Greyhounds hold on for narrow win

It wasn’t pretty at times, but it was, as Soo Greyhounds coach John Dean put it, “a big, important win.”

In the second game of a three-game Ontario Hockey League road trip, the Greyhounds secured an important two points against a Western Conference rival thanks to a 2-1 win over the Erie Otters at Erie Insurance Arena.

There were some struggles in the game but a strong start and rebounding from a lacklustre second period were keys for the Greyhounds in the win.

“I’m happy with the opportunities we got,” Dean said. “I wish we could have executed a little bit better. I thought maybe that could have given us a little bit of a spark. But I still liked the first period quite a bit.”

Dean called the second period “sloppy.”

“Puck management was an issue,” Dean said. “Going into the third up 2-1, we challenged the guys to be extremely smart with the puck and manage the puck well and we really executed a good third period for the most part.”

Another thing that pleased the Greyhounds bench boss in the win was something not seen on the ice.

“The bench was very clear in the second period with each other that they weren’t happy with what was happening on the ice,” Dean said. “The leadership group, right down to our young guys, were getting on each other in a positive way to make sure we changed up how we were handling the puck.”

“When we get like that where we struggle a bit, as a whole, we get on each other and keep each other in check,” said Greyhounds defenceman Billy Constantinou, who assisted on both Sault goals in the win. “That was a big game for us, and we needed to dial it in.

Tye Kartye and Zack Trott completed the scoring for the Greyhounds.

Overage goaltender Bailey Brkin made 28 saves including a key save on Erie’s Hayden Fowler in the late stages of the third period.

“Bailey Brkin was excellent, especially with the goaltender pulled (late in the third period),” Dean said.

Dean called Brkin’s save on Fowler late as “an elite save.”

“He’s been great for us,” Constantinou said.

“Coming from out west, I’m used to stingy hockey games,” Brkin said. “It’s a good feeling to win a game where you only let in one goal.”

Jamie Drysdale had the lone goal for the Otters.

Erie goaltender Daniel Murphy made 22 saves.

With the win, the Greyhounds improve to 12-15-2-0 heading into action on Sunday.

The Greyhounds will wrap up the weekend with an afternoon contest Sunday in Mississauga at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre against the Mississauga Steelheads.

The team will then return home for a three-game homestand that begins Wednesday night at the GFL Memorial Gardens against the Sudbury Wolves.

Friday’s loss drops Erie’s record to 11-9-2-6.

In other action around the OHL on Friday night, in Kingston, Dawson Baker scored three times and Jordan Frasca assisted on three goals as the Kingston Frontenacs beat the Peterborough Petes 7-2.

In Mississauga, Avery Hayes and Jan Jenik had two goals each as the Hamilton Bulldogs beat the Mississauga Steelheads 6-4.

In Sarnia, Cole Coskey had a goal and three assists as the Saginaw Spirit beat the Sarnia Sting 11-8. Cole Perfetti had two goals and an assist while Damien Giroux also had a pair of goals. Danny Katic, Mitchell Smith, and D.J. Busdeker had a goal and two assist each for the Spirit. Jacob Perreault had two goals and an assist while Brayden Guy had a goal and two assists for the Sting.

In Sudbury, Quinton Byfield had a goal and four assists as the Sudbury Wolves beat the Flint Firebirds 8-5. David Levin added two goals and an assist for the Wolves. Ty Dellandrea had a goal and two assists for the Firebirds.

In Gatineau, Que., Cedrick Andree stopped 32 shots as the Ottawa 67’s won an inter-league contest with the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League’s Gatineau Olympiques by a 4-0 score. Joseph Garreffa had a pair of goals for Ottawa.

In Guelph, Nico Daws made 39 saves as the Guelph Storm blanked the Barrie Colts 4-0. Cam Hillis scored twice for the Storm. Pavel Gogolev added a goal and two assists for Guelph.

In Kitchener, Michael Vukojevic assisted on four goals as the Kitchener Rangers beat the Oshawa Generals 6-4. Kyle MacLean scored a pair of goals for Oshawa.

In London, Matthew Struthers had a goal and two assists as the Owen Sound Attack beat the London Knights 6-3. Brady Lyle scored a pair of goals for Owen Sound.