Friday Highlights: Spinozzi’s hat-trick headlines busy night

SARNIA 6 – WINDSOR 5 – OT
Newly acquired forward Drake Rymsha (16) scored on a breakaway 2:48 into overtime as the Sarnia Sting edged the visiting Windsor Spitfires 6-5. The Sting victory was spearheaded by a hat-trick from captain Kevin Spinozzi (9, 10, 11) whose first OHL trio was just the fourth by an OHL defenceman this season. Spinozzi helped Sarnia come back from a 5-2 deficit, scoring twice in the final three minutes of the third period to force overtime. Jordan Kyrou (16) and Louis Latta (2) also had Sarnia goals while Windsor’s Gabriel Vilardi (15, 16, 17) netted a hat-trick that was overshadowed in the loss. Aaron Luchuk (16) and Julius Nattinen (8) also had Windsor goals as the Spits earned a point in defeat. Sarnia’s Kyrou and Windsor’s Nattinen each finished the night with a goal and two assists. After a six-game losing streak, the Sting have responded by winning three straight to improve to 20-16-5-1.
GAME CENTRE

OWEN SOUND 7 – GUELPH 3
Kevin Hancock (19) and Nick Suzuki (23) each had a goal and two assists as the Owen Sound Attack stretched their franchise record run of success to 12 straight wins with a 7-3 victory in Guelph. Matthew Struthers (5), Jonah Gadjovich (25), Cordell James (14, 15) and Chase Campbell (12) had other Attack goals as the Bears outshot the Storm 44-25. Owen Sound’s 12th straight win was also Guelph’s sixth straight loss as the Storm had goals from Garrett McFadden (8), Nate Schnarr (12) and Cedric Ralph (3). The Attack are just two points back of first place London and Erie in the Midwest Division.
GAME CENTRE

HAMILTON 5 – OSHAWA 1
The Hamilton Bulldogs ended a lengthy drought, winning in Oshawa for the first time since the Belleville Bulls beat the Generals at Tribute Communities Centre in November 2011. The 5-1 win halts a run of 17 consecutive losses in Oshawa as Montreal Canadiens prospect Will Bitten (15, 16) scored twice and added an assist. Zachary Jackson (2), Matthew Strome (23) and Luke Kutkevicius (4) also lit the lamp for Hamilton while Dawson Carty made 30 saves. Kyle MacLean (2) scored for the Generals as their four game home winning streak comes to an end. The 20-16-3-2 Bulldogs are currently five points back of second place Peterborough in the East Division.
GAME CENTRE

KINGSTON 6 – PETERBOROUGH 2
Stephen Desrocher (7), Eemeli Rasanen (4) and Jason Robertson (19) all had a goal and an assist as the Kingston Frontenacs defeated the visiting Peterborough Petes 6-2. The Fronts got the monkey off their back against the Petes, beating them for the first time in five tries this season as Ted Nichol (9), Justin Pringle (2) and Brett Neumann (7) also found the back of the net. Cole Fraser (3) and Logan DeNoble (26) scored for the Petes in the loss.
GAME CENTRE

LONDON 5 – SAGINAW 1
Carolina Hurricanes prospect Janne Kuokkanen (16, 17) scored twice to lead the London Knights past the visiting Saginaw Spirit 5-1. JJ Piccinich (16), Dante Salituro (1) and Alex Formenton (12) also had goals as the Knights improved to 27-7-2-3. Calgary Flames prospect Tyler Parsons turned away 26 shots, being beaten just once on a goal by Saginaw’s Brady Gilmour (13). Olli Juolevi and Adrian Carbonara both had two assists for London. The Knights have now won six straight at home.
GAME CENTRE

NIAGARA 5 – FLINT 2
Johnny Corneil (17, 18) followed up his first OHL hat-trick on Thursday with another pair of goals while Akil Thomas (15, 16) also scored twice in a 5-2 Niagara IceDogs victory over the visiting Flint Firebirds. Aaron Haydon (5) also scored while Stephen Dhillon made 38 saves as the IceDogs improved to 14-20-4-3. Ben Jones and Ryan Mantha each had two assists in the victory as the IceDogs held the Firebirds to 0-for-7 on the man advantage. Kole Sherwood (21) and Alex Peters (6) had Flint goals while Ryan Moore notched a pair of assists. With the goal, Sherwood extends his current point streak to seven games. Niagara pulls into a fourth place tie with North Bay in the Central Division.
GAME CENTRE

ERIE 8 – OTTAWA 0
Arizona Coyotes prospect Dylan Strome (7) made history, becoming the second player to collect 300 points in an Otters uniform with a goal and an assist in an 8-0 win over the visiting Ottawa 67’s. The Otters gave a season-high crowd of 6,493 at Erie Insurance Arena an offensive show as Ivan Lodnia (17, 18) and Kyle Pettit (18, 19) each scored twice and Carson Edwardson (2), Taylor Raddysh (25) and Warren Foegele (15) also found the twine. Detroit Red Wings prospect Jordan Sambrook registered three assists as the Otters scored eight times on 24 shots, going 2-for-7 on the power play to improve to 28-9-2-1. The 67’s suffered their third straight loss and went 0-for-6 on the man advantage. Erie’s Joseph Murdaca made 12 saves for his first career OHL shutout.
GAME CENTRE

MISSISSAUGA 6 – SAULT STE. MARIE 2
The Mississauga Steelheads are heating up, handing the Soo Greyhounds their first regulation loss on home ice since November 11th as Owen Tippett (34) had a goal and two assists in a 6-2 victory. New Jersey Devils prospects Michael McLeod (7) and Nathan Bastian (12) both had a goal and an assist while Trent Fox (7), Spencer Watson (13) and Jacob Cascagnette (8) all had goals. Rookie netminder Jacob Ingham continued to have success, turning aside 30 shots to improve to 7-4-3-1 on the season. Blueliners Stefan LeBlanc and Austin Osmanski each had two assists as the Steelheads won their third straight game. David Miller (16) and Tim Gettinger (21) opened the scoring for the Hounds before the Steelheads proceeded to score six unanswered. They now lead the Central Division with a record of 17-16-5-3.
GAME CENTRE

KITCHENER 5 – BARRIE 3
Darby Llewellyn (11, 12) and Joseph Garreffa (14, 15) each scored twice as the Kitchener Rangers outlasted the Barrie Colts 5-3 on home ice. Cedric Schiemenz (2) scored the game winner 7:48 into the third period while Florida Panthers prospect Adam Mascherin had three assists on the night. Goaltender Luke Richardson made 31 saves to improve to 3-0-0-0 on the season. Lucas Chiodo (14), Anthony Stefano (14) and Giordano Finoro (8) all scored for Barrie while Christian Propp made 33 saves in the loss. The Rangers shake a four game losing skid with the win, improving to 23-14-2-2 on the season.
GAME CENTRE

SUDBURY 3 – NORTH BAY 2
Ryan Valentini (13, 14) scored twice to lead the Sudbury Wolves to a 3-2 win over the northern rival North Bay Battalion on home ice. Kyle Capobianco (7) also scored while David Levin gathered a pair of assists, helping the Wolves improve to 18-19-5-0 and stay within one point of first place Mississauga in the division. Though Dmitry Sokolov didn’t score, he did register an assist to extend his point streak to six games. Wolves netminder Jake McGrath turned in a 29-save performance, being beaten on North Bay goals from Justin Brazeau (11) and Steve Harland (19).
GAME CENTRE