BY SCOTT HUNTER HADDOW
The Sudbury Wolves took full advantage of the
Owen Sound Attack's Achilles Heel yesterday, scoring two
power play goals en route to an important 3-2 win at the
Sudbury Arena Sunday afternoon.
The Attack, ranked the second best team in
the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), feature the 17th worst
penalty killing in the OHL, and the Wolves took full advantage
when they had the man advantage.
Rookie sensation Ben Pouliot scored at 12:35
of the third period on the power play (his second of the game)
to seal the big win for the Wolves.
With three fights in the game, and intense
physical play, Wolves head coach and general manager Mike
Foligno knows the rough style helped propel his squad to
victory.
"Both teams have a lot of pride," said
Foligno. "That team is a pretty physical team. We had to
compete at that level, and the way that we compete the best is
by finishing checks, skating as well as any other club can
skate, and I thought, we had to respond physically, and our
players did respond physically.
"We took the body right from the first shift
of the game to the last shift of the game. It made a
difference. It slowed them down a little bit more and maybe
kept them from getting a couple more opportunities to
score."
Foligno was impressed with his players'
desire and execution, especially after a disappointing 4-3 loss
to Toronto on Friday night.
"We paid attention to detail a little bit
more, and we had everybody buying in again to the work ethic
and the team concept," said Foligno. We had scorers scoring,
the muckers mucking and the hitters hitting...and Kevin Beech
played really solidly in net for us."
The game marked the debut of Troy Murray, a
six-foot-three, 215-pound defenceman , who had been playing
Junior A with the Bowmanville Eagles of the OPJHL. Murray is up
with the team to replace injured defenceman Ryan Hastings,
who's out with an injured ankle.
Murray had one goal, five points, and 38
penalty minutes in 24 games with the Eagles.
The game also featured former Wolves'
defencman Kyle Lamb, who was traded to the Attack at the OHL
trade deadline for centre Kevin Baker.
Lamb was held off the scoresheet, as was
Baker.
Murray showed he could play, and Foligno
likes his character. Foligno was looking at bringing Murray in
earlier in the season, but he suffered a broken jaw, which set
him back.
"I thought he played really steady for us,"
said Foligno. "He's overcome a lot of adversity to get
here. He showed he's capable of playing."
A win over the Attack provides a big boost to
the Wolves dressing room.
"We played a really strong game," said Rafal
Martynowski, who recorded a goal and two assists. "Kevin Beech
really helped us win that game. He played great. We knew what
we could accomplish, especially after we beat London earlier
this season. We can beat any team in this league as long as we
have our A game going."
Wolves' captain Zack Stortini was proud
of his team's aggressive play.
"Our team is starting to come together," said
Stortini. "We are all working hard. Each and every guy did
their job. There's no reason we can't be one of the
premier teams in the league. It was a hard fought battle all
game."
The Attack scored first, when Jonathan Lehun
circled the net and fired a shot past Beech at 4:26.
Stortini, in an effort to fire up his team,
dropped the gloves with Attack heavyweight Robin Big Snake
minutes later.
The boys stood toe-to-toe, and threw many
haymakers. The two giants battled to a draw.
The ploy worked as just minutes later
Martynowski ripped a goal past Attack goalie Mike Brown on the
power play at 13:50 to tie the game.
The Attack stormed ahead in the second when
Big Snake tapped the puck in past Beech on the power play at
5:06 of the second period.
The Wolves responded quickly though, when
Pouliot tipped a Marc Staal point shot past brown at
8:47.
The teams exchanged chances in the third, but
it was Pouliot who did the damage. Pouliot slammed the puck
past Brown from the side of the net on a power play at 12:35
for the win.
Beech earned his fourth victory of the season
by making 20 saves. It also marked his fourth straight
win.
With the victory, the Wolves are now third in
the Central Division with a record of 22-18-3-4, good for 51
points. They are only four points behind Peterborough for the
overall lead in the conference.
On Friday, the Wolves lost 4-3 to the Toronto
St. Michael's Majors. The Wolves overcame a 3-0 lead in the
third period to tie the game, but allowed the game to slip away
on a goal by Ryan Wilson just 46 seconds after the tying goal
was scored.
Ryan McDonough, Bobby Chaumont and
Martynowski scored for the Wolves in the loss.
Patrick Ehelechner made 21 saves in the
defeat.
The Wolves are back in action this weekend as
they host the Barrie Colts on Friday night. Game time at the
Sudbury Arena is 7:30 pm.
The Wolves then hit the road for games
against Mississauga and Oshawa on Saturday and Sunday,
respectively.