The Brampton Battalion return to the Urbandale Centre for their last regular season game. The first two games between these two teams were wins for the 67s (7-4 and 4-0). The Battalion are coming off a weekend where they lost twice to Sudbury. The 67s are likely (hopefully) still feeling the sting of their 4-0 loss to St. Mike's last Sunday.
Ottawa will have to stay focused on today's game and not get ahead of themselves; they travel to Barrie for a same tomorrow (Barrie's on a 19-0-0-1 streak) and they are in Mississauga on Sunday.
The Mississauga St. Michael's Majors make their last visit of the regular season to the Urbandale Centre this afternoon. Their previous visit on October 23rd resulted in a 7-4 loss by the 67s where Devante Smith-Pelly was a one-man wrecking crew scoring 4 goals.
Much has changed for the 67s since then. They are playing much better team hockey and are now second in the Conference as opposed to last place when these two teams last met met. While both teams are close in GF, it's clear that the key to Missy's success is their ability to keep pucks out of their own net.
Their goalies rank 1st and 5th in the league for GAA (Chris Carrozzi 2.28 and JP Anderson 2.55). But their rankings change quite a bit when looking at their save percentages (7th with .915 and 25th with .898 respectively) which I interpret to mean that getting the pucks to the net is hard but profitable.
One of Ottawa's keys to victory will be not turning the puck over so much. While they have been playing much better on this latest run, they still have too many turn-overs and the Majors will be only too happy to pounce on them.
I will not be at today's due to another obligation. I'm counting on you to cheer the 67s on to an important victory.
Check out the OHL site for two video clips involving Tyler Toffoli. In the upper right corner of main page, hit the "Features" tab to get to the video for "OHL Top Performers for the Month of November" then go to the "Plays of the Week" tab to see Tyler's highlight reel headliner goal against Oshawa. It's been a while since the 67s fans have seen one of their players featured among the elite in the league.
Congrats to the team - the hard work is paying off!
Owen Sound Attack goalie Scott Stajcer stopped 39 of 40 shots for his team but it was the 67s who skated off with the 2-0 win and the three game winning streak. Bit it was well into the third period before the fans got to exercise their throwing arms with the Teddy Bear Toss.
Scratches: Cowick, Smith There's really not much of a story to tell when a game gets down to the last 7 minutes before the first goal is scored and the second goal is an EN with 6 seconds left. Owen Sound's goalie, Scott Stajcer did everything but skate up ice with the puck to help his team win. Between the two goalies, he had to work the hardest. He was positionally very strong and he didn't let out a whole lotta rebounds for second chances. Both goalies had some help from the posts.
It was Tyler Toffoli who finally got Stajcer moving across the crease and beat him 5-hole. Tyler Graovac got the assist for intercepting the clearing pass and the sweet feed to Toffoli.
With one minute left and the faceoff in the Ottawa zone, Owen Sound called a time out and pulled the goalie for the extra Attacker and Perugini had to make a couple of save. Thomas Nesbitt blocked the shot from the point, dug out the puck and skated in for the easy EN to seal the deal.
The 2-0 win gives the 67s get their third shut-out of the season, the second for Chris Perugini and they take over first spot in the East Division with a P10 of 9-1-0-0. A pretty amazing run.
Hardest Working 67 as selected by the Team1200: Andrew Merrett
Random Thoughts:
67 shots on goal and the 67s win...hmmm. Not as creative as the numerology logic in the following clip:
Play was pretty even for the first period (nothing stellar from either team) but Ottawa owned the third. They had the Attack pinned in their zone for long stretches, passing and cycling almost at will and taking control of the neutral zone.
I shot from between the benches for the third period and the frustration of the 67s at not being able to score was audible. The lack of scoring certainly wasn't for lack of effort.
A lot of candidates for hardest working 67s. The spousal unit and I were guessing that it would be Thomas Nesbitt. He certainly played hard enough for consideration.
It's hard to believe that Cody Ceci is still only 15 years old (for a couple more weeks). Watching him improve over the next few years is going to be a real treat for the 67s fans.
