the season, while Colin Fitzgerald had two assists, giving him six points in his last four games. Brady Stonehouse scored his first goal as a Pete, with Braydon McCallum and Nico Addy rounding out the scoring. Liam Ladds, Brennan Faulkner, Genc Ula, Francis Parish, and Martin Matejicek all picked up an assist in the game. Easton Rye stopped 30/32, earning his seventh win of the season.
Game Recap:
First Period:
- Peterborough Goal (12:52) – Braydon McCallum (3), Unassisted
- Peterborough Goal (17:45) – Brady Stonehouse (6), Assists – Colin Fitzgerald (11), Liam Ladds (10)
Second Period:
- Peterborough Goal (12:31) – Nico Addy (5), Assists – Brennan Faulkner (7), Colin Fitzgerald (12)
- Peterborough Goal (13:16) – Jonathan Melee (14), Assist – Genc Ula (2)
- Peterborough Goal (18:39) – Jonathan Melee (15), Assists – Francis Parish (7), Martin Matejicek (13)
Third Period:
- Niagara Goal (6:40) – Andrei Loshko (26), Assists – Mike Levin (17), Owen Flores (6)
- Niagara Goal (9:36) – Andrei Loshko (27), Assist – Mike Levin (18)
The Petes are back in action on Thursday, January 16, when they host the Soo Greyhounds. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at the PMC. Tickets for the game are still available by clicking here, calling (705) 743-3561, or by visiting the Grant Thornton Box Office during office hours. Fans can also catch the game on YourTV Peterborough and Freq 90.5.
