THUNDER BAY – Playoff hopes are bleak at best for the Lakehead Thunderwolves but, for the time being at least, they remain alive.
The Thunderwolves erased an early two-goal deficit by finding the back of the net four times in the second period, paving the way for a 5-2 victory over the Waterloo Warriors at the Fort William Gardens on Friday night.
“We just regrouped after the first. We came out sluggish for some reason and obviously good job by the boys of not getting down and finding a way to get back in the game,” said Thunderwolves forward Kelin Ainsworth, who finished the contest with two goals and a helper.
The win allows Lakehead (6-13-4) to keep pace with the team they’re chasing for the final playoff spot in the OUA West after Toronto defeated Windsor. The Thunderwolves are six points out of the postseason with five games remaining, one more than Toronto.
Lakehead bench boss Bill McDonald said every game is essentially a must-win and his side needs to take care of business before scoreboard watching.
“They’re all big right now,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if we don’t win. We just have to keep plugging.”
Playing without leading goal scorer Cody Alcock, the Thunderwolves knew they would have to find scoring from alternate sources. The line of Ainsworth, Garrick Gray and Billy Jenkins answered the bell with the trio combining for 10 points.
“We all have a different part to our game and we seem to complement each other really well,” Ainsworth said. “I think we just play our positions well and work hard. The rest just kind of comes for us.”
The start was less than ideal for the home side, who entered the first intermission trailing after a pair of power play tallies from Warriors forward Colin Behenna. Waterloo outshot Lakehead 18-9 in the frame.
“I thought we were a little tentative in our forecheck. We wanted to get