One ref and two penalties - for the whole game. These were mighty polite players!
Homer moment: IMHO Hockey Canada got it wrong. If Hodgsen and McFarland were try-out worthy for the WJHC selection camp, Cuma and Toffoli definitely earned the opportunity to be invited. This is one of those character building moments and Cuma handled it very graciously and professionally in the interview clip I saw.
Tyler Toffoli was named the OHL Player of the Month for November. He currently holds top spot in the league for scoring streaks (6 games). There are three other players with a 6-game streak but Tyler has the most goals. Those stats were as at November 29th. His streak was broken in the Belleville game where he was held off the scoresheet.
I will miss the game against the Mississauga St. Mike's Majors on Sunday. The Majors lost in Kingston and will be in no mood for another loss. This should be a very exciting, competitive game. More Pictures:
The warm-up pucks
Perugini - no rebound
Peter Stevens chatting with young fans during the warm-up
The Owen Sound Attack kick off their weekend swing through the Eastern Conference with tonight's visit to the Urbandale Centre. Both teams are on a 2-game winning streak - one of which will be broken tonight.
Remember, it's the Teddy Bear Toss tonight (one of my favorite game-days) so bring your new or gently used teddy bear to toss on the ice when the 67s score their first goal.
Ottawa 67's
Head to Head
Owen Sound Attack
13-11-3-2 31 points
Record
12-15-1-2 27 points
4th Eastern
Conference - Rank
8th Western
105
GF
96
99
GA
126
8-1-1-0
P10
5-5-0-0
(29/134) 21.6 (10th)
PP% (rank)
(24/156) 15.4 (15th)
(29/134) 78.4 (14th)
PK% (rank)
(37/169) 78.1 (15th)
Top Guns
Ottawa 67's
Owen Sound Attack
Lindsay (12-22-34)
Mignardi (17-16-33)
Martindale (11-22-33)
Shipley (7-23-30)
Toffoli (16-15-31)
Wilson (15-9-24)
Nesbitt (15-14-29)
Carroll (15-8-23)
Nigro (7-17-24)
Schemitsch (2-19-21)
Some Owen Sound info:
#12 Jesse Blacker defense selected by Toronto Maple Leafs round 2 #58 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
#40 Scott Stajcer goalie selected by New York Rangers round 5 #140 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
#17 Garrett Wilson forward selected by Florida Panthers round 4 #107 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
Once again, Harry Nowell is offering his workshop on Pro Hockey Photography with the cooperation of the Ottawa 67s. This is a great opportunity to improve your photography. You get a session before the game, you shoot a game and, most importantly, you get the opportunity to discuss your results in a very safe environment with Harry and the other students. Harry always has something encouraging to say while dispensing valuable advice to make it even better.
Even if your ambition is simply to take pictures of your kids in their many activities, this is a worthy investment - you will be inspired by Harry's enthusiasm for the medium.
Tyler Toffoli is a man on a mission since the preliminary rankings came out and the team is reaping the benefits as he scored three goals and added 2 assists in their 6-3 win over the Oshawa Generals. The win makes it 6 in a row for the 67s and 5 losses in a row for the slumping General.
Scratches: Cowick, Birkhoff It was home captain Tyler Cuma scoring his first goal of the season on a one-timer from the point that put Ottawa on the scoreboard early in the first period. Zanetti and Tyler Toffoli assisted on the PPG. If there was a third assist to award, it would go to Dalton Smith for screening Zador.
Ottawa then managed to get into a bit of penalty trouble, including two in the penalty box for 38 seconds. The 67s limited the Gens to 5 shots for the entire run of penalties in the frame including no shots allowed during 1:23 where the same killers were stuck on the ice.
But Connor Stokes evened it up with a shot off the post with less than 5 minutes left in the first.
The second period was goal-fest with 6 goals scored between the two teams. The Gens struck first to go ahead on Thomas Christian's first of two PPGs in the period almost 10 minutes apart. Right after the next faceoff, Peter Stevens dropped the gloves with Alex Dzielski. Stevens clearly had the upper hand in the tilt.
