Majors Take Family Day Matinee

February 20, 2012 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Mississauga St. Michael's Majors News Release


It was a perfect Family Day for the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors both on the ice and on the out-of-town scoreboard on Monday.

Jamie Wise scored twice and added an assist and Riley Brace added a goal and an assist as the Majors scored a huge 3-1 win over the Sudbury Wolves in Ontario Hockey League play before 4,414 fans at the Hershey Centre.

Brandon Maxwell made 29 saves in goal for Mississauga, as the Majors moved from ninth place into a tie for sixth place in the very tight Eastern Conference standings in one afternoon.

Also on Monday, Erie defeated Belleville 4-1, Barrie stopped Oshawa 6-1 and Brampton defeated Peterborough 3-1. The three losing teams in those games are all bunched with the Majors in the standings, allowing the Majors to leapfrog the Bulls and the Petes in the standings and move into a tie with the Generals for sixth.

Michael Sgarbossa scored the lone goal for the Wolves, who remained in fifth place in the East despite the loss. Johan Mattson stopped 35 shots for the Wolves, who were out-shot 38-30.

Majors General Manager/Coach James Boyd was pleased with his club's effort, especially considering what happened out of town.

"I thought we didn't have the urgency in the first period, but we did a good job re-focusing after that," Boyd said. "Our special teams were huge today and we got good energy after that and we played a solid game overall.

"Maxwell was great in goal, he made a huge save on a shorthanded breakaway in the third period and bailed us out. I also thought our call-ups were exceptional today, they all contributed and that really made a difference.

"The standings are so tight, every game is huge right now as we can see by the movement we made in just one day."

Sgarbossa opened the scoring with his 40th of the season at 15:38 of the opening period for the lone goal of the first 20 minutes, putting the visitors up 1-0.

But a key double minor penalty to the Wolves was taken advantage of by the Majors in the second period, as Wise scored twice during it, at 7:24 and 8:55, to put the Majors in front for good.

"That was the turning point of the game for sure," Boyd added. "Special teams are so important and it really turned the game around."

Mississauga out-shot the Wolves 11-4 in the second period and when Brace scored his 33rd of the season just 22 seconds into the third period, the Majors had the cushion they were looking for.

Mississauga wound up 2-for-4 on the power play, while the Wolves failed to score in their five chances.

The Majors host the Niagara IceDogs Friday at 7:30 p.m. in their next game at the Hershey Centre. You can purchase tickets for Majors home games at www.ticketmaster.ca or at the Majors box office during regular business hours.



Ontario Hockey League Stories from February 20, 2012


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.

OurSports Central