Generals suffer 6-2 loss at home
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
From the start, things didn’t look good for the Oshawa Generals.
Coming off a 4-3 victory over the Hamilton Bulldogs on Saturday, the Generals were looking to close out their weekend at home with a win over the Ottawa 67’s.
However, a little more than 10 seconds into the game, a broken play ended with the puck in the back of the Generals’ net and with it went the crowd’s enthusiasm and Oshawa’s energy.
Oshawa’s Matt Mistele lifted his team in the second period by scoring his 100th OHL career goal. However, it wasn’t enough as the Gens fell to the Ottawa 67’s 6-2. (Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express)
“It just snowballed from there. We never got our momentum underneath us,” said head coach Bob Jones following the game. “We made numerous errors defensively…right from our goaltending to our top-four defensemen were very poor tonight and then our forwards didn’t bear down. We had ample opportunity to score more than two goals tonight and didn’t.”
Oshawa’s Domenic Commisso fights for the puck on Sunday night. (Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express)
Despite the early goal, the game remained close into the second period with a 2-1 score, Oshawa’s lone marker coming from Matt Mistele, which marked his 100th career OHL goal. A silver lining not just for the Generals, but also for Mistele who, just returning from a broken finger, suffered the loss of his grandfather earlier that weekend.
“It’s good that I could get a goal for him and I know he would have been proud of me for sure,” Mistele said.
It was at first unclear if the goal would remain as Mistele’s 100th as it bounced by the Ottawa goaltender during a scramble in front of the net.
“I just kind of put it on net and there was a big scramble and they said I got it and nobody else said anything so I’ll take my 100th whatever way I can, I guess,” he said.
Despite keeping the game close, things would break open not soon after while Oshawa, killing a penalty, saw Mitch Vande Sompel speed off on a shorthanded breakaway.
However, he was unable to score and Anthony Cirelli, following closely on the play, fell to the ice and led to an odd-man rush going the other way, resulting in Ottawa’s third goal of the game.
Oshawa’s Owen Mcdade would add the other Gens marker.
Mistele also appeared to net his second goal of the game with a wrist shot from the hash marks, but the play was ruled offside after review. Also, Mistele would beat the Ottawa goaltender once again on the penalty shot, but again it was disallowed as he swatted it in on the rebound.
“I think it’s obviously frustrating to lose, but I don’t think we played our best game,” Mistele said. “We’ve got a young team this year, so losses like that are going to happen, but we can’t let them happen two in a row.”
Jeremy Brodeur, who made the start for the Gens, was pulled after the second period, stopping 14 of 18 shots. His replacement, Logan Gauthier, dealt with eight shots in the third period.
The Generals will face off Friday, Nov. 27 against the rival Peterborough Petes before facing the Mississauga Steelheads on Sunday, Nov. 28.