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OHL Guelph Storm

Game Preview: Otters Make Final Visit to Guelph

March 11, 2016 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Guelph Storm News Release


To start a home-and-home series this weekend, the Guelph Storm will host the Erie Otters for the final time this season on Friday night.

Steph Coratti, GuelphStorm.com ---

Don't miss the Otters' last visit to the Royal City - catch the Storm and the Otters face off this Friday! Get your tickets HERE!

The Guelph Storm (12-44-4-2) and the Erie Otters (48-14-1-0) may be having different seasons, but both enter Friday's match-up with one goal in mind.

The Storm, falling in their last eight games, will be pushing for a major upset against the OHL's best in order to snap the losing skid. Going 1-9-0-0 through the last 10 games played, the last win for Guelph came back on Feb. 19 in a 5-3 result over the Owen Sound Attack.

Looking to the visitor's side of the ice, the Otters won't be the happiest of squads after dropping their last two games - a 4-2 score to the Niagara IceDogs on March 6, and most recently, a 5-3 result at the hands of the Flint Firebirds this past Wednesday night.

With four previous games played between the Storm and the Otters, Erie holds a 4-0 lead on the season series.

Friday's puck drop is slated for 7:30pm.

Player Watch

Guelph Storm

Third-year Jake Bricknell is coming off one of his better games of the campaign against the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds this past Sunday. The former Hamilton Bulldog potted a goal and an assist in the 5-4 loss, earning second star honours. Acquired earlier this season, the six-foot, 207-pound forward has appeared in 44 games for the Storm, registering 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists). Overall, through 60 games in 2015-16, the Port Perry, Ontario native has tallied for 21 points (10 goals, 11 asssts) - setting career-highs in every category offensively.

Looking to the youth in the Storm line-up, rookie Isaac Ratcliffe has one goal in three games versus the Otters this season. On the campaign as a whole, the 1999-born forward has appeared in 43 games, registering five goals for 13 points. In Guelph's most recent game action against the Greyhounds this past Sunday, the London, Ontario native recorded an assist in the 5-4 loss.

Storm leading point-getter James McEwan has also had some success against the Otters this season, posting two goals through four games against the Midwest Division opponent. The five-foot-eleven, 190-pound forward has registered 46 points, scoring 24 goals and adding 22 assists through 62 games this season - setting career-highs across the board after surpassing his rookie point total of 10 points set in 45 games through 2014-15.

Erie Otters

You can't get too far into the Otters without mentioning Dylan Strome. The Arizona Coyotes prospect leads the OHL's top club with 96 points (33 goals, 63 assists) in 51 games this season, producing at a 1.88-point(s)-per-game rate. Appearing in three games against the Storm this season, the six-foot-three, 194-pound forward has recorded three goals and three assists.

Not too far behind is sophomore Alex DeBrincat. The Farmington Hills, Michigan native has compiled 87 points (45 goals, 42 assists) in 55 games this season, and has registered two goals for five points through four games in the month of March. Against the Storm this season, the five-foot-seven, 160-pound winger has potted two goals and added three assists in three match-ups.

Fellow right-winger in Taylor Raddysh rounds out the big-three for the Otters, recording 68 points (21 goals, 47 assists) through 62 games this season. The six-foot-two, 202-pound OHL sophomore has more than doubled his rookie point total of 27 points recorded through 58 games in 2014-15. Heading into Friday's tilt, the Caledon, Ontario native has three points in his last three games played.

Last Match-Up: Erie 6 @ Guelph 1 (Feb. 15)

GAME NOTES

The Storm and the Otters will meet for the fifth of six times this season on Friday.

The Otters hold a 4-0 season series lead.

Both teams take losing skids into the contest, with the Storm dropping their last eight and the Otters falling in their last two.

Following Friday's match-up, the teams square off for the final time of the 2015-16 campaign in Erie on Saturday night.

Check out the Guelph Storm Statistics



Ontario Hockey League Stories from March 11, 2016


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