Facing a team with the ability to capitalize on turnovers and mistakes, the Soo Greyhounds didn’t do themselves any favours on Wednesday night against the Sudbury Wolves.
The Wolves jumped on every opportunity they had and were rewarded with a convincing win in the process.
A three-goal opening period set the stage for a 9-2 Ontario Hockey League victory for the Wolves over the Greyhounds Wednesday at the GFL Memorial Gardens.
It was a night in which the gameplan for the Greyhounds was set, but in the end, it was one in which they didn’t adhere to and it cost them dearly.
“The plan tonight was to be a disciplined team because they lead the league in penalties taken, so stay discipline and capitalize on our power play and we did neither of them,” said overage forward Kalvyn Watson. “I know we scored a power play goal, but we were in the box way too much and blueline turnovers killed us as well.”
For coach John Dean, turnovers and mistakes were also critical in the loss.
“Turnovers was a big one and then their transition is very good, and we refused to get above the puck tonight,” Dean said. “They were skating right through us from their D zone on any turnover, on any missed opportunity by us in the offensive zone.”
Dean added that the Wolves took advantage of their opportunities in the game.
“They scored on all of their chances, and we didn’t capitalize on ours,” Dean said.
“When you play a good team like that and you make mistakes, they’re a very high offensive threat team, so bad turnovers and bad mistakes cost us,” Watson said of the opening period.
Wolves coach Derek MacKenzie credited Sudbury with being opportunistic in Wednesday’s contest.
“On a lot of nights, statistically and analytically, we create a lot of scoring chances and it’s been a bit of the opposite where we generate 26 or 27 scoring chances and it just doesn’t pay off,” MacKenzie said. “It’s nice to see that the guys got rewarded for it.”
Sudbury opened the scoring while shorthanded when Landon McCallum beat Greyhounds goaltender Samuel Ivanov stick side after taking a pass from Marc Boudreau at 3:25.
The Wolves took a two-goal lead when Alex Pharand redirected the puck past Ivanov in tight after Nicholas Yearwood lost the handle in tight going to the net at 15:37
Sudbury made it a 3-0 game when Quentin Musty beat Ivanov from the slot after Evan Konyen forced a turnover in the Greyhounds zone by Justin Cloutier at 19:26.
The Greyhounds got on the board on the power play in the second period when Jordan D’Intino went to the net and scored on a rebound at 3:33 after his initial redirection was stopped.
Sudbury restored the three-goal lead when David Goyette went to the net and converted a pass from Yearwood below the goalline on the power play at 6:32. The goal ended the night for Ivanov as Charlie Schenkel entered the game in relief.
McCallum extended the lead to 5-1 when he went to the net and redirected a back-door pass from Pharand past Schenkel at 16:55.
Watson made it a 5-2 game late in the period when he took a pass from Bryce McConnell-Barker and beat Wolves goaltender Kevyn Brassard glove side at 18:20.
Nathan Villeneuve made it 6-2 Wolves in the third period when he beat Schenkel with a one-timer from the top of the right circle on a pass from Matthew Mania on the power play at 4:37.
With the Wolves on the power play after a major penalty to Greyhounds defenceman Caeden Carlisle, Marc Boudreau made it 7-2 when he scored on rebound in tight after Schenkel stopped a point shot by Nolan Collins initially at 10:54.
Musty made it 8-2 Wolves on the power play when he beat Schenkel on a one-timer from the right circle on a pass from Goyette at 13:03.
Jakub Chromiak made it 9-2 Wolves finishing off a passing play with Villeneuve from the left circle at 15:14.
Watson and D'Intino had a goal and an assist each for the Greyhounds.
Ivanov stopped five of nine shots before being pulled in the second period. Schenkel stopped 14 of 19 shots the rest of the way.
Boudreau and Goyette paced the Wolves with a goal and three assists each in the victory.
Musty added two goals and an assist while Yearwood also had a three-point night with three assists.
Pharand and Villeneuve had a goal and an assist each for the Wolves. Collins assisted on a pair of Sudbury goals.
Brassard stopped 20 shots.
Following Wednesday’s contest, the Greyhounds embark on their final road trip of the regular season, which kicks off on Friday night in Sarnia against the Sting. The trip will take the team to Saginaw on Saturday and the team will wrap up the road portion of its schedule next Wednesday in Sudbury before the final homestand of the season.
With the loss, the Greyhounds fall to 18-28-9-6.
With seven games to go in the regular season, Dean said there should still be plenty of motivation despite the Greyhounds playoff hopes dwindling quickly.
“This is the most individual team sport you can play in,” Dean said. “Everyone is competing for is, everyone is competing for contracts. They’re all limited. Everyone is competing to play on the team next year.”
Sudbury improves to 27-25-5-3 and moves into a tie with the Mississauga Steelheads for sixth in the Eastern Conference.
The Greyhounds lost defenceman Spencer Evans in the opening period due to injury after a hit by Ethan Larmand along the end boards in the Greyhounds zone.
Dean said following the game that the severity of the injury wasn’t known though he added that Wednesday was Evans’ final game with the team as he was reassigned to the Smiths Falls Bears U18 team after reaching the limit on games played under the card he was signed to by the Greyhounds.
Larmand was given a major penalty for checking to the head on the play.
Carlisle’s status for the weekend remains up in the air after his match penalty in the third period for cross checking.