Spirit Fall to Battalion In Hard Fought Battle
Published on January 10, 2015 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release
The North Bay Battalion visited the Saginaw Spirit at the Dow Event Center for the first time in the 2014-2015 hockey season for some Saturday night OHL hockey, ending in a 3-2 loss against the Battalion.
The North Bay Battalion got the scoring started on a goal by Ryan Kujawinski late in the first period. The goal put the Battalion up ahead of the Spirit 1-0 in the first 20 minutes of play, with assists being credited to Miles Liberati and Nick Paul. The Spirit and Battalion were equally matched throughout the first period, with both teams heading to the locker room at an even 9 shots on goal.
North Bay grabbed a 2-0 lead early in the second period after Ray Huether picked up a pass from Mathew Santos and beat Saginaw's starting goaltender David Ovsjannikov at 4:45. Just after the Battalion's goal the Spirit sent the power play unit to the ice and the referee's sent North Bay's Nick Paul to the box for hooking. Saginaw's center Jesse Barwell sank the puck into the net and put the Spirit on the board at 6:49 of the second period, to make it a 2-1 game in favor of the Battalion. Greg Di Tomaso and Mitchell Stephens were credited with the assists on the power play goal. Saginaw kept the offensive output flowing and Dylan Sadowy followed Barwell's efforts to tie the game 2-2 at 17:43 of the period. Mitchell Stephens set up Barwell with a perfect pass to Sadowy who lit the lamp and scored his 25th goal of the season. With two minutes left in the period the Battalion netted a quick goal to reinstate the North Bay lead over Saginaw. After the second period the scoreboard read North Bay 3, Saginaw 2, with shots on goal favoring the Spirit 25-17.
The third period saw both the Saginaw Spirit and the North Bay Battalion at a deadlock. Saginaw fought hard to tie the game yet again but were unable to beat North Bay's starting goaltender Jake Smith. The Spirit pulled Ovsjannikov to force some offensive pressure in the last minute of the game, but were unlucky and could not net another goal. The final score read North Bay 3, Saginaw 2 with final shots on goal favoring the Spirit 28-24.
The Saginaw Spirit will travel to the Essar Centre to take on the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds for their last matchup in that building in the 2014-2015 regular season on Wednesday, January 14th. Puck is scheduled to drop at 7:07 p.m. The team will be back at the Dow Event Center on Friday, January 16th to start off a weekend at home against the Sudbury Wolves. Puck drops at 7:11 p.m.
Applebee's Three Stars
Jesse Barwell - Saginaw
Mark Shoemaker - North Bay
Mitchell Stephens - Sagianw
Your 2014-2015 Tickets! - Reserve your 2014-2015 Saginaw Spirit season tickets, flex packs, and group outings today! For more information contact the Spirit at 989-497-7747, visit the Spirit store at 5789 State Street in Saginaw, or go to SaginawSpirit.com, and don't forget to follow the Spirit on Facebook, Twitter, and You Tube.
Ontario Hockey League Stories from January 10, 2015
- Spits Wrap Eastern Trip with OT Win in Kingston - Windsor Spitfires
- Sting Weather the Storm & Capture 2 PTS - Sarnia Sting
- Troops Beat Saginaw for Road Trip Split - North Bay Battalion
- Bulls Go 0-2 on Weekend Road Trip - Belleville Bulls
- One Goal Gives Petes Shutout over Gens - Oshawa Generals
- Spirit Fall to Battalion In Hard Fought Battle - Saginaw Spirit
- Pierog and Chychrun Added as Alternate Captains - Sarnia Sting
- Morning Skate: Bulls Look to Rebound in Owen Sound - Belleville Bulls
- Brennan Gets Win in Debut against Guelph - Brampton Steelheads
- Wolves Come up Short - Sudbury Wolves
- Halverson Backstops Hounds over Spirit; Earns 1st-Star - Soo Greyhounds
- Bulls Shut Out by Rangers - Belleville Bulls
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