The Sudbury Wolves suffered a tough 5-2 defeat at the Peterborough Memorial Centre on Monday (Feb. 17) against the Petes', putting a sudden stop to their infant winning-streak.
It was an exciting night for Nickel City's hosts, who were announced earlier in the day to have officially clinched a spot in the 2020 OHL Playoffs with their 5-2 victory over the Oshawa Generals Feb. 15.
The Wolves will have one more chance to settle the score on March 12.
Sudbury' Blake Murray cracked open the scoreboard with his 28th goal of the season just over three minutes into play, unassisted.
Toronto Maple Leafs' prospect Nick Robertson responded with his 45th goal of the season three minutes later, to even the score. But Peterborough wasn't aiming for even.
Petes' Zach Gallant pushed the home-town team ahead by one at 15:02, with assists from Matt McNamara and Semyon Der-Arguchintsev, closing out the period.
Sudbury moved into the second period down one, outshot by their hosts 12-8 in the first 20 minutes.
Robertson returned to net in the second period to bump this lead to two, 10 minutes into play, with help from Gallant and McNamara.
The Pack was right on their heels.
Wolves' Owen Gilhula scored his 11th of the season assisted by Kosta Manikis and Owen Robinson with just under four minutes remaining, giving the Nickel City a fighting chance in the final round.
Peterborough moved into the third period up by one, with shots on goal 11-10 in their favour.
Petes' sealed the deal with two more goals in the final frame, ending the match at a 5-2 final in their favour. The first was delivered by Arizona Coyotes prospect Liam Kirk, with assists from Robertson and Hudson Wilson.
Gallant was responsible for the second, scoring his second goal of the evening and 29th of the season with just over seven minutes remaining. He was assisted by David Maier and Robertson.
Shots on goal were 12-7 in favour of Sudbury in the final frame and knotted 30 apiece overall.
On Friday, the Pack host the Saginaw Spirit for their last of two matchups this season. Puck drop is 7:05 p.m.
The Spirit is first in the West Division, second in the Western Conference and third place overall above the Wolves, with a record of 34 victories and 16 defeats.
