Lacklustre in loss
IceDogs come out flat in Teddy Bear Toss Game against North Bay
Was a “flat” and “lacklustre” performance by the Niagara IceDogs one those games that happen from time to time to teams on a hot streak?
The jury deliberating that question is out until after the Ontario Hockey League is back on the ice for its second game in as many nights.
A solid showing against the Barrie Colts tonight will relegate a 6-3 loss to the visiting North Bay Battalion as an aberration.
“It’s our first bad one in 10 games, so I can live with it as long as we bounce back with a good effort tomorrow,” IceDogs head coach Billy Burke, a member of that jury, said after Niagara snapped a threegame winning streak.
“We can throw this one away, and kick ourselves at the end of the season we let two points get away at home.”
North Bay, which beat Niagara for the first time this season after opening the season series with two losses, feasted on turnovers.
“We got lazy,” Burke said. “Our forwards wanted breakaways and didn’t want to come back, our D wanted to throw it all the way up the ice.
“It was just a bad effort allaround.
“Our forwards can’t carry us, our D can’t carry us, we need to be together and support each other.”
In addition to pointing out mistakes that resulted in North Bay goals, the coaching staff will remind the players of all the things the team was doing in right in a hot streak that included six wins in seven games.
“I’m not going to abandon the team or anything like that, it’s still all good, all positive, but we can’t just show up and think we’re going to win,” Burke said.
“We thought we were Team Canada out there trying to make plays every time, but we’re not that team.”
The Team Canada comment was in reference to Hockey Canada holding its four-day selection camp for the world junior tournament getting underway later this month in Buffalo.
Burke conceded not being able to practise on their home ice affected the IceDogs, “but not super-negatively.
“We’re used to practising off-site,” he said. “Yea, it was a bit of a distraction, for sure, but it was a welcome distraction.
“I’d love to have Team Canada every year.”
North Bay’s Patrick Brown beat Stephen Dhillon five-hole from the right faceoff circle to open the scoring at the 7:28 mark.
It rained and rained teddy bears and stuffed animals of all shapes and size after Johnny Corneil tied the score at the 12-minute mark.
Niagara outshot North Bay 15-9 in the opening period.
We thought we were Team Canada out there trying to make plays every time, but we’re not that team.”
Niagara IceDogs head coach Billy Burke
Kyle Potts tapped in a rebound that beat Dhillon glove side as the Battalion regained the lead on their first power play.
North Bay also found the back of net on its second opportunity with a man advantage, this time from Justin Brazeau who picked off a pass for his 24th of the season.
With 1:41 remaining in the second period, Kirill Maksimov was Johnny on the spot in front of the net converting a pass from Ben Jones into his team-leading 19th goal of the campaign to cut the deficit to one.
Shots on net in the second period were 13-10 North Bay.
Dhillon was pulled in favour of Colton Incze after allowing a power-play goal to Cam Dineen and an even-strength marker to Nick King 43 seconds later.
Kurtis Evans increased North Bay’s lead to four, but Ben Jones made it a three-goal game with his 12th of the season with 4:18 remaining in regulation.
Niagara was seeking its fourth in a row and seventh in the past eight games. The IceDogs have compiled a 7-2-0-1 record over the past 10 games, while the Battalion were 5-4-0-1 over the same span.
Niagara opened the season series with two victories: 4-3, Nov. 12, in North Bay; 6-1, Nov. 17, in St. Catharines, 6-1.
’Dog Biscuits: Billy Constantinou, Joshua Dame, Drew Hunter and Bradey Johnson were not in the Niagara lineup ... Second-year defenceman Justin McPherson, 17, of Richmond Hill was honoured as the IceDogs academic player of the month. He is averaging 85.5 per cent in his Grade 12 studies at Governor Simcoe Secondary School in St. Catharines ... Performing O Canada was the Salvation Army Band ... Pets Smart in St. Catharines donated 1,000 teddy bears