Storm end year with 6-4 win over Petes

Liam Stevens netted his first two career goals as the Guelph Storm downed the Peteborough Petes 6-4 on New Year’s Eve.

Steph Coratti, GuelphStorm.com —

Hard work paid off for the Guelph Storm this time.

Outworking the Peterborough Petes for the majority of the match-up, the Storm came out with a 6-4 New Year’s Eve victory on Thursday.

In the win, rookie Liam Stevens scored his first two career goals, the first shorthanded and the second on the power play. 

Luke Burghardt was also solid for the Storm, registering a three-point night with a goal and two assists. 

Justin Nichols was nothing but solid in the paint, coming up with several significant saves to help backstop the visiting squad to their fourth win of the season. Nichols turned aside a total of 26 shots on the game.

Former Guelph Storm player Hunter Garlent had a goal and an assist for the Petes, while former Storm netminder Matt Mancina came in relief of Dylan Wells in the third period. Wells stopped 18 of 23 shots through 40 minutes of play, while Mancina stopped three shots in the final frame. 

A familiar face got the scoring going early, with former Guelph Storm player Garlent jumping on a turnover to open the scoring with a top shelf tally 37 seconds into the contest.

At the halfway point of the opening frame, the Storm responded with a rookie connection tying things up at one. On the rush, Kyle West fed the puck in front of Peterborough’s net only to have Brock Philips reach in with a tip for his third goal of the season. 

To start the middle frame, Givani Smith received Guelph’s second straight penalty 24 seconds in for cross checking. It wouldn’t necessarily be a disadvantage, though, with another rookie making a difference as Stevens scored his first career OHL goal on a shorthanded break at the 1:29 mark of the period. 

Less than three minutes later, the game found a tie-score once again – this time with the Petes responding as Eric Cornel followed up his own rebound for his 18^th of the season, despite Nichols’ first save and a solid second effort.

From there, the Storm took control with Stevens finding the back of the net again on the power play at the 8:31 point of the period.

Burghardt was next to find the back of the net after registering two assists already in the frame, scoring his sixth of the season with less than four minutes to go in the second. 

With under a minute remaining in the period, Smith closed out 40 minutes of play for the Storm, pulling the visitors ahead by three goals with a goal of his own.

The Petes made things interesting in the third with Cornel scoring his second of the game 8:34 into the frame, and pulling the home squad to within two.

Steven Lorentz got in on the comeback effort with just under five minutes to go in the game, but that would be it as James McEwan rocketed a backhanded clearing attempt into the empty net to solidify the 6-4 final in favour of the Storm.

Guelph is right back in action on New Year’s Day visiting the Kitchener Rangers. 

GAME NOTES 

• Thursday’s match-up was the first of two meetings between the Storm and the Petes this season.

• Guelph has now earned five points in their last four games played, including two wins. 

• Guelph Storm Head Coach Jarrod Skalde earned his first Ontario Hockey League win on Thursday. 

• Rookie Liam Stevens scored his first two career goals, the first shorthanded and the second on the power play.

• Two former Storm players in Hunter Garlent and Matthew Mancina are members of the Petes. Garlent opened the scoring in the first and added an assist, while Mancina came in as relief in the third period.

• The Storm are back in action on New Year’s Day, visiting the Kitchener Rangers. 

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Guelph Storm 6 at Peterborough Petes 4 
Thursday, December 31, 2015 – Peterborough Memorial Centre

Guelph 1 4 1 – 6
Peterborough 1 1 2 – 4

1st Period-1, Peterborough, Garlent 19 (DeNoble, Cornel), 0:37. 2, Guelph, Philips 3 (West, Hotchkiss), 10:02.

Penalties-Rhodes Gue (holding), 13:16.

2nd Period–3, Guelph, Stevens 1 (Burghardt), 1:29 (SH). 4, Peterborough, Cornel 18 (Lorentz, Garlent), 4:15. 5, Guelph, Stevens 2 (Burghardt), 8:31 (PP). 6, Guelph, Burghardt 6 (West), 16:45. 7, Guelph, Smith 9 (McFadden, McEwan), 19:27.

Penalties-Smith Gue (cross checking), 0:24; Philips Gue (check to the head), 5:35; Clarke Pbo (inter. on goaltender), 8:33; Deakin-Poot Gue (cross checking), 10:14; Ang Pbo (closing hand on puck), 10:14; Fraser Pbo (interference), 12:56.

3rd Period-8, Peterborough, Cornel 19 (Spencer, Nikandrov), 8:34. 9, Peterborough, Lorentz 15 (Maguire, Timms), 15:27. 10, Guelph, McEwan 13   19:26 (EN).

Penalties-Smith Gue (hooking), 1:08; Schulz Pbo (tripping), 3:18; Grima Pbo (slashing), 5:43; Maguire Pbo (misc-usc), 19:59.

Shots on Goal–Guelph 10-13-4-27. Peterborough 13-9-8-30.
Power Play Opportunities–Guelph 1 / 4; Peterborough 0 / 4.
Goalies-Guelph, Nichols 2-15-1-0 (30 shots-26 saves). Peterborough, Wells 7-5-1-1 (23 shots-18 saves); Mancina 10-9-1-2 (3 shots-3 saves).

A-2,713
Referees-Matthew Traub (30), Andrew Thompson (36).
Linesmen-Aaron Neely (81), Justin Knaggs (92).