BY SCOTT HUNTER HADDOW
Alexander Eaton has been waiting to score his first goal of the season for the Sudbury Wolves. It finally happened last night against the Kingston Frontenacs and his timing couldn't have been any better.
With the Wolves deadlocked at four goals a piece with Kingston, Eaton tipped home a Marc Staal point blast with just 1:48 left in the third period to give the Wolves a 5-4 win at home.
For Eaton, it couldn't have been any better.
"It feels pretty good," he said. "I've been waiting a while for it. I like to get things going. I like to get the boys fired up with a fight once and awhile or throw a big hit. I like to do things that get the team going and I am happy to be that guy."
Eaton knows it was another big win for the Wolves.
"It's a big win for us because it gets us closer to being a .500 team and that's what we're looking for right now."
With the victory, the Wolves climbed to 5-6 on the season, and now sit one point behind Toronto St. Michael's Majors in the Central Division.
Kingston got on the board first when Brandon McBride skated in unchallenged and zipped the puck past Patrick Ehelechner at 14:10.
The Wolves answered right back when Shandor Alphonso finished a neat passing play from Sean Stefanski and fired the puck upstairs past Frontenacs' goalie Dan Turple at 18:28.
Less than a minute later the Wolves took another bite out of the Frontenacs, when Stefan Blaho skated into the slot and chipped the puck past Turple at 18:56.
Kingston came out firing in the second period, when Bill Kinkell crashed the net and jammed the puck past Ehelechner at 3:29 to tie the game 2-2.
The Wolves continued to answer back, as they would all night, when Blaho skated in from the corner and slipped the puck past Turple at 6:07 to make it 3-2.
Eaton tangled with Florida Panthers' first round draft pick Anthony Stewart just seconds later after the ensuing face off. Both men danced and grappled before falling to the ice.
The Wolves took an impressive 4-2 lead when Zack Stortini skated in from the corner and ripped a bullet past Turple on the power play at 14:55.
The rough stuff continued moments later with Alphonso tossing the gloves with Nick Van Herpt in front of the Wolves bench. Both men jostled for position, but it was all over when Alphonso got loose and landed several heavy punches to Van Herpt.
The third period saw Kingston claw their way back into the game, but not before Ehelechner made a Dominik Hasek-like save on Stewart, who had a partial break.
Ehelechner sprawled on his back, flaying his arms and legs to stop the puck.
Soon after Wolves' defenceman Kyle Lamb pasted Milos Schejbal with a devastating hit along the boards. Schejbal was down for several minutes before being taken off the ice.
He didn't return.
Kingston jumped right back into the game when former Wolf Drew Kivell's point shot eluded Ehelechner through a maze of players to make it 4-3 at 12:59.
Soon after, Kingston tied the game when Brandon McBride skated into the Wolves zone untouched and wired the puck upstairs past Ehelechner at 16:59.
It was gut check time and the Wolves found the resolve to come back hard.
Moments later, Eaton tipped home the puck for his game winning goal to put the Wolves ahead for good at 18:12 on the power play.
Wolves' head coach and general manager Mike Foligno was impressed with another physical effort from his team.
"Lamb played the most physical game I've ever seen him play," said Foligno. "It's amazing because we didn't think he would be that type of player. The last game Staal had some big hits and Blaho had some big hits. It's a really important part of our game. Our game is a hitting game. It's a really physical game and it's exciting for the fans to watch."
Foligno was also impressed with his team's character and hopes it will continue on the road.
"We got the extra goals when we needed them," said Foligno. "When the game was tied up late, we found a way to get that game winner. It's a positive note that we're leaving home on. Our record at home is pretty good and now we want to make sure that we start a good record on the road and help our cause."
Lamb feels more relaxed on the blue line.
"Starting off the season I was really shaky," said Lamb. Now, coming off our eleventh game, I feel fine and more confident enough to fit in."
Chanse Fitzpatrick continued his offensive surge with an assist last night. He credits
Foligno for giving him a chance to show his offensive talents.
"I didn't really get a chance to do that my first two seasons," said Fitzpatrick. "Mike has given me an opportunity to play here. I am really working hard everyday to have the opportunity to do a little bit of offence for this team. I'm known as a tough guy and I think
I've shown in the last couple of games I can contribute offensively when given the opportunity."
Blaho was happy to score again.
"It feels good because I haven't scored in the last seven games. I am happy to help the team with some goals."
Kingston head coach Jim Hulton wasn't pleased with his team's play in the game.
"I thought we started out slow tonight and dug a hole for ourselves," said Hulton. We came on late in the game, but it was too little too late, and the Wolves stuck to their game plan."
The Wolves hit the road for three games in three nights in Ottawa, Kingston and Oshawa, starting Oct. 24. The Wolves next home game is Oct. 31 against the Plymouth Whalers.
Game time is 7:30 pm.
Snap Shots
-Ehelechner finished with 18 saves
-Staal finished with two assists
-Stortini finished with one goal and one assist
-Fitzpatrick now has a modest three-game-point scoring streak
-2,387 people attended the game.
