Photo: Bob Davies (Soo Greyhounds)
On a five-game winless streak, the fifth-place west division (10-14-6-4) Soo Greyhounds took to the ice for a midweek clash in Sault Ste Marie to meet the third place (15-14-2) midwest division Kitchener Rangers on Wednesday, January 4th. In their only other meeting of the 2022 – 2023 season, the Rangers blanked the Greyhounds 9 – 0 in Kitchener on December 16th.
2:42 into the opening period, Kitchener’s Simon Motew fires a slapshot from the left blueline to find the back of Greyhound netminder Samuel Ivanov’s net to give the Rangers a 1 – 0 lead. Lleyton Moore and Adam Zidlicky drew the contributors on Motew’s fourth of the season. On a Soo three on one, Bryce McConnell-Barker fires a snapshot over Ranger goaltender Marco Costantini from the left faceoff circle to pull the hosts even 1 – 1 at the 3:46 mark of the first. Andrew Gibson added the lone assist on McConnell- Barker’s 18th of the season. Newly acquired Ranger, Danny Zhilkin fires a snapshot through Greyhound defenseman Andrew Gibson’s legs from the right faceoff circle to find the back of the Soo’s net to give Kitchener a 2 – 1 lead 4:47 into the second. Matthew Andonovski and Motew drawing the helpers.
All alone between the Ranger’s faceoff circles, Andrew Gibson rifles a wrist shot past Costantini to tie the game 2 – 2 at 8:29 of the period with Alex Kosti drawing the assist on Gibson’s seventh of the season. From the top of the right faceoff circle, the Greyhounds earn the lead with Kalvyn Watson sinking his 15th of the season with a goal trickling across the Rangers goalline with 2:23 remaining in the second. Caeden Carlisle and Landon Hookey adding the helpers on Watson’s go-ahead goal. From the left of Kitchener’s net, Alex Kostov scores his second goal of the season with batting the Soo’s fourth of the contest past Costantini over the Ranger goaltender’s catcher. Christopher Brown and Connor Clattenburg set up Kostov’s goal at 3:15 of the third. After a Soo turnover at the Kitchener blueline by Caeden Carlisle, the Rangers score on a three on one by Matthew Sop over a sprawling Ivanov at 4:23 with Carson Rehkopf and Motew notching the contributors. With Trent Swick all alone in front of the Soo net and Ivanov sprawled to the right of the crease, Swick lifts the tying goal over the Greyhound nemtinder at 13:56. Adrian Misaljevic and Hunter Brzustewicz were credited with the assists on Swick’s eighth of the season. With time ticking down and only 47 seconds remaining the midweek clash, McConnell-Barker sinks the game winner behind Costantini with Watson and Jordan D’Intino adding the helpers on McConnell-Barker’s second of the game. Kitchener goaltender Marco Costantini stopped 23 of 28 shots in the Rangers’ loss while Soo netminder Samuel Ivanov turned away 23 of 27 shots in the Greyhounds eleventh win of the season.
The Greyhounds head down the highway to face the Flint Firebirds on Friday, January 6th in a west division 7:00 p.m puck drop.
