Sam Schutt knows how to make an entrance.
Making his debut Friday night in a Lakehead Thunderwolves uniform, the Palmer Rapids, Ont. native scored a pair of second-period goals to power the Wolves to a pre-season-opening 4-3 win over the visiting Manitoba Bisons.
“It was good to get the first one under the belt right away,” said Schutt, a 16-goal scorer with the OHL’s Kingston Frontenacs last season.
“The boys battled really hard, but it’s a different game coming from the OHL to here, that’s for sure. It’s more physical, definitely. You’ve got to keep your head up. Someone’s always coming, trying to take it off.”
Getting the goal scorers going early is going to be key to a strong start, said Thunderwolves third-year coach Bill McDonald.
Especially on a team that lost the likes of Mike Hammond, Trevor Gamache and Keith Grondin up front and is looking for players to step in and fill the offensive gap.
“For a guy like (Schutt), it’s huge,” McDonald said. “And you can see the other guys. Cody (Alcock) was pressing and he finally got one. Now the monkey’s off his back. I think the guys that are going to be scoring for us and maybe tried to do a little bit too much were (Billy) Jenkins and (Kelin) Ainsworth.”
It’ll come for the rest of the forwards, McDonald said.
Getting that first win right out of the gate was also an important confidence booster, he added.
It’s pre-season, but every win counts for something.
“I’m happy for the guys. We brought this whole big new group here. They’ve done what I asked and we’ve tried to team build. I was happy for them. They wanted it, we batted in the end and I used some different guys in different situations, which I’m going to have to this year. Hopefully we can learn as we go,” McDonald said.
Schutt was the only rookie showing he can play at the university level.
Goalie Devin Green, a last-minute start for McDonald, stopped 30 of 33 shots he faced, and other than a soft Brett Stovin wrist shot that floated past him in the third to cut the LU lead to one, the Calgary native looked strong.
Green made several key saves and stood tall in the third as the Bisons pressed for the equalizer.
Like Schutt, the opener was all about building confidence.
“There were a little bit of nerves to start, but once I got in for a few minutes and felt that first puck, the nerves just kind of seemed to go away,” he said. “I thought I played well, but I also have to say kudos to the guys in front of me. Putting four goals up on the board helped.”
After a scoreless first, Schutt opened the scoring in the first minute of the second, knocking the puck out of midair past Manitoba starter Dasan Sydora.
He struck again, this time on the power play, at the 2:25 mark, but the Bisons got one back at the midway point of the period, Shaq Merasty beating Green with Manitoba on the man advantage. Rookie Linden Springer restored the two-goal Thunderwolves lead early in the third, again on the power play, firing a clean wrist shot through traffic from just inside the Manitoba blue-line, beating replacement goalie Justin Paulic, who took over to start the final frame.
Merasty and Alcock traded goals before Stovin pulled the Bisons to within a goal with 2:59 to go in regulation.
The two teams will match up again on Saturday night. Puck drop is 7 p.m.
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: No scoring. Penalties: Christensen MAN (high sticking) 1:07, Schreyer MAN (unsportsmanlike conduct) 15:24, Springer LAK (roughing) 17:39.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 1. Lakehead, Schutt (Cull, Maw) 0:51. 2. Lakehead, Schutt (Springer, C. Dubchak) 2:25 pp. 3. Manitoba, Merasty (DePaper, Stovin) 10:48 pp. Penalties: Stovin MAN (holding) 1:27, Bresciani MAN (cross checking) 1:57, Maw LAK (tripping) 12:15, Wasalyk MAN (interference) 15:45.
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 4. Lakehead, Springer (Jenkins, Ainsworth) 2:03 pp. 5. Manitoba, Merasty (Henry) 11:33. 6. Lakehead, Alcock (unassisted) 13:50. 7. Manitoba, Stovin (Merasty, Henry) 17:01. Penalties: Bruyere MAN (roughing) 1:29, Sefton LAK (tripping) 2:18, Alcock LAK (interference) 6:45, Augert MAN (interference) 19:23.
GAME DATA – SOG – Manitoba 14-7-12-33, Lakehead 9-16-7-32; Power plays (goals-chances) – Manitoba (1-6), Lakehead (2-6); Goaltenders – Manitoba: Dasan Sydora (25 shots, 23 saves), Justin Paulic (0:00, third) Lakehead: Devin Green; A: 2,371.
