Cech leads Hounds to first win

The Soo Greyhounds were finally rewarded for their hard work.

Despite getting solid goaltending in three of four starts and getting a strong effort from the players, the Hounds couldn't find the offense to lift themselves to victory.

On Wednesday night, one goal is all the Greyhounds would need as Jakub Cech kicked aside all 32 shots he faced to give the Hounds a 1-0 win over the Sarnia Sting in front of 2,343 fans at Memorial Gardens.

The victory improves the Hounds record to 1-4.

"This victory was long overdue in respect to how hard the players have worked and stuck together," said Greyhounds head coach Marty Abrams.

"We've been preaching that it takes 60 minutes or even 65 minutes to win a game and tonight it took all 60 minutes which has been the case in every game we played."

Once again, the Hounds were forced to play the game without key players in the lineup. Jeff Carter sat out his third straight game with a knee injury while Tyler Kennedy was a scratch due to a battle with bronchitis. Both are listed as day-to-day.

"We have a pretty resilient group and I'm surprised on how tight they are and the chemistry that has been developed this early in the season," said Abrams.

"Even when we lost the first four games, nobody was pointing the finger at anybody and they believe in the systems and the direction we're heading. They knew it was going to come if the work ethic is there and it is."

The game started with a bang as a pair of fights dominated the first four minutes of action. Jordan Smith was the first Hound to drop his gloves in a battle with Jon Hecimovic. Just seconds later, David Jarram squared off with Jordan Grant.

The Greyhounds, who have been struggling for offense in the early season, had a few quality scoring chances in the opening period but couldn't beat the armour of Sting goaltender Ryan Munce.

Much like the first period, the second began with another tilt as the Hounds' Jason Pitton went toe-to-toe with Sault native Kelsey Wilson.

At 9:54, the Greyhounds opened the scoring as they capitalized on a bad bounce off the boards from a Sting clearing attempt. Andrew Desjardins collected the puck and riffled a shot over the shoulder of Munce.

In a more entertaining third period, each team traded several scoring chances with Cech and Munce closing the door each time.

"We talked about how our goaltenders were stars in four of first five games and it all starts from the back end out and tonight our goaltender was a big part the win," said Abrams.

The Greyhounds thought they had taken a 2-0 lead midway through the final period. Blair Jarrett, who was filing in as team captain in Carter's absence, fired a shot past Munce that appeared to many in the Gardens to go straight through the mesh.

Clinging to a 1-0 lead with 3:47 remaining in the third period, the Greyhounds were forced to kill a penalty as Andrew Desjardins, who had a strong game, was sent to the box for high sticking.

The Greyhounds continue their three-game home stand on Friday as the Brampton Battalion visit the Gardens for a 7:30 p.m. start. On Sunday, the Hounds host the London Knights at 7 p.m.

PHOTO: Greyhounds forward Jason Pitton (#17) battles Sault native Kelsey Wilson in a second period fight.