Doubled Up: 67's Take 4-2 Win in Smiths Falls
September 12, 2013 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Belleville Bulls News Release
SMITHS FALLS, ON - The Bulls competed hard in a game that featured a little bit of everything in Smiths Falls on Wednesday night. The Ottawa 67's wrapped up their preseason schedule with a 4-2 win over the Bulls as Jake Worrad and Niki Petti had goals for Belleville. Ottawa blueliner Mike Vlajkov was a force on the powerplay and registered a goal and an assist while goaltender Jacob Blair made 35 saves to lead the barber poles to victory.
A positive first period for the brahmas saw plenty of puck possession, but no results on the scoreboard as Ottawa came away from the opening twenty minutes with a 1-0 lead.
The Bulls came out like gangbusters with an early change to their lineup nearly paying big dividends. Daniel De Sousa made his first appearance of the preseason up on the wing and had two brilliant chances in his first shift, only to be denied by the pad of Blair on both accounts. De Sousa would slot back onto the blueline during powerplays but spent the first half of the game up on the wing in even strength situations.
The 67's held off an early Belleville onslaught to grab the lead at 7:28 on a nice shot from Taylor Fielding. Joining forces with Andrew Abou-Assaly and rookie sensation Travis Konecny off the rush, Fielding was the late man as he took a drop pass and placed it nicely over the shoulder of Charlie Graham.
Belleville had several chances to draw even after some impulsive decisions by Ottawa blueliner Jonathan Duchesne led to an early end to his night and a seven minute powerplay. Duchesne targeted Belleville rookie David Tomasek, who had bumped Konecny seconds prior and had no interest in engaging Duchesne despite taking his lumps in a brief exchange. The Bulls couldn't capitalize on their lengthy advantage as Blair was big when called upon on denials of Chad Heffernan and Garrett Hooey.
The Bulls outshot Ottawa 15-3 in the first as the period ended with some late fireworks. Chad Heffernan took exception to some rough play in Charlie Graham's crease, going after big Tyler Hill as both offenders would sit for two minutes.
The second frame was intense from the outset as Garrett Hooey was assessed a spearing major. The 67's nullified any advantage they would have from the infraction with penalties of their own however as the penalty box was a familiar setting for both clubs.
There was no shortage of physicality as both benches were hitting and engaging after the whistle with great regularity. The 67's offered considerably more resistance than they had in the opening period, outshooting Belleville 13-11 in the second.
While Charlie Graham made some great positional saves at one end, the Bulls drew even at the other as a powerplay tally by blueliner Jake Worrad got through traffic. The overaged defenceman took advantage of a screen in the slot provided by another veteran as Scott Simmonds camped out in front of Blair, obstructing his view as the Bulls were even with 1:19 left on the clock.
The 67's clawed right back just 29 seconds later though, as the 1-1 score was short lived. Third-year defenceman Mike Vlajkov was displaying his heavy shot from all angles on Wednesday, capitalizing on a scrambled play inside Belleville territory to catch Graham moving to his left. Vlajkov buried a slapper inside the far post to reinstate the Ottawa lead as the second stanza expired.
The game saw its first scrap late in the frame as Belleville rookie Brody Morris delivered a big hit on Ottawa's Connor Brown along the boards, drawing the attention of Trevor Dulong who settled his differences with Morris in a toe-to-toe bout.
The Bulls showed some life in the opening stages of the third frame as some loose defensive zone coverage by the Ottawa defence was exposed in a big way by the Belleville attack. Second round draft pick Jake Bricknell used his great vision to spot Niki Petti busting down the middle as the skilled centreman slipped past a white jersey in alone to beat Blair along the ice on the backhand at 2:40. Jake Worrad also picked up a helper on the goal for his second point of the night.
One thing the preseason doesn't offer is video review. The Bulls were on the receiving end of a questionable instance moments later when Brendan Bell got a stick on Adrian Sloboda's wrister from the point, tipping it high over the shoulder of Graham at 6:20. The official on the play signalled goal, a ruling that would go unchallenged as Ottawa was back ahead 3-2.
18 year-old winger Tyler Hill displayed exactly why his 6'6", 236Ib. frame is all the hype in the postseason as he packaged that size with some great skill on Ottawa's fourth marker of the night. Hill cut in off the left wing to outmaneuver a Belleville defender before beating Graham through the legs on a backhand deke at 9:50.
Up 4-2, the 67's didn't look back as they pushed their preseason record to 3-1 in front of 847 in Smiths Falls.
Charlie Graham was sharp late in the game as he'd make 27 saves on 31 shots. Ottawa's Jacob Blair picked up the win and was named the third star of the game with 35 saves.
Ottawa rookie Travis Konecny registered two assists while defenceman Mike Vlajkov was named first star with a goal and an assist in the game.
"I thought Ottawa our compete level was higher tonight from start to finish compared to our effort on Saturday," said Bulls Head Coach George Burnett. "We were in unfamiliar confines tonight and Ottawa came out hungry and they out-battled us on a few occasions. Overall though I think our guys stayed with it from start to finish. We got a strong effort from Charlie in goal and we showed some fatigue later in the game," Burnett continued. "Despite the result on the scoreboard we can take away some positive things as a team tonight."
The Bulls saw the return of both Scott Simmonds and Chad Heffernan to the lineup while Alan Quine, Brady Austin, Brendan Gaunce, Jordan Subban and Luke Cairns were out of action.
Ottawa was without Troy Henley, Ryan Van Stralen, Daniel Walsh, Nevin Guy and Dylan McDonald in the victory.
The Bulls wrap up their preseason on Friday night at the Rogers K-Rock Centre in Kingston against the Frontenacs at 7:00pm. They return home on Saturday, September 21st in their home opener against the North Bay Battalion.
For ticket information, contact the Bulls box office at 613-966-8338 or stop by between 10:00am and 5:00pm on weekdays!
Ontario Hockey League Stories from September 12, 2013
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- Plymouth Whalers Home Opener Set for September 21; Grand Rapids, Lake Erie Play at Compuware Arena S - Plymouth Whalers
- CHL Announces Pre-Season BMO CHL Top 10 Rankings - OHL
- Doubled Up: 67's Take 4-2 Win in Smiths Falls - Belleville Bulls
- Generals Play a Wild One in Pickering - Oshawa Generals
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