A trip home from a three-game road trip with the seventh game of the World Series ongoing was a little easier for the Soo Greyhounds with a trio of wins in their pocket.
The Greyhounds capped off the trip on Saturday with a convincing 6-1 win over the Oshawa Generals at the Tribute Communities Centre.
The game saw the Greyhounds score three times on the man advantage while adding a shorthanded marker.
For Greyhounds coach John Dean, the final 40 minutes of the game really stood out.
“We didn’t hate the first period. We’re on the road, three games in four nights and they haven’t played a game yet this week,” Dean said. “We were fine, pretty responsible for the most part, didn’t give up a ton. We weren’t dominant, but the second and third are obviously fantastic for us.”
“Special teams comes up in a big way,” Dean added. “The score and the shot clock and the effort speaks for itself.”
Calling the six-point weekend a plus, rookie defenceman Jakub Winkelhofer added that the win was one in which the Greyhounds “made the right decisions.”
On the defensive side of the puck, Dean said the Greyhounds ability to limit shots was due in part to their ability to remain on the offensive side of the game.
“It was more about owning the puck than it was about our defensive acumen,” Dean said. “I still think we had some breakdowns in our own end, but the way we were relentless on top of picks, the way we owned the puck in the defensive zone and the way we moved it into the neutral zone, we managed the puck in an exceptional way.”
Winkelhofer agreed.
“We tried to play minimum defence in our zone,” Winkelhofer said. “We like playing offensively so that was our key to play defensively.”
The Greyhounds got on the board first thanks to a power-play goal from defenceman Chase Reid. The second-year blueliner took a pass at the top of the right faceoff circle from Winkelhofer on the left side and proceeded to beat Oshawa goaltender Jaden Cholette high glove side at 4:16 of the opening period.
Winkelhofer made it a 2-0 game in the second period with his third goal of the season at 9:07. Skating into the left faceoff circle, Winkelhofer took a cross-ice pass from Harris Pangretitsch in the right circle and beat Cholette high glove side off the back bar in the net to extend the Greyhounds lead.
With the Greyhounds shorthanded, Jordan Charron gave the visitors a 3-0 lead when he jumped on a loose puck in the Sault zone off an Oshawa faceoff win. Charron proceeded to skate the puck into the neutral zone before slipping past an Oshawa defenceman and beating Cholette with 2:59 to go in the period on a breakaway.
The Greyhounds added another power play goal 23 seconds into the third period when Brady Martin skated down the left wing to the outside of an Oshawa defenceman and, just as he was about to skate behind the Generals goal, went between his legs and beat Cholette high short side to make it 4-0.
Rookie forward Noah Laus chipped in with his fourth goal of the season at 8:32 when he took a pass in the slot from Travis Hayes on the right wing and beat Cholette high glove side.
Oshawa’s Anthony Figliomeni broke Greyhounds goaltender Landon Miller’s shutout bid with 3:33 to go in the third as he potted a loose puck in the crease after Brooks Rogowski’s initial shot hit a stick and the post before landing in the crease.
Reid capped off the scoring with his second of the night on the power play when he took a pass at the top of the right circle from Winkelhofer, skated in and beat Cholette to make it a 6-1 game in the final minute.
Winkelhofer paced the Greyhounds offensively with a goal and three assists in the victory. Reid added two goals and an assist while Martin also had a three-point night with a goal and a pair of helpers.
Asked about Winkelhofer, Dean called the blueliner “probably our most consistent player all season long.”
Dean also used the word “incredible” in describing the rookie.
“We’re going to watch this young man do this all season long,” Dean said. “Some nights it’s going to be zero points, but just as effective. Other nights, the puck is going to fall in the right way, and he gets four points.
“We know exactly what we’re going to get from him every night and it’s really nice to see him get rewarded,” Dean added.
Miller stopped 18 shots.
Cholette stopped 27 shots for the Generals in the setback.
After winning all three games on the road, the Greyhounds now return home for a trio of games beginning Wednesday night when the team hosts the Flint Firebirds at the GFL Memorial Gardens. The homestand will also see the team host the Guelph Storm on Friday and the Barrie Colts on Saturday.
The Greyhounds improved to 11-6-1-0 on the season with Saturday’s win over the Generals. Meanwhile, Oshawa fell to 5-11-0-0 with the loss.