Sztuska Stops 52 as Petes Shutout Steelheads at Home
Looking to put an end to their losing streak, the Peterborough Petes hosted the Mississauga Steelheads at the PMC on Sunday for their final game of 2023. Even with the tough stretch on the ice, the Petes faithful sold-out the PMC for the eighth time this season, looking to back their team to a win. Peterborough was coming off a tough loss to the Steelheads in Mississauga on Friday night, which saw them outshoot their opponent by 11. The Petes would be looking to get their offence going, after scoring only three times in their last three games.
The sold-out crowd certainly got the Petes fired up from the drop of the puck. Peterborough came out absolutely firing to start the game, looking to get off to a hot start. Even with the continuous pressure and chances, Steelheads goalie Ryerson Leenders once again proved to be a problem for the Petes early. Not to be outdone, Liam Sztuska continued his hot play at the other end of the ice, stopping all 21 Mississauga shots in the first. Late in the period, on a Petes power play, Peterborough would finally solve the Steelheads netminder. After some great passing, Jonathan Melee hit Jax Dubois with a beautiful cross ice pass. Dubois one-timed it into the net to make it 1-0 Peterborough. The Petes would hold onto the lead as the buzzer sounded to end the first.
It was a wild second period that would see 19 penalties between the two rival teams. Liam Sztuska continued his stellar play throughout the period, stopping two breakaways and making multiple highlight reel stops to keep Mississauga off the board. Five minutes into the period, Sam Mayer blasted home his 12th of the season to extend Peterborough’s lead to 2-0. The Petes didn’t stop there. Five minutes later, Sam McCue crashed the net off of a faceoff and beat Leenders on a rebound to make it 3-0. The Petes penalty kill would come up huge in the second, keeping the lead intact. After two, the Petes led 3-0, while also leading 38-36 in shots.
The third period was all Sztuska from the drop of the puck. The Petes goalie stopped everything that the Steelheads threw his way, making save after save to keep Peterborough in the lead. Konnor Smith added an empty netter late in the period to secure the Petes 4-0 win.
Liam Sztuska led the way for the Petes, stopping 52/52 for his second career shutout. Jax Dubois (1G, 1A), Sam Mayer (1G, 1A), and Jonathan Melee (2A) each had two points on the night. Konnor Smith and Sam McCue had a goal, while Donovan McCoy and Chase Lefebvre picked up an assist in the win.
The Petes are back in action on Wednesday, January 3 when they travel to Sarnia to take on the Sarnia Sting. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Progressive Auto Sales 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.