OHL Kitchener Rangers

Rangers Road Trip Down Highway 7 to Take on Guelph

Published on January 17, 2024 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Kitchener Rangers News Release


Guelph, ON - After victories in their last three games, the Rangers look to continue their winning ways in Guelph on Wednesday night. Puck drop against the Storm is set for 6:30 pm at The Sleeman Centre.

TV: Rogers Channel 20 (Kitchener)

Video Stream: OHL Live on CHL TV

Radio: 570 AM CKGL

HEAD-TO-HEAD

This Season:

The Rangers have faced their Highway 7 rivals, the Guelph Storm, three times so far this season with the Rangers leading the season series 2-1. Their most recent face-off was on December 10th in Guelph with the Rangers finishing the game with a 3-2 regulation win. Adrian Misaljevic, Matthew Sop and Luke Ellinas each grabbed goals for the Rangers while Leo Serlin and Braeden Bowman were Guelph's goal scorers.

Over the Years:

The two clubs have taken the ice against each other 37 times dating back to the 2018-19 season with the Rangers owning the overall record at 22-14-1-0 and are 11-7-1-0 when playing on the road. In these 37 games, the Rangers have netted 140 goals while the Storm have scored 135. The Rangers have never gone undefeated against Guelph in available OHL records. The best campaign against the Storm was the 2019-20 season when the Rangers had a 6-2-0-0 record and when in Guelph 4-0-0-0.

Team Statistics:

Kitchener

Overall Power Play: 4th at 25.7%

Away Power Play: 6th at 23.9%

Overall Penalty Kill: 5th at 81.8%

Away Penalty Kill: 14th at 76.8%

Guelph

Overall Power Play: 6th at 24.3%

Home Power Play: 6th at 24.7%

Overall Penalty Kill: 9th at 80.1%

Home Penalty Kill: 14th at 75.3%

SCOUTING THE RANGERS (29-11-2-0)

1st in the Western Conference, 1st in the OHL / 4th in Week 14 of the CHL Power Rankings

Last Time Out:

The Rangers are currently on a three-game win streak after beating North Bay, Erie, and Ottawa. They last played on Sunday as they hosted the Ottawa 67's for the first and only time of the season. The Rangers defeated the 67's 4-2 in a tight battle. Matthew Andonovski (Ottawa Senators) registered his fourth goal of the season along with an assist for the game's first star. Hunter Brzustewicz (Vancouver Canucks) had three assists and Filip Mešár finished the game with the game-winning and empty net insurance goal.

Rangers to Watch:

Carson Rehkopf (Seattle Kraken) continues to lead the OHL in goals with 37 through 34 games played. Rehkopf is fourth in the league and second on the Rangers in points with a 37-26-63 stat line. He has entered a three-game point streak with six goals and two assists for eight points in those games.

Defenceman Hunter Brzustewicz (Vancouver Canucks) is tied for the most points in the OHL with 67. He has eight goals and 59 assists so far this season which is already 10 more points than he recorded last season. Over his last 10 games, the blueliner has recorded 16 points (1G, 15A).

Filip Mešár (Montreal Canadiens) has also been a driving force for the team's offence with 15 goals and 20 assists in 22 games played. Mešár has had 12 multi-point nights and gone pointless in only five games. Since returning from the World Juniors competing for Slovakia, he has played two games in which he has registered two goals and one assist.

Goaltenders:

The Rangers goalie tandem has been particularly strong for the team as of late with Tristan Malboeuf and Jackson Parsons. Malbouef has the hot hand right now winning three games in a row while Parsons has helped the Rangers to the top spot in league by being among the league leaders in wins, goals-against average (2.95), save percentage (.900), and shutouts (4) all season.

SCOUTING THE STORM (23-15-2-1)

5th in the Western Conference, 7th in the OHL/ 8th in Week 15 of the OHL Power Rankings

Last Time Out:

The Guelph Storm have lost their last two games against the Soo and Saginaw. They were last on the ice in Saginaw taking on the Spirit where they left with a 5-2 loss. Jake Karabela (Washington Capitals) and Braeden Bowman scored the Storm's goals. Bowman was the only Storm skater to record a multi-point night with one goal and one assist.

Storm to Watch:

Leading the Storm in points is 2006-born, Jett Luchanko. The centreman has scored 13 goals and 34 assists for 47 points in 41 games. Luchanko has the most powerplay assists in the OHL with 22. He is currently on an eight-game point streak with three goals and 10 assists in these games. Against Kitchener this season, Luchanko has one goal and three assists in three games.

Michael Buchinger (St. Louis Blues) leads Guelph's back end with the third most points on the team. He also sits in second behind Luchanko for the league's most powerplay assists with 19. Against Kitchener this season, Buchinger has a goal and an assist.

Jake Karabela (Washington Capitals) is currently on a four-game point streak with two goals and three assists for five points. The centreman has a 17-20-37 stat line, ranking fifth in power-play goals with 11. Karabela has six points against the Rangers this season with one goal and five assists.

Goaltenders:

Brayden Gillespie has been an asset for the Storm winning 18 of the 33 games played. He has the second-best goals-against average at 2.82, the fifth-best save percentage at .906, and is fourth in wins for goaltenders in the OHL.

Damian Slavik has played in nine games this season with a 5-2-1-0 record. Slavik has a 2.55 goals against average and a .910 save percentage. The netminder came in for relief for Gillespie twice this season against the Rangers.

BROADCAST COVERAGE

Wednesday night's game vs the Guelph Strom will be televised live throughout Kitchener and the Waterloo Region on Rogers TV, cable channel 20, and can be watched across the province of Ontario on the Super Sports Pak on channel 470 for cable subscribers. The game will be streamed live online on OHL Live on CHL TV. Additionally, fans can listen to Wednesday's action on the radio on CityNews 570 AM CKGL.

UP NEXT:

Kitchener begins a home-on-home series against the London Knights on Friday night. The Rangers will begin the series at home on Friday for a 7 pm puck drop at The Aud. The Rangers will then hit the road to London on Saturday to take on the Knights at The Budweiser Gardens for a 4 pm puck drop. Great seats to the rivalry game are still available grab your tickets to the action at The Aud Box Office sponsored by White Way Plumbing or online.

Check out the Kitchener Rangers Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Ontario Hockey League Stories from January 17, 2024


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