IceDogs nip Troops in OT
Riley Patterson scored at 1:31 of overtime to lift the Niagara IceDogs to a 2-1 victory Sunday over the North Bay Battalion in an Ontario Hockey League battle of Central Division rivals.
Kevin He also scored for the IceDogs, while goaltender Vladislav Yermolenko made 26 saves. Niagara has a won-lost-extended record of 12-11-3 for 27 points, tied with the Brampton Steelheads for third place in the division and holding three games in hand.
Evgeny Dubrovtsev scored for the Battalion, and goaltender Jack Lisson provided 23 saves as the Troops completed a two-game road trip before 2,720 at the Meridian Centre.
North Bay, which lost Aaron Enright and Cam Warren to injury in a 7-2 setback Saturday to the Brantford Bulldogs, is 15-12-2 for 32 points, second in the division.
In overtime, Patterson dashed down the right wing with Dubrovtsev giving chase and fired the winner off a drive to the net. The unassisted goal was Patterson’s 14th of the season, tied with He and Ryan Roebroeck for the team lead.
The teams swapped second-period goals, with Dubrovtsev striking first at 12:07, six seconds after the IceDogs returned to full strength from an instigating minor, major and misconduct handed to Liam Spencer for a fight with Shamar Moses, who drew a major. Dubrovtsev cashed his fifth goal from the slot off a pass from the end boards by Ryder Carey.
He replied at 19:19, taking a feed from Ryerson Edgar wheeling through the right-wing corner and drilling the puck from deep in the right circle.
The goal came after Battalion coach Ryan Oulahen successfully challenged for goaltender interference on an apparent tally by Ethan Czata at 16:31. Czata tucked home the rebound of a shot by He, who contacted Lisson in driving right to left across the crease.
The Battalion’s Nick Wellenreiter had two third-period breakaways, failing to get off a solid shot in the 11th minute and being denied by Yermolenko sprawling at the left post in the 14th.
Each team had two power plays in the first period but couldn’t break the scoreless deadlock.
A rare call saw Niagara handed a delay-of-game penalty for a faceoff violation after icing the puck at 11:38, with Edgar serving the time.
The IceDogs went to the power play after Lincoln Edwards drew a hooking call at 17:18, but penalty killer Kaden Pitre posed the biggest threat on a breakaway in the early stages, with Yermolenko making the stop.
The Battalion entertains Brampton at 7 p.m. Thursday on Soles for Goals Night presented by BioPed.
BATTALION BULLETS: It was the second of six meetings, after the Battalion downed the visiting IceDogs 6-2 on Nov. 2. The next encounter is scheduled next Sunday at Niagara … Wellenreiter paced North Bay with six shots on goal. Patterson countered with six for the hosts … The Troops, who bused to Brantford on Saturday, overnighted at St. Catharines … Each team went 0-for-3 on the power play … Opening line combinations included Ethan Procyszyn centring left winger Wellenreiter and right winger Carey, Pitre centring left winger Nolan Laird and right winger Lirim Amidovski and Dubrovtsev pivoting left winger Moses and right winger Parker Vaughan. Centre Jax Pereira and left winger Edwards had various linemates … Defence pairings had Bronson Ride with Brandt Harper, Jonathan Kapageridis with Kent Greer and Carter Kunopaski with Adrian Manzo. Alexander Karmanov also saw action … In addition to Warren and Enright, who have lower- and upper-body injuries respectively, the Battalion was without Declan Gallivan, Ryder Cali and Arseny Pronin … Edwards was called up from the junior A King Rebellion, which has acquired him from the Cobourg Cougars, for the game … Among the missing for Niagara were Darcy Dewachter and Sean Doherty … IceDogs overager Grayson Tiller served the third game of a five-game suspension handed down after he received a match penalty for kicking in a 6-3 road loss Nov. 28 to the Kitchener Rangers … Andre Grougrou and Drew Jackson were the referees.
