The Pack Defeat the Colts
The Sudbury Wolves returned to action on Friday night after having a week off from last Friday’s victory against the Niagara Ice Dogs. The Pack spent the week preparing for their double header weekend which opened with a visit from the Barrie Colts.
The Wolves came out to compete as they jumped out to an early 1 – 0 lead with a goal by rookie NATHAN PANCEL (KRISTOFF KONTOS, ADAM RESTOULE) at the 5:58 mark of the first period. The teams’ each had powerplay opportunities, but the Colts made one count as they tied the game late in the frame on goal from captain Colin Behenna. The Wolves outshot the Colts 10 – 8.
The second period was a bit back and forth before the Wolves started to take control. SAM SCHUTT (ANDREY KUCHIN, MICHAEL SGARBOSSA) scored his first goal of the season at the end of a nifty tic-tac-toe play, and gave the Wolves the 2 – 1 lead. Just under three minutes later, the Wolves doubled their lead on a one-timer from JOSH LEIVO (SGARBOSSA, KUCHIN) on the powerplay. The goal was LEIVO’s third marker of the season. The Pack outshot the Colts 16 – 9 in the middle frame.
During the third period, the Colts applied the pressure – determined to make a comeback. After the Colts were assessed a penalty early in the period, the Wolves found themselves in penalty trouble with 5 straight penalties, and also included giving the Colts a lengthy 5 on 3 opportunity. Sudbury Wolves netminder JOHAN MATTSSON made a number of key saves before allowing one powerplay goal at 10:35 to Zach Hall. That was as close as the Colts would get as the Wolves went on to win the contest by a final score of 3 – 2. The Colts outshot the Wolves in the final period 16 – 7.
MATTSSON continued his solid play in goal making 31 saves on the night, while Colts netminder Matias Niederberger also had a solid night with 30 saves in the loss.
The Molson Three Stars were: 1st Star – Johan Mattsson, 2nd Star – Sam Schutt, 3rd Star – Colin Behenna. The Dickies Hardest Working Player was awarded to newcomer ADAM RESTOULE.
The Sudbury Wolves will look to continue their winning ways on Saturday night when they host the visting Kingston Frontenacs. Game time is 7:05pm and good seats are still available online.
