Sting take down Rangers to bag two-points in season opener.
By Carl Chimenti
The Sarnia Sting opened the 2022-23 season with a very convincing 6-3 victory over the Kitchener Rangers, before a capacity crowd at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium, Friday night. Forward Ty Voit (Toronto Maple Leafs) and Marcus Limpar-Lantz led the attack with a goal and two assists each, doing all their scoring in the third period. Nolan Burke pitched in with a goal and an assist and Defenseman Alexis Daviault added two helpers.
Easton Wainwright, Angus MacDonell and Tyson Doucette scored one goal apiece. For Limpar- Lantz (2022 Import Draft), the goal was his first career OHL goal on the night following his first OHL assist. Porter Martone registered his first OHL point with an assist in the second period. Ben Gaudreau (San Jose Sharks) was solid in net stopping 17 of 20 shots.
Despite a scoreless first period, Sarnia dominated on the shot clock by a 12-7 margin. Ben Gaudreau, looked strong in net, early on, stopping Reid Valade, stick side on a back-hand attempt nearly three minutes in.
Special teams played a big role in the goal-less opening stanza. Sarnia had the first two power-play opportunities, forcing Ranger’s goaltender Jackson Parsons to make a couple of good saves in the process. During the second power-play, Gaudreau stopped Valade’s back-hand attempt with the Rangers short-handed. The Sarnia penalty kill was perfect as the Kitchener had three straight chances on the power-play and came up empty-handed. Like the first period, Sarnia was the better team in the middle period, as they tallied three times on ten shots, while limiting the Rangers to just four shots on net.
Forward Easton Wainwright, pounced on a loose puck in front of the net and let go a wrist shot that beat Parsons on the stick side for the first Sarnia goal of the 2022-23 OHL season. The goal was unassisted at the 6:49 mark. Kitchener tied the game exactly two minutes later at 8:49 on their first shot on net in the second period on a goal from Adam Zidlicky. Sarnia came back and broke the 1-1 tie on a deflection from Tyson Doucette in front, from a shot that came just inside the blue-line from Alexis Daviault, who drew the only assist at 17:52. Just 55 seconds later, the Sting added an insurance goal on a nice three-way passing play from Ethan Ritchie and Porter Martone to Angus MacDonell, who found the back of the net. For Martone, who was the fifth overall selection in the 2022 OHL Priority Draft, it was his first point of his Major-Junior career.
In the third period, Sarnia scored three more goals with the fourth Sting goal overall by Voit, proving to be the game winner. Tomas Hamara and Francesco Pinelli each had a goal and an assist for the Rangers.
The Sting continue their mini two game road trip Saturday night in Windsor; at the WFCU Centre, against the Spitfires, before returning for their home opener, at the Progressive Auto Sales
Arena (October 7th) against the Saginaw Spirit. Tonight’s three stars were Limpar-Lantz (3rd), MacDonell (2nd), and the first star Ty Voit.
