GAMEDAY: HEADING FOR LONDON
windsorspitfires.com staff reports
He’s been taking his fair share of heat lately.
But Friday night in London, Zack Kassian looked like his old self, scoring the game winner and adding an assist, as the Spitfires knocked off the London Knights, 5-2, in a key Western Division showdown.
John Cullen was outstanding in goal for Windsor (29-18-2-3), making 29 saves for the win.
Kenny Ryan had a goal and an assist and Ryan Ellis had a pair of assists, giving him six points in the last 24 hours.
Kassian went to work early in the second with the game tied 2-2, shedding a couple of London defenders before stuffing one past goalie Michael Houser, who took the loss despite making 28 stops. The big winger hadn’t scored in nine games. And he let out a yell heard throughout the John Labatt Centre after finally lighting the lamp.
“Ya, that felt pretty good to get that one,” Kassian told windsorspitfires.com.
He credited Assistant Coach D.J Smith with helping him rediscover his game.
“He really helped out. He brought over some tapes of earlier in the year when I was dominating shifts, moving my feet and getting pucks to the net. He and I broke them down and it brought back memories. Once you’re in a slump for six, seven, eight games you kind of forget your game.”
Tom Kuhnhackl added an insurance marker later in the middle frame, again on the wraparound, beating Houser to the right post for his 28th of the year.
Taylor Carnevale’s 30th of the year into an empty net rounded out the scoring.
SCORING
FIRST PERIOD: WSR Brown, (12) (Rychel), 2:19 – LDN Athanasiou, (10) (Tierney, Milner), 7:12 – WSR Ryan, (15) (Kassian, Ellis), 8:52 – LDN Fox, (8) (Namestnikov, Knight), 11:41
SECOND PERIOD: WSR Kassian, (22) (Johnston, Ellis), 0:55 – WSR Kuhnhackl, (28) (Ebert), 15:36
THIRD PERIOD – WSR Carnevale, (30) (Ryan), 19:23 (EN)
SHOTS ON GOAL
WINDSOR – 14 – 13 – 7 = 34, LONDON – 5 – 15 – 11 = 31
POWER PLAYS
WINDSOR 0-FOR-5, LONDON 0-FOR-7
PHOTO: TIM CORNETT