It had the desired affect for the 67s as they came back to tie the game just 35 seconds later. Jon Carnevale was unassisted in his 4th game of the year when he finally got it past Zador on his third try.
And just three minutes later, Cody Ceci roofed a loose puck to put Ottawa ahead for good. It was the result of relentless work on the powerplay, keeping the puck in play in the Oshawa zone not allowing Zador to grab it for a whistle. Tyler Toffoli and Cody Lindsay were credited with the assists. And that was it for Zador, for the moment. Kevin Bailie went into the net.
Then it became the Tyler Toffoli scoring clinic. His first goal put the 67s up by two when he tapped Cody Lindsay's rebound past Bailie. Dalton Smith got the second assist.
Thomas Christian got the Gens back within one with his second PPG of the game with Dalton Smith in the sin-bin.
Toffoli got the 2-goal lead back unassisted on yet another highlight reel goal that started when he blocked Wilson's shot from the point, picked up the puck and fought off Wilson and tucked the puck behind Bailie.
It looked like the Gens scored on the very next play when Boone Jenner put a rebound past Perugini. But on the review, it was called back as it seemed to go off his glove although the replay at home seems to show it go off the stick. That was a bad call. Ottawa got a break on that one - big time.
Toffoli scored the only goal of the third and made it a hat trick with a wrist shot that beat Bailie high blocker. Tyler Cuma and Chris Perugini assisted. Bailie was pulled and Zador was put back in the game.
Oshawa kept at it including laying out some big hits but the 67s were stronger for the decisive 6-3 despite being out-shot 39-48.
Hardest Working 67 as selected by the Team1200: Cody Ceci
Random Thoughts:
Lots to like about the 67s right now. Looking forward to see how they take it on the road as both teams lost last night and Ottawa has now vaulted to 4th place in the Conference.
Perugini was lucky on a couple of his puck handling attempts. Miscommunications with his D created opportunities for the Gens.
Perugini faced 48 shots. It sure would be interesting to see how many shots were blocked. It seemed like there must have been another 20.
Ryan Martindale had what I think might be his first OHL fight with Andy Andreoff.
The Sointu trade allows Byrne to give his young guys more ice time and allow them to improve and they are taking full advantage of it now as someone will start sitting out once Corey Cowick gets back which may be around the end of January.
Oshawa played better than the score indicates. They are a young team that played hard right to the end. There was some good forechecking pressure, odd-man rushes and cycling.
More Pictures:
Ryan Hanes acknowledged for his scholastic success
The rebuilding Oshawa Generals come to town tonight for their first game of the season at the Urbandale Centre. The 67s bring their 5-game winning streak to the party while the struggling Generals - well, they're struggling. Which makes for an interesting matchup. It certainly wouldn't be the first time that a struggling team knocks a hot team down a peg or two. Let's see if the 67s decide to bring the same intensity to the ice that they did for the Kitchener Rangers.
For those of you who didn't see it on the 67s site:
Tyler Toffoli was named the CHL Player of the Week. You can see the announcement here. Congrats again Tyler!
And the Finnish import, Matias Sointu has been traded to Sudbury for goaltender Francis Dupuis who is playing in the CJHL. See the 67s announcement here. I was starting to wonder who might be out of the line up once Corey Cowick returns. Now we know.
Tyler Toffoli has played a lot of hockey in the last week and it's all been good. It started last Wednesday when the team traveled to Belleville and won in the shoot-out. Tyler had a goal and an assist in that game. Then it was off to Barrie for game one of the OHL Subway Super Series. Tyler had a goal in the 5 - 2 win over the Russians.
He was back in Ottawa for Friday's great game against Plymouth Whalers. The 67s' comeback was sparked by Tyler's PPG early in the third period. He also had an assist in that game.
In Sunday's outstanding game against the 2nd best team in the Western Conference, the Kitchener Rangers, Tyler contributed two goals and two assists in the 6-3 win.
And to wrap up the week, Tyler was part of last night's very strong Team OHL where he put up another goal to help the OHL sweep the series.
