Kitchener Pops Majors 6-1

December 11, 2011 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Mississauga St. Michael's Majors News Release


The Kitchener Rangers certainly showed why they are near the top of the Ontario Hockey League standings on Sunday afternoon at the Hershey Centre.

Zach Lorentz scored twice and Radek Faksa added a goal and two assists to lead the Rangers to a convincing 6-1 win over the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors, handing the Majors their second loss of the weekend.

Julian Melchiori, Josh Sterk and Cody Sol scored the other goals and John Gibson made 35 saves to lead the short-handed Rangers to their eighth win in 11 games, improving Kitchener's record to an impressive 21-9-0-1.

Mika Partanen scored the lone goal for Mississauga (14-13-1-3), while rookie goalie Spencer Martin made 23 saves as the Majors out-shot the Rangers 36-29.

It was an impressive effort by the Rangers, who are missing several regulars due to injury and due to commitments with the world junior hockey championship tryout camps from their lineup.

"Kitchener worked extremely hard and they win all those little battles, they were very good today," Mississauga General Manager/Coach James Boyd said. "They got contributions from everybody and deserved to win.

"I thought we played all right for the most part, but I didn't like the way we responded to some adversity we faced in the third period. We took some needless penalties and that just made a bad situation worse."

The Majors played a solid first 18 minutes before the Rangers opened the scoring on Lorentz's first goal, a tip-in from in front of the net, at 18:05 for the lone goal of the opening period.

Partanen answered right back at the start of the second when he scored his sixth of the year just 30 seconds in, from Jamie Wise and Alex Cord, to tie the game. But Lorentz got that goal back just 42 seconds later and it was all Kitchener from there.

"That was a big goal for them to get so quickly and get right back in it like that," Boyd added. "It gave them a real boost obviously."

Two more quick goals shortly after basically sealed the Majors fate, as Melchiori scored at 4:37 and Sterk tallied at 5:51 to make it 4-1, a lead the Rangers would carry into the third period.

Faksa and Sol added third period goals to complete the scoring.

Mississauga remains in eighth place in the Eastern Conference standings despite the loss, while the Rangers sit third in the West.

Kitchener was 1-for-6 on the power play and had a shorthanded goal while the Majors failed to score in their two extra man opportunities.

The Majors host the Kingston Frontenacs in their annual Teddy Bear Toss Game Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the Hershey Centre. Fans are encouraged to help continue the tradition of bringing a new or gently used stuffed toy to the game and toss it on the ice when the Majors score their first goal. All toys will be collected and distributed to local charities in time for Christmas.

Mississauga also hosts the Sudbury Wolves Sunday at 2 p.m. in their final game before the OHL's holiday break. The Majors next game is in Barrie on Thursday night.

Tickets for all home games are available at www.ticketmaster.ca or at the Hershey Centre box office during regular business hours.



Ontario Hockey League Stories from December 11, 2011


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.

Other Recent Mississauga St. Michael's Majors Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central