Battalion forward Nick Moutrey chases the puck during action on Friday night. Game 2 is back at the Gardens at 2:00 p.m.on Sunday afternoon. PHOTO BY TOM MARTINEAU.
Friday’s 8-0 win in game 1 was something no one expected as the North Bay Battalion routed the Kingston Frontenacs.
Combine that with a 6-0 drubbing in the final regular season meeting at the Gardens last Sunday, and the Troops have proved to be dominant on home ice against the Fronts.
However, Battalion Head Coach Stan Butler doesn’t expect that to continue, although he wouldn’t complain if it did.
“Both teams are pretty evenly matched,” stated Butler after the 8-0 win.
“Sometimes these types of games happen. They’re a much better team than that, and we’ll see that on Sunday.”
While Fronts starting goalie Lucas Peressini struggled on Sunday, on the other side, Jake Smith looked like the playoff hero who led the Battalion charge all the way to the OHL finals last spring.
“Jake played very well,” said Butler about Smith’s 4th career OHL playoff shutout
“There’s a reason he played right to the finals with us last season. When he had to make big saves he did; he made a great save on Bennett. He was ready to go, and he knows he has to be good because they have a really good goalie in Kingston and we know he’ll bounce back.”
Playoff Ice Chips
- Nick Paul and Mike Amadio are both in the top 20 in playoff scoring with 3 points.
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67’s forward Dante Salituro leads the OHL playoff scoring with 7 points
