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North Bay Battalion

Balanced Battalion Bounces Mississauga

January 28, 2015 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
North Bay Battalion News Release


NORTH BAY, Ont. - The North Bay Battalion got goals from five different players in rolling to a 5-1 Ontario Hockey League victory Wednesday night over the Mississauga Steelheads

Miles Liberati, Nick Paul and Ryan Kujawinski each had one goal and one assist, while Brett McKenzie and Hampus Olsson also scored. Mike Amadio contributed three assists, and goaltender Jake Smith made 25 saves.

North Bay improved its won-lost-extended record to 23-12-9 for 55 points, second in the Central Division.

Jimmy Lodge scored for Mississauga, 19-25-3 for 41 points, fourth in the division. Starting goaltender Jacob Brennan allowed four goals on 32 shots through two periods before Cameron Zanussi took over for the third frame, allowing one goal on eight shots.

"I was happy with the way we played for 60 minutes," said Battalion coach Stan Butler. "We got off to a good start and got the lead. We're a better team once we get the lead, and I like the way our guys kept playing. They came hard at us early in the third period and had us on our heels, but Jake made three or four great saves."

The Troops dominated the first period, outshooting Mississauga 14-3 and spending much of the period in the offensive zone. Six Battalion shots came during the only power play, with Brennan denying good chances by Kyle Wood and Paul.

McKenzie opened the scoring at 12:41 with his sixth goal of the season, taking a feed from Amadio and snapping the puck over Brennan's blocker from the left side. Riley Bruce earned his first point of the season with the second assist.

Lodge replied at 1:12 of the second period, driving to the net and backhanding the puck past Smith off a three-way rush with Everett Clark and Michael McLeod.

Olsson scored what proved to be the winner at 12:46. He cruised into the slot to redirect a shot from the left wing as Liberati and Alex Henriksson drew assists. It was the second goal in two games for Olsson and his third of the season, all in the last six games.

Defenceman Liberati struck at 14:18, driving down the right wing, slipping around defender Sean Day and firing the puck between Brennan's pads.

Paul scored at 19:46, sweeping a Brenden Miller feed under Brennan from the left edge of the crease. Amadio earned the second assist on Paul's team-leading 23rd goal.

Kujawinski connected at 9:13 of the third period, beating Zanussi high to the stick side with a wrister from the left circle. Paul and Austin Kosack drew assists on Kujawinski's 19th goal, his sixth with the Troops since a Jan. 5 trade from the Kingston Frontenacs.

Smith was busy early in the period, making two saves on close-in attempts by Lodge and finding a Stefan LeBlanc shot through traffic.

The Battalion visits the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds at 7:07 p.m. Friday. The game can be seen live in North Bay on TVCogeco Cable 12 and heard on Country 600 CKAT.

BATTALION BULLETS: Attendance of 3,022 was the season's lowest at Memorial Gardens. The previous low was 3,136 for a Mississauga visit Oct. 19. The Steelheads accounted for the two weakest crowds last season, the smallest being 2,869 on Jan. 9 ... Marcus McIvor played his 300th game on the Battalion blue line. McIvor, a first-round pick, ninth overall, in the 2010 OHL Priority Selection from the Whitby Wildcats minor midgets, is second on the franchise list to Barclay Goodrow's 313 games ... Smith played in a 100th game, becoming the seventh Battalion goaltender to do so. Brad Topping holds the record with 148 appearances. Smith was a ninth-round choice in 2011 from the Oakville Rangers minor midgets ... North Bay went 0-for-3 on the power play. Mississauga was 0-for-1 ... The Battalion scratched Ray Huether, Zach Bratina and Nick Moutrey ... The Troops' Zach Shankar marked his 18th birthday ... The referees were Mike Cairns and Matthew Traub ... Battalion players are to serve tables and sit with guests at a dinner in support of the Alzheimer Society of North Bay and District at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Cecil's Eatery & Beer Society at 300 Wyld Street. Tickets are $50 and can be obtained by calling (705) 495-4342.

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