Game Recap: Kitchener starts New Year off in the win column with 3-2 victory over Oshawa
Game Summary: Kitchener kicked off 2024 with a third-period 3-2 comeback win against the Oshawa Generals. The Rangers were the only Western Conference team to play on New Year’s Day and with their win they extended their conference lead over the Soo to three points. This was the first time the Rangers played the Generals this season, the next matchup will take place March 22nd, for the Rangers’ second last game of the year.
Cameron Reid and Matthew Sop led the team in points with two assists each, and Reid extended his point streak to four games. Hunter Brzustewicz has at least a point in five straight after he tallied an assist in the matinee.
Scoring Summary:
1st Period
OSH 1, KIT 0
8:26 Luke Torrance (10) – Tristan Delisle
Luke Torrance broke the scoring open as he found a loose puck and quickly rifled it past Tristan Malboeuf. Tristan Delisle had a pass deflected; however, it eventually reached his target as the puck was found by Torrance in the slot, who picked it up and put Oshawa ahead.
OSH 1, KIT 1
18:52 Adrian Misaljevic (21) – Matthew Sop, Hunter Brzustewicz
Adrian Misaljevic tied the game up with help from Matthew Sop who fed him a wonderful pass in the slot. Misaljevic won an offensive zone faceoff back to Hunter Brzustewicz, who sent the puck behind the net to Sop. He then skated with the puck and came out, finding Misaljevic in front of the net and fed him the puck who one-timed the puck behind Jacob Oster.
3rd Period
OSH 2, KIT 1
1:57 Matthew Buckley (16) – Tyler Graham, Ben Danford
Matthew Buckley scored the first goal in 23:05 minutes as he regain the lead for the Oshawa Generals. Tyler Graham brought the puck into the offensive zone and sent a drop pass to Buckley. Buckley never held the puck as he immediately sent the puck top corner over Tristan Malboeuf’s blocker.
OSH 2, KIT 2
8:56 Simon Motew (5) – Matthew Sop, Cameron Reid
Simon Motew tied the game up after extended pressure in the Oshawa zone. Matthew Sop skated the puck atop the offensive zone where he dropped the puck to Motew. Motew skated back across the zone and down, eventually releasing a wrist shot down through traffic at Oster and beating him over a blocker side pad.
OSH 2, KIT 3
14:39 Antonino Pugliese (13) – Cameron Mercer, Cameron Reid
The Rangers got their first lead of the game as Antonino Pugliese found the back of the net from the slot. Cameron Reid passed the puck down from the blueline to Cameron Mercer. Mercer sent the puck to the high slot where Pugliese was parked and one-timed the pass home, putting Kitchener up one late.
The Stars:
First Star: Cameron Reid (2A)
Second Star: Jacob Oster (30 Saves, 3 GA)
Third Star: Adrian Misaljevic (1G)
The Goalies:
Jacob Oster made 30 saves on 33 shots in the loss moving his record to 13-12-3-1. Tristan Malboeuf played solid on the other side of the ice as he stopped 16 of 18 saves moving his season record to 9-2-1-0.
The Numbers Game:
Shots: OSH 18, KIT 33
Powerplay: OSH 0-2, KIT 0-1
FO%: OSH 59.3%, KIT 40.7%
Up Next: The Rangers return to The Aud this Thursday, January 4th for a matchup against the 2024 Memorial Cup hosts the Saginaw Spirit. The teams have played each other twice so far this season, each with one win. Great seats are still available, don’t miss any of the action and grab your tickets at the Aud box office sponsored by White Way Plumbing or online here.
For inquiries, contact:
Lindsay Eastwood
Manager of Communications and Team Services
Kitchener Rangers Hockey Club
613-793-0168
[email protected]
Photo Credit: Goodall Media / Oshawa Generals