He was the first star in both Ottawa games on the weekend, had his goal against Sarina in the OHL Plays of the Week video and, as a couple of faithful readers emailed me, he is the OHL's Player of the Week for Novermber 16 - 22.
The 67s played another solid game and took down the Kitchener Rangers 6 - 3. That's a 5-game winning streak including wins against a couple of strong Western Conference teams.
Scratches: Sointu, Cowick, Birkhoff The Kitchener Rangers may have had the first shot on goal just seconds into the game but it was the Ottawa 67s who dominated the ice. The 67s were on their first PK of the game early in the first when Thomas Nesbitt got around the defender and created a two-on-one with Martindale. Instead of passing, he took the quick shot and it went under Mavrick's arm for the SHG. Tyler Cuma got the assist.
Ottawa kept building up the pressure and had the Rangers on their heels for most of the period. Near the end of the period, Ottawa had a great cycle going and also managed to carry out a line change without losing possession.
The goalie judges had to work for their lunch in the second period with 6 goals scored between the two teams. The first four by Ottawa and the last two by the Rangers. It started with Tyler Toffoli stealing the puck behind the Kitchener net, passing it to Cody Lindsaywho rung it off the post. Dalton Smith picked up the rebound and buried it for his 11th goal of the season.
This was followed by two goals within about a minute and a half of each other before the period was 6 minutes old. With the 67s on the PP, Thomas Nesbitt scored his second of the game when he came in off the boards to the slot and beat Parks 5-hole. Cuma and Nigro with the assists and Parks found himself parked on the bench.
Brandon Maxwell took over in the Ranger net and Tyler Toffoli scored on the 67s very next shot 30 seconds later when Maxwell couldn't hang on to the puck. Cody Lindsay assisted.
The second line struck gold again just over the halfway mark when Cody Lindsaypicked up the puck at his blue line, passed it up to Dalton Smith who got the puck to Tyler Toffoli as he rushed to join the play and beat Maxwell with the backhand. This one might make the OHL highlight reel too.
Kitchener looked like they might get back into the game with two very quick goals within about 40 seconds of each other from Jeremy Morin (a PPG) and rookie Gabriel Landeskog in the last 5 minutes of the game. They gave the Rangers some much needed momentum and they finished the period with the best effort they had all game.
But it wasn't enough to turn the tide.
Dalton Smith tipped Travis Gibbons' shot from the point to score his second of the game and Ottawa's second PPG. Tyler Toffoli had the second assist.
Rangers' Gabriel Landeskog got one more goal to halve the difference but the Rangers really didn't threaten in the third, getting only 6 shots on net.
And so the 67s get their 5th win in a row by soundly outplaying the second best team in the Western Conference 6 - 3 and out shooting them 37 - 24.
Hardest Working 67 as selected by the Team1200: Thomas Nesbitt (I didn't get a good in-game picture)
Random Thoughts:
The team really looks like a team now. Lots of support, people where they need to be, and scorers getting goals. Quite the turnaround for a team that was in the basement of the league a couple of weeks ago.
Cuma is playing like a man possessed. Despite getting hurt a couple of times, he was out there to the end. Someone get him Anton Volchenkov's phone number so that they can discuss recovery techniques.
Apparently Lindsay is indeed a faceoff machine - 65% wins in the game against Plymouth.
It was a chippy affair at times with the Rangers letting their frustration boil over on occasion. Or perhaps they've become a dirty team.
Before the game, the Kitchener Rangers wear t-shirts with RESPECT written across the back. I expect this is out of respect for their team mate Ben Fanelli who is still recovering from the nasty results of a hit he took.
I normally don't comment on the on-ice officiating because it's a hard job and for the most part, people expect an unreasonable level of perfection. I just have to say something for this game. There was only one referee for this game and he was pretty brutal. His linesmen didn't give him much help either.
Kitchener has its sights set on the OHL Championship and more this year and are moving aggressively to create the conditions for success. Their most recent move was a trade on Friday for Belleville's Matt Tipoff who was in the line up for Kitchener's 8-1 romp over the Frontenacs on Friday. He scored Kitchener's first goal and added an assist to impress his new team and city. Their second best PP in the OHL was good on 4 of their 10 opportunities in the game. Orleans native Jason Akeson had a hat trick in the game.
