Preview: Rangers begin three-straight on the road Friday in the Soo
Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. – The Rangers have earned five of a possible six points in their last three games and will now play three-straight on the road beginning Friday night in Sault Ste. Marie against the Greyhounds. Puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m. at the GFL Memorial Gardens (capacity 4,928).
Notable Links:
- TV: Rogers TV, cable 20 (Kitchener)
- TV: Shaw TV, cable 10 (Sault Ste. Marie)
- TV: Super Sports Pack, cable 463 (Ontario)
- Video Stream: OHLLive.com | CHL App
- Radio: CityNews 570 AM CKGL (Kitchener)
- Radio: Rock 101.3 FM WSUE (Sault Ste. Marie)
- Live Stats
- Live Tweets
Head-to-Head:
Both teams have won their respective home game in the season series this season. Kitchener earned a convincing 9-0 victory at The Aud on Dec. 16 and the Greyhounds won 5-4 on Jan 4.
The GFL Memorial Gardens has not been kind to Kitchener in recent times as Kitchener is 2-8-0-0 since the 2017-18 season. They have also lost four-straight on the road in Sault Ste. Marie with their last victory coming on Feb. 5, 2020.
However, Kitchener has only dropped one point in their last three games going 2-0-1-0 to earn five of a possible six points in their last three games. Kitchener is 5-4-1-0 in their last 10 games. The Rangers hold the final playoff spot in the West with 49 points. Of note, four points separates the Rangrs and the sixth seed and Kitchener has two games in hand.
Sault Ste. Marie is coming off a 6-2 loss to Saginaw on Wednesday night. The Greyhounds are 2-6-1-1 in their last 10 games. The Greyhounds are chasing the Rangers for the final playoff spot, sitting in the nine-seed on 45 points.
Scouting the Rangers:
Francesco Pinelli (Los Angeles Kings) leads the Rangers roster in points. The Kitchener Captain has 66 points (30G 36A) in 43 games. Pinelli has been held pointless in his last two games for only the fourth time this season. He has never been held pointless in three-straight games.
2023 NHL Draft eligible prospect, Hunter Brzustewicz, leads the Rangers blueline this season with 43 points (5G 38A) in 50 games. His assist total ranks fourth amongst all D-men in the league. Brzustewicz has also been a force on the power-play, assisting on 19 of Kitchener’s 43 power-play goals (44%) this season.
Danny Zhilkin (Winnipeg Jets) is the only Ranger with an active point streak. Zhilkin has points in three-straight games with one goal and three assists. He has 21 goals and 21 assists in 44 games this season.
Marco Costantini has played both games for the Rangers against the Greyhounds. Costantini earned one of his two shutouts on the year which is tied for second most in the OHL this season. Costantini has a 16-15-2-0 record this season and is 15-14-2-0 with Kitchener.
Francesco Arcuri (Dallas Stars), Tomáš Hamara (Ottawa Senators), Filip Mešár (Montréal Canadiens), Francesco Pinelli (Los Angeles Kings), Roman Schmidt (Tampa Bay Lightning) and Danny Zhilkin are six Kitchener skaters that are both drafted, and signed, by their NHL clubs respectively.
Scouting the Greyhounds:
Bryce McConnell-Barker (New York Rangers) is the points leader for the Greyhounds this season. McConnell-Barker has 62 points (27G 35A) in 52 games. He has two goals in two games against Kitchener this year and ranks fifth in power-play goals this year with 12.
Kirill Kudryavstev (Vancouver Canucks) is the Greyhounds top blueliner this season with 42 points (6G 36A) in 51 games. He ranks fifth in assists by a defenceman this season.
Brenden Sirizzotti and Mark Duarte both currently own active point streaks. Sirizzotti has points in five-straight with three goals and five assists. Duarte has points in four-straight with one goal and five assists.
Samuel Ivanov started in both games for the Greyhounds against the Rangers this season going 1-1-0-0. Ivanov has started majority of the games for the Greyhounds this season, playing in 35 and posting a 10-14-5-3 record.
Kirill Kudryavtsev (Vancouver Canucks) and Bryce McConnell-Barker (New York Ranger) are the two Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds drafted by their NHL clubs respectively.
Broadcast Coverage:
Friday night’s contest will be televised live throughout Kitchener and the Waterloo Region on Rogers TV, cable channel 20, as well as throughout Sault Ste. Marie on Shaw TV, cable channel 10, and can be watched across the province of Ontario on the Super Sports Pack on channel 463 for cable subscribers.
The game will be streamed live online in a web browser at OHLLive.com, and on the CHL App for mobile devices including smart TV’s such as including Apple TV, Roku and Amazon Fire.
Additionally, fans can listen to the game on the radio on CityNews 570 AM CKGL. Mike Farwell (play-by-play) and Chris Pope (colour commentary) will call the game on the radio. Fans can tune in to the radio pregame show 30 minutes prior to puck drop. For more information on Kitchener Rangers broadcast coverage, click here.
Next up:
Kitchener will continue their three-game road trip Saturday night in Michigan against the Flint Firebirds. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Dort Financial Center.
Photo Credit: Tiffany Luke / Kitchener Rangers
For inquiries, contact:
Dominic Hennig
Senior Director, Broadcasting, Communications & Hockey Operations
Kitchener Rangers Hockey Club
519-497-9342
[email protected]
