Weekend Woes
BRAMPTON, ON- The Brampton Steelheads fall three straight after Jake O’Brien’s three goals and one assist secured the Brantford Bulldogs 6-3 victory.
While the Steelheads took the lead in the first and had numerous battle-back chances throughout the remaining two periods, the Bulldogs reigned victorious. O’Brien had a remarkable game, scoring a hat trick and one assist that helped cement Brantford’s win.
It was a balanced first period in the match-up between the Steelheads and Bulldogs. Most of the on-ice action was a back-to-back battle of incredible saves from Jack Ivankovic and David Egorov.
The Steelheads saw numerous chances in the first 15 minutes of play, especially with an early power play following Lucas Moore’s interference penalty. Yet, it was not until the last five minutes of the period that the Steelheads came alive and took the lead.
Things got heated between Noah Nelson and Reed Gee, leading to a Trout power play as Nelson was called for instigating. The man-advantage did not last long as Porter Martone was called for holding, sending the game to 4-on-4.
The Bulldogs extended the 4-on-4 play after Cole Brown was called for goalie interference. With special teams in full swing, the Steelheads got things in motion and took the lead of the game.
Finn Harding got the puck off the Bulldog attacker at the Steelhead’s blue line before making a quick chip up the boards to Luke Misa. With an open lane, Misa carried the puck deep into the offensive zone before he sniped it bar down over Egorov’s shoulder.
While the Steelheads started period two on the power play, the Bulldogs were the ones to capitalize on the man advantage later in the second.
Back at full strength, the Bulldogs began their battle back, scoring their first goal of the game within the first five minutes. Calvin Crombie picked up the puck in the neutral zone and beat the Steelheads defender, creating a 2-on-1 opportunity. With an open lane in front, Luca Testa got the pass from Crombie and deked the puck past Ivankovic down low.
The Bulldogs shortly picked up their second goal on the power play after Mason Zebeski was called for checking from behind. O’Brien got the puck down at the left face-off dot before sending a pass out front to Cole Brown. Using himself as a screen, Brown made a tricky pass between his legs to Patrick Thomas, who one-timed it into the net.
The two goals did not deter the Steelheads as the Trout created numerous scoring opportunities, including two shorthanded breakaways. It was Harding who finally tied things up with a beautiful backhand goal.
After getting the puck from Zebeski at the blue line, Harding deked around four Bulldog players to get the puck in front and backhand it over the shoulder of Egorov. Following the excitement of his first goal of the season, Harding found himself with a penalty for roughing.
Using the extra attacker to their advantage, the Bulldogs took back the lead with another power-play goal. After receiving a pass from Tomáš Hamara at the point, O’Brien set himself up at the left faceoff dot before banking the puck off the left corner into the net.
The Bulldogs continued their lead into the third, scoring two early goals to make it 5-2. After getting a quick pass out front from Thomas in the corner, Nick Lardis made a quick shot that slid underneath the pads of Ivankovic to score the period’s first goal.
O’Brien soon followed with his second goal of the game. After getting the puck in the neutral zone from Zakary Lavoie, O’Brien brought the puck into the Steelheads zone with another 2-on-1 opportunity. Faking the cross-crease pass, O’Brien sent the puck bar down to extend the Bulldogs lead.
Not all hope was lost for the Steelheads, as Macgregor Richmond added another point to the board for the Trout. Harding got the puck out of a scramble out front of the Bulldog’s end before bringing it around the net and back up to the point. With Richmond opened at the right face-off dot, Harding passed the puck over, leading Richmond to snipe the puck bar down.
The Steelheads continued to fight hard to tie things up in the third, but O’Brien’s empty-net goal secured the 6-3 final.
The Trout return home on Friday, November 15, against the Colts for Sauga’s Birthday game. For tickets, click here.
