A strong performance in net from Christian Purboo helped the Sudbury Wolves to their first win of the 2019-2020 season.
The team was on the last leg of a three-game weekend road trip, taking on the Steelheads at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga.
The Pack was coming off the two losses that opened their season, dropping a 6-3 contest to the Niagara IceDogs on Thursday and taking a 5-2 loss against the Erie Otters on Saturday.
On Sunday afternoon, though, it was a different story.
The Wolves opened the scoring about three minutes into the first when Shane Bulitka found the back of the net off a pass from Blake Murray.
Sudbury managed to hold onto that 1-0 lead until the dying seconds of the first, when Aidan Prueter scored Mississauga’s only marker, a powerplay goal off a no-look pass from Cole Schwindt.
Mississauga controlled the play for much of the period, outshooting the Wolves 14-4.
The tied score would hold until almost halfway through the second period when the Wolves would capitalize on a 5-on-3 powerplay to break the deadlock. Bulitka returned the favour by feeding the puck to Murray, who potted it home.
Despite the Wolves taking the lead, Mississauga was controlling most of the play, earning 21 shots on net by the end of the second to Sudbury’s 12.
The Steelheads weren’t able to capitalize on third period scoring chance. This gave the Wolves a shot for an insurance goal, which came about seven minutes into the period when Murray picked up his second assist, firing a pass across the crease to Quinton Byfield, who picked up his fifth goal of the season.
This would prove to be the game-winner, and the Steelheads gave the Wolves their first win of the regular season by a final score of 3-1.
The Wolves’ Blake Murray earned the first star of the game for his one-goal, two-assist performance, while Sudbury netminder Christian Purboo picked up the third star for stopping 27 of 28 shots.
You can see the Sudbury Wolves in action in their home opener this Friday, Sept. 27, when the North Bay Battalion come to town for a 7:05 p.m. tilt. The Pack is also in action at home on Sunday afternoon at 2:05 p.m. against the Kitchener Rangers.
