Monday Morning Buzz: Sting Have Been Scary Good All October Long
The Sarnia Sting have won thirteen games in a row, are ranked number one in the Canadian Hockey League, and are off to their best start in franchise history.
This weekend, it was two more victories for the men in black and yellow.
On Friday night, the Sting hosted the OHL’s number two ranked team, the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. It was one of the more competitive games the Sting have been a part of this season. The Sting emerged with a 6-3 victory in front of a great crowd at Progressive Auto Sales Arena.
Jordan Kyrou had his second hat trick in the last four games, and Justin Fazio had a tremendous night in goal, stopping 46 of 49 shots against. Check out the game report here.
IN GAME | Let the hats fly! @JordanKyrou with the hat-trick, his second in four games! #SwarmWithUs pic.twitter.com/qpxdt88Zf8
— Sarnia Sting (@StingHockey) October 28, 2017
On Sunday afternoon, the Flint Firebirds were in town. Once again, the Sting came out on top. This time, it was clear the Sting had the upper hand throughout the game. The final score was 6-2. Sean Josling had two goals, both setup excellently by Ryan McGregor. Aidan Hughes recorded his fourth win of the season in goal. The full game report can be read here.
IN GAME | "Hi, I'd like to order a rocket slapshot, extra top cheese."@jordan_ernst16: "Coming right up."#SwarmWithUs pic.twitter.com/2gn3NNJiCY
— Sarnia Sting (@StingHockey) October 29, 2017
Where all these wins coming from? Having numerous statistical league leaders may just be contributing to that. Let’s take a look:
- Jordan Kyrou leads the league in points with 28.
- Adam Ruzicka is fourth in the league with 24.
- Kyrou and Ruzicka are third in league goal scoring with 12.
- Kyrou is second in league assists with 16.
- Ruzicka leads the league in powerplay goals with 8.
- Kyrou is fourth in the league in powerplay assists with 7.
- Franco Sproviero leads the league with 2 shorthanded goals.
- Drake Rymsha is second in the league with 3 game winning goals.
- Theo Calvas leads the league in plus/minus at a +23.
- Justin Fazio leads the league in wins with 10.
- Fazio leads the league in save percentage at .933.
Sting Says
Justin Fazio spokes with YourTV Cogeco’s Terry Doyle about how the season is going and how he measures his success.
On the talent spread across this Sting team:
“You see it on the scoresheet. You’re not seeing Jordan [Kyrou] score six goals a game or six points a game. It’s all spread out. He might get three, but then the next three points are all spread out across different lines. It’s tough as [an opposition] goalie if you’re facing that.”
On the strength of the Sting’s penalty kill, ranked number one in the OHL:
“It’s something we strive for. We want a really aggressive PK and it’s been working really well for us so far.”
On the range of winning teams he’s experienced over his years with the Sting:
“I think I’ve seen every spectrum of hockey that we could have in Sarnia. It’s defintely nice that we’ve been playing the way we are and hopefully we can keep it up. You can feel Sarnia getting excited and that’s awesome, but it is really early in the season still. We have to keep up the way we’re playing, keep up the work, keep up everything we’re putting into it, and keep things going the right way.”
On measuring his play:
“It’s how I feel. If I’m letting in bad goals it might not show on the scoresheet, or it might. Even games where it looks like I played terribly but I could have actually had a pretty good game. It’s basically just how I feel and how I judge myself on how I play.
There’s a lot of different categories you can put goals into – should have had it, could have had it, etc. Even goals where it’s like, ‘Hey you had no right making that save,’ but if you make that save we could go down and have a chance to score, and it can make a completely different game. It’s about dialing it in and focusing.”
Alumni Update
♦ Steven Stamkos will have his number retired by the Sarnia Sting.
“The Sarnia Sting are set to retire the number 91 jersey of Tampa Bay Lightning captain and Sting alumni, Steven Stamkos, during an on-ice ceremony Friday, January 12th before the Sting host the Windsor Spitfires at Progressive Auto Sales Arena.”
♦ Travis Konecny is trying to “find balance between creativity and caution”.
♦ Brett Ritchie is working towards “building on last season“.
Sting Stats & Team Leaders
Points: Jordan Kyrou (28)
Goals: Jordan Kyrou, Adam Ruzicka (12)
Assists: Jordan Kyrou (16)
Plus/Minus: Theo Calvas (+23)
Shots on Goal: Adam Ruzicka (65)
Penalty Minutes: Theo Calvas (28)
Up Next
The Sting are headed on an Eastern Conference road trip this weekend.
On Thursday, Sarnia faces the conference leading Peterborough Petes. The Petes are led offensively by Logan DeNoble and Florida Panthers prospect Jonathan Ang. Their roster also features former Sting forward Nikita Korostelev.
The next night, the Sting make a Friday evening visit to Kingston. In their first matchup of the season, the Sting beat the Frontenacs by a score of 6-2.
And on Sunday afternoon, the Ottawa 67’s will host the Sting at TD Place. It will be a rematch of the Sting’s 7-2 home victory back on October 1.
NEXT HOME GAME: STING vs. GREYHOUNDS
Friday, November 10 | 7:05
Progressive Auto Sales Arena
#SwarmWithUs | Secure your seats here.
