For the second time in five days, the Soo Greyhounds erased a Guelph Storm lead.
On Friday night, the Greyhounds would take advantage of the opportunity and pick up a win as Keeghan Howdeshell scored 48 seconds into overtime to give the home team a 4-3 Ontario Hockey League win at the GFL Memorial Gardens.
Howdeshell took a feed from Jordan Sambrook on a 2-on-1 and beat Guelph goaltender Anthony Popovich to give the Greyhounds a victory in a game that saw the club trail 3-0 with just under six minutes to go in the second period.
For Howdeshell, the overtime winner was his second of the night after he tied the game with 39 seconds to go in regulation time. The overage forward missed a portion of the third period after he was hit with an instigator penalty late in the second period following a fight with Guelph’s Zach Poirier.
“There was a bit of tough luck on the (penalty) call there,” Greyhounds Coach John Dean said. “It’s funny the way the hockey gods work. He goes and defends his teammate and then goes out and scores the game-tying and game-winning goals.
Friday was a game in which the Greyhounds were not pleased with their start.
“We posted them a 3-0 lead again,” Dean said, referencing Sunday’s meeting between the two clubs in Guelph. “The power plays early disrupted the flow. It threw us off and we didn’t respond very well. They got the early goal and I didn’t like our response at all.”
On the flip side, Guelph Coach George Burnett spoke of how the last five minutes of the third period were a difference in the game. It came shortly after the Storm killed off a two- minute Greyhounds five-on-three.
“After the five-on-three kill, we got back on our heels and allowed them to come at us and do the things that they do so well, which is skate and move the puck and we paid the price,” Burnett said.
Guelph got on the board two minutes into the contest when Liam Hawel beat Matthew Villalta on the power play.
Cam Hillis would make it 2-0 midway through the period and Sault native Keegan Stevenson made it 3-0 midway through the second period.
“I don’t think we got dominated, but I don’t think we played a high-tempo game,” Dean said.
Trailing 3-1, the Greyhounds came out with a strong third period, outshooting the Storm 13-3 in the frame as they battled back to tie the contest.
“Our third period was fantastic,” Dean said. “I told the guys that I wish that was the way we played from the drop of the puck.”
“We found a way to win a game by playing 20 really good minutes,” Dean also said.
Ryan Roth and Mac Hollowell also scored for the Greyhounds while Villalta made 19 saves.
Ryan Merkley assisted on a pair of goals for Guelph.
Storm goaltender Anthony Popovich stopped 25 shots.
“For 55 minutes, I liked the way we did a lot of things and we were worthy to be up 3-1,” Burnett said.
“If you eliminate the five-on-three, where they didn’t have a lot of shots because we blocked a bunch, they had 20 shots on goal for a good portion of the hockey game,” Burnett also said. “Not too many teams come in here and keep that hockey club in that shot area.”
The Greyhounds improve to 12-3-3-0 with the win while the Storm fall to 9-4-3-0.
The Greyhounds will wrap up its three-game homestand on Sunday afternoon in a 2:07 p.m. start against the Erie Otters at the GFL Memorial Gardens.
Meanwhile, the Storm were set to travel to Saginaw following the game for a game on Saturday night against the Saginaw Spirit.
In other action around the OHL on Friday night, in Kingston, Christopher Paquette’s goal at 18:15 of the third period was the game winner as the Peterborough Petes beat the Kingston Frontenacs 4-3. Paquette had a pair of goals for the Petes.
In Mississauga, Owen Tippett had a pair of goals and goaltender Jacob Ingham stopped 37 shots as the Mississauga Steelheads beat the Niagara IceDogs 4-2. The Steelheads scored four unanswered goals in the win.
In Sudbury, the Sudbury Wolves scored five times in the opening period en route to a 6-1 win over the Erie Otters. David Levin had two goals and an assist for the Wolves.
In Kitchener, Kari Piiroinen stopped 34 shots as the Windsor Spitfires blanked the Kitchener Rangers 3-0.
In London, Cole Tymkin had a pair of goals as the London Knights beat the Flint Firebirds 6-2. Billy Moskal assisted on three goals for the Knights.
In Oshawa, Kevin Hancock had two goals and two assists as the Owen Sound Attack beat the Oshawa Generals 6-4. Aidan Dudas two goals and an assist for Owen Sound. Jack Studnicka had a goal and an assist for Oshawa.