Both teams rested today in preparation for Sunday's game at the Urbandale Centre. Ottawa puts their 4-game winning streak on the line.
Ottawa 67's
Head to Head
Kitchener Rangers
9-10-3-2 23 points
Record
16-4-1-2 35 points
6th Eastern
Rank-Conference
2nd Western
83
GF
96
87
GA
68
6-2-1-1
P10
7-3-0-0
(22/107) 20.6 (10th)
PP% (rank)
(41/155) 26.5 (2nd)
(24/110) 78.2 (16th)
PK% (rank)
(18/113) 84.1 (2nd)
Top Guns
Ottawa 67's
Kitchener Rangers
Martindale (11-20-31)
Skinner (17-15-32)
Lindsay (10-14-24)
MacKinnon (12-20-32)
Nesbitt (12-10-22)
Morin (18-13-31)
Toffoli (9-10-19)
Tipoff (11-20-31)
Nigro (4-14-18)
Akeson (10-20-30)
Kitchener tidbits:
#19 Jason Akeson Forward is an Orleans native and is related to former 67s Jeremy Akeson (cousins I believe)
#34 Mavric Parks Goalie, former Frontenac is an Eganville native
#30 Brandon Maxwell Goalie selected by Colorado Avalanche round 6 #154 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
#7 John Moore Defense selected by Columbus Blue Jackets round 1 #21 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
#61 Jeremy Morin Forward selected by Atlanta Thrashers round 2 #45 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
#11 Tyler Randell Forward selected by Boston Bruins round 6 #176 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
#72 Matthew Tipoff Forward was traded on Friday to Kitchener from Belleville for Alex Aleardi and a 5th round pick in 2011. Belleville also threw in their first round pick from the import draft in 2010.
Their first round 2009 OHL Priority Draft Pick Ryan Murphy (D) has 2 goals and 10 assists in the 23 games he has played this year.
As predicted by your faithful blogger, Tyler Toffoli's PPG goal against Sarnia made the cut for the OHL plays of the week. It was the number 1 play of the week. Well done Tyler!
In their best game this season, the Ottawa 67s come back from a 2-goal deficit with 3 unanswered goals to harpoon the Whalers 4 - 3 (in regulation for a change).
Scratches: Cowick, Birkhoff, Hanes This was a fast, fast game. The first period went by quickly as I think there were only 5 whistles for the entire 20 minutes. There were a couple of times where it seemed like play went on for a few minutes before getting a whistle.
There was lots of end to end action with each team doing a good job of preventing the other one capitalizing on their rushes.
Both teams had their chances but it was the Whalers who got on the board first when Panthers prospect A.J. Jenks found the rebound at the top of the crease and just lobbed it over a sprawled Perguini. Shots were 9 - 6 at this point in favour of Plymouth.
Ottawa got that back with just 51 seconds left in the period when Dalton Smith capitalized on a misplayed puck by Jordon in neurtal zone creating a two-on-one with Smith and Lindsay. Dalton put it over the shoulder of Hackett to tie it up. Tyler Toffoli and Mark Anthony Zanetti assisted.
The second period didn't start so well for Ottawa as the Whalers scored on their first two shots on goal. The first was a tic-tac-toe play among Brittain, Seguin and McCauley who put it past Perugini. The Whalers' next, and eventually final, goal came on the powerplay just over two minutes later. Schmitz's shot from the point got past a screened Perugini.
A two-goal deficit did not phase the 67s and they came right back with a couple of good attacks. They kept the Whalers off the scoresheet for the rest of the period.
The came the third period. Whatever was said in the locker room, it worked. Not only did the 67s score 3 unanswered goals, they completely shut down the Whalers, limiting them to just 3 shots on goal for the entire period - including the final minute when Hackett was pulled for the extra attacker.
The comeback started with Tyler Toffoli's PPG with a shot from the slot that beat Hackett blocker side. Anthony Nigro and Julien Demers with the assists.
Then, just past the halfway mark of the period, hard work along the boards by Ryan Martindale and Travis Gibbons sprung the puck to Thomas Nesbitt who beat Hackett short side, possibly off a Whaler stick, to tie up the game.
And the game winning goal was a fast one off the faceoff when Andrew Merrett drew the puck back to Mark Anthony Zanetti who's shot ricocheted off a couple a players and beat Hackett.
The 67s kept driving for the next goal and completely smothering Plymouth's chances. And the take the game with a score of 4 - 3 and final shots 33-20.
Three Stars as selected by the Team1200 (third star Jenks did not take a turn)
Hardest Working 67 as selected by the Team1200: Tyler Cuma
This was one of the best team games I've seen from the 67s in a long time. It seens like things are solidifying for these guys.
Cody Linsday was a face-off-winning machine! Would be interesting to see the stats but it seemed he won way more than he lost (if any).
Top prospect, Tyler Seguin, was limited to one point. It was his first game after missing 4 due to an injury. Up to this point he was averaging 2 points per game.
That missed hit from behind on Smith will likely result in a conversation with the referees. Fortunately Smith was not seriously injured (that we can tell). But it did fire up the team.
There was some pain in the win: Toffoli was hit in the foot by a hard shot from Demers and he took a stick in the face right in front of a ref (no call) and Lindsay took a nasty hit on the knee from Brittain. Both returned to the ice.
Cody Ceci has been named to Ontario's U-17 team. The tournament takes place in Timmons in December.
Dylan Anderson has been assigned to the Gloucester Rangers of the CJHL.
The Plymouth Rangers start their weekend road trip with a game against the Ottawa 67s who are enjoying their first 3-game winning streak of the year after a couple of shoot out wins (Niagara on Sunday and Belleville on Wednesday). In both games, the deciding goal came off the stick of Tyler Cuma.
Tylers Cuma and Toffoli will be playing their third game in three days having played on Team Ontario last night in the Canada - Russia SUBWAY Super Series. Here's the article from the Ontario Hockey League site. Tyler Toffoli was among the Team Ontario scorers. A quick scan of the roster doesn't indicate that there were any Plymouth players on this team. There may be for the second Ontario game.
Ottawa 67's
Head to Head
Plymouth Whalers
8-10-3-2 21 points
Record
13-9-0-0 26 points
6th Eastern
Conference - Rank
5th Western
79
GF
81
84
GA
66
5-3-1-1
P10
6-4-0-0
(21/102) 20.6 (11th)
PP% (rank)
(27/119) 22.7 (6th)
(23/107) 78.5 (14th)
PK% (rank)
(22/133) 83.5 (3rd)
Top Guns
Ottawa 67's
Plymouth Whalers
Martindale (11-19-30)
Seguin (19-17-36)
Lindsay (10-14-24)
McCauley (14-11-25)
Nesbitt (11-10-21)
Jenks (8-11-19)
Toffoli (8-9-17)
Meurs (6-10-16)
Nigro (4-13-17)
Brittain (7-7-14)
Some Plymouth players to watch:
#9 Tyler Seguin recently annointed the number one spot in the preliminary NHL Draft rankings
#32 Josh Brittain selected by Anaheim Ducks round 3 #71 overall 2008 NHL Entry Draft
#23 Jamie Devaine selected by Toronto Maple Leafs round 3 #68 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
#31 Matt Hackett Goalie selected by Minnesota Wild round 3 #77 overall 2009 NHL Entry Draft
#22 A.J. Jenks selected by Florida Panthers round 4 #100 overall 2008 NHL Entry Draft
#32 Michal Jordan selected by Carolina Hurricanes round 4 #105 overall 2008 NHL Entry Draft
Ottawa heads down the highway to take on divisional rivals Belleville Bulls. Neither team is exactly tearing up the league this year - they are neck and neck in the conference at the edge of the playoff cut line. This is an important game for both teams. Belleville's Stephen Silas, their only player to make the recently published NHL Draft rankings will be sitting out this game while he serves the first of a two-game suspension.
