The Sudbury Wolves were back on the ice at home for a Sudbury Saturday night to take on the powerhouse Kitchener Rangers hoping to continue their winning ways in front of over 4,000 fans.
Jackson Parsons got the start in net for Kitchener while the Wolves went with Marcus Vandenberg to start the game.
The Wolves didn’t waste any time getting on the scoreboard, as Andre Anania scored his fourth goal of the season to give Sudbury an early 1-0 lead just 1:36 into the opening period.
Less than three minutes later, Carson Rehkoph scored his 32nd goal of the season for the Rangers to tie the game 1-1.
At the 7:25 mark of the first, Hunter Brzustewicz gave the Rangers a 2-1 lead with his eighth goal of the season.
Carson Rehkoph scored his 33rd goal of the season, and second of the game, just 18 seconds later to put the Rangers up by two, 3-1 over the Wolves. Matthew Sop scored his 23rd goal for Kitchener with just over three minutes remaining in the first period to give the Rangers a 4-1 lead, and that is how both teams would head into the dressing room for the first intermission.
Sudbury Wolves Head Coach Ken MacKenzie would change goalies and go with Nate Krawchuk to start the second period.
Just over five-and-a-half into the second period the Wolves would cut the Rangers’ lead in half thanks to Kieron Walton scoring his 15th of the season, making the score 4-2 for the visiting Rangers.
Just under nine minutes into the middle frame Rehkoph completed the hat trick for the Rangers to restore the three-goal lead for Kitchener, making the score 5-2.
With 7:04 remaining in the second period, Landon McCallum scored lucky goal 13, once again pulling the Wolves within two, now down 5-3 to the Kitchener Rangers with one period remaining in the game.
5:06 into the third period Wolves captain and Seattle Kraken prospect David Goyette brought the Wolves closer with his 20th goal of the season, making the score 5-4 for Kitchener.
Three-and-a-half minutes later Goyette would score his second of the game to tie the score at
five goals apiece. With 6:13 remaining in the game Kocha Delic scored his 11th of the season to put Sudbury in the lead for the first time since the score was 1-0 in the first period, making the score 6-5 for the Wolves.
Alex Pharand would give the Wolves one more goal to seal a 7-5 victory with an empty net goal, his ninth goal of the season, with 23 seconds remaining in the game.
With the win, the Sudbury Wolves now hold a record of 20 wins, 11 losses, three overtime losses and two shootout losses, which puts them in first place in both the Ontario Hockey League’s Central Division and Eastern Conference.
The Sudbury Wolves take the ice again on Wednesday, Jan. 10 at home vs. the Mississauga Steelheads with a scheduled start time of 7:05 p.m. before heading out on the road for three games in a row against the Sarnia Sting, Windsor Spitfires, and Barrie Colts.
Super fan Robert McCarthy covers Sudbury Wolves games for Sudbury.com. Got a question for Robert? Email it to [email protected].
