Rangers’ Romano paces win
Luca Romano scored two goals, including an empty-netter, to lead the Kitchener Rangers to a 3-1 victory over the North Bay Battalion in Ontario Hockey League action Sunday night.
Cameron Reid contributed one goal and one assist and goaltender Christian Kirsch made 29 saves for Kitchener, which catapulted over the Owen Sound Attack into first place in the Midwest Division with a won-lost-extended record of 9-3-2 for 20 points.
The Rangers played a third game in three nights after losing 4-3 in overtime Saturday night to the host Barrie Colts.
Kirsch was a first-round pick in the Canadian Hockey League Import Draft in July who saw action in 24 games last season with the Wisconsin-based Janesville Jets of the North American Hockey League. The Basel native played four games for Switzerland in the World Junior Championship at Ottawa.
Lirim Amidovski scored for North Bay, while goaltender Mike McIvor made 18 saves, including against a penalty shot.
The Battalion completed a two-game road trip before a Kitchener Memorial Auditorium crowd of 5,853, the largest to see the Troops play this season. Edged 2-1 Saturday by the Brampton Steelheads, North Bay is 7-7-0 for 14 points, second in the Central Division.
Kitchener, which led 1-0 at the second intermission, took a 2-0 lead when defenceman Reid scored his first goal of the season on the power play at 6:30 of the third period. He cruised across the zone and fired the puck from the top of the left circle, with assists to Jack Pridham and Christian Humphreys.
Amidovski swept the puck past Kirsch backhanded on a clockwise wraparound, assisted by Shamar Moses, at 12:55 to give the Battalion hopes of a comeback, but a hooking call to Ihnat Pazii at 14:17 dulled momentum. With McIvor gone for a sixth attacker, Romano hit the vacant cage for an unassisted shorthanded goal, his sixth marker, at 18:43 as Alexander Bilecki served a blindsiding minor.
The game appeared set to be scoreless through 40 minutes before Romano struck on the power play at 19:58 of the second period, tipping home a Humphreys shot through heavy traffic. Reid had the other assist.
Parker Vaughan tested Kirsch with a one-timer at 1:17 of the period before Avry Anstis was awarded the penalty shot at 7:59 when impeded by Adrian Manzo on a partial breakaway. McIvor made the stop with the blocker.
Pridham went off for slashing at 10:31, and the Battalion threatened on the power play, with Kirsch gloving a goalmouth tip by Amidovski and knocking down the puck on a Moses chance set up by Cam Warren. Manzo was banished for high-sticking at 13:11 before penalty killer Amidovski just failed to corral a pass from Nolan Laird on a two-man break.
McIvor slid to his right to rob Romano deep on the left wing at 11:32 of the first period, and Romano shot high on a breakaway in the 16th minute.
The Troops, who forged a 10-7 edge in shots in the frame, drew a two-man advantage lasting 1:09 after Jakub Chromiak went off for crosschecking and Jacob Xu for delay of game late in the period but, despite applying some pressure, failed to generate a solid scoring chance.
The Battalion plays host to the Soo Greyhounds at 7 p.m. Thursday. It’s the Hallowe’en Costume Game presented by Expedia Cruises North Bay and Norwegian Cruise Line.
BATTALION BULLETS: Star Wars Night, with fans invited to don their favourite costumes from the movie franchise, featured themed entertainment, photo ops with characters and more … The teams will complete their two-game season series Dec. 31 at North Bay … Warren leaves Monday for the U17 World Challenge at Truro, N.S., where he’ll play for Canada Red … The Troops spent Saturday night at Kitchener … The Battalion went 0-for-4 on the power play. Kitchener was 2-for-4 … Opening lines had Ethan Procyszyn centring left winger Moses and right winger Amidovski, Evgeny Dubrovtsev pivoting left winger Pazii and right winger Nick Wellenreiter and Warren centring left winger Arseny Pronin and right winger Vaughan. Centre Ryder Carey and left winger Laird had various linemates… Defence pairs were Bronson Ride with Brandt Harper, Aaron Enright with Kent Greer and Carter Kunopaski with Manzo. Jonathan Kapageridis also manned the blue line … The Battalion was without Briir Long, Declan Gallivan and Ryder Cali, who suffered a separated left shoulder Saturday in a tussle with Reed Gee as part of a scrum behind the Brampton net at 8:37 of the first period … Kitchener’s Matthew Hlacar returned from a six-game suspension issued after he received a match penalty for blindsiding in a 5-4 overtime loss Oct. 10 at Soo. Hlacar was a free-agent signing in 2024 from the junior B St. Catharines Falcons … Scott Ferguson and Ryan Harrison were the referees.
