Four-Goal Second Period by Generals Spoils Rangers' Friday
January 13, 2023 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Kitchener Rangers News Release
Kitchener, Ont. - Kitchener outshot Oshawa 32-19, Generals' netminder Carter Bickle made 32 saves on 34 Rangers' shots and Calum Ritchie recorded a three-point night in a Generals' 5-2 victory over the Rangers in front of 7,050 fans at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium Friday. Francesco Arcuri and Reid Valade scored for the Rangers. Marco Costantini made 14 saves on 19 Oshawa shots. It was the second consecutive home game with more than 7,000 fans at The Aud and the third consecutive with 6,000-plus.
Kitchener and Oshawa both traded power-play opportunities in the opening 10 minutes of the game but neither team was able to open the scoring. Not much was generated by each team in the opening 20 minutes, but Kitchener came closest on a 2-on-1 break with Filip Mešár (Montréal Canadiens) who tried to feed Matthew Sop on a cross-crease pass, but that attempt was intercepted. The period ended 0-0 with shots favouring the Rangers 9-5.
The action came often in the middle frame with five goals in the period. Oshawa got things started 2:44 into the period on a high-slot wrist shot by Kimo Gruber placed perfectly into the bottom left corner of the goal. 30 seconds later, Oshawa doubled their advantage to make it 2-0. A fortuitous bounce on a missed shot bounced around to the other side of the net for Calum Ritchie to deposit the puck into the empty net.
Kitchener cut the lead in half at 5:55. A turnover behind the net caused the puck to bounce in front of the goal. The puck was poke-checked into the slot by Carter Bickle right onto the stick of Francesco Arcuri (Dallas Stars) who made no mistake netting his 27th goal of the season.
Unfortunately for Kitchener, Oshawa added two more unanswered goals to extend their lead to 4-1. A turnover at the hashmarks inside the Ranger blueline allowed for Ryan Gagnier to pounce on another rebound in front of the goal for Oshawa's third goal of the game and with just six seconds left on the clock, a steal behind the Ranger goal set up Luke Torrance for a one-timer in the slot going into the top left corner.
Through 40 minutes of play Oshawa was leading 4-1 and shots favoured the Rangers 17-13.
Kitchener doubled their shot total from the first two periods combined with 17, but one goal for both teams, meant a Ranger comeback fell short. First it was Oshawa scoring their third unanswered goal on Calum Ritchie's second of the game to cap off a three-point night for him. Kitchener attempted to make things interesting scoring with 9:57 left in the game. Reid Valade scoring a Kitchener's lone power-play goal of the game to make it a 5-2 score. Kitchener pulled their goalie with just under four minutes to play in the game but were unable to get any closer and the final score was 5-2 for the Generals.
Finals shots in the game ended in favour of the Rangers 34-19. Kitchener finished the game 1-for-7 on the power-play and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill. All three stars of the game were awarded to members of the Oshawa Generals. Former Kitchener Ranger, Joseph Serpa was awarded the game's third star. Longtime Rangers' equipment manager Dan Lebold was honoured before the contest for his 2,000th game.
Next Up: After Friday night's game vs. Oshawa, the Rangers will head to Saginaw, Mich. for a Sunday contest against the Spirit. Puck drop is set for 5:30 p.m. at the Dow Event Center. The Rangers return home to The Aud this Tuesday against the London Knights at 7 o'clock.
Ontario Hockey League Stories from January 13, 2023
- Lardis & Thomas Lead Bulldogs to 4-3 Win Over 67s - Brantford Bulldogs
- Four-Goal Second Period by Generals Spoils Rangers' Friday - Kitchener Rangers
- Firebirds' Early Lead Not Enough, Wolves Rally for 6-4 Win - Flint Firebirds
- IceDogs' Comeback Falls Short in OT - Niagara IceDogs
- Wolves to Retire Staal '14' on February 3rd - Sudbury Wolves
- GameDay Preview: Rangers Host Oshawa on TSN Friday at the Aud - Kitchener Rangers
- 55 OHL Players Included in NHL Central Scouting's Midseason Rankings - OHL
- Firebirds Invade Sudbury to Battle Wolves Tonight - Flint Firebirds
- Four Otters Recognized on NHL Central Scouting Midterm Rankings - Erie Otters
- Five Spirit Players Named to NHL Central Scouting's Midterm North American Rankings - Saginaw Spirit
- Franchise Record Five Firebirds Apart of NHL Central Scouting's Midterm Draft Rankings - Flint Firebirds
- Five 67's Players Ranked by NHL Central Scouting - Ottawa 67's
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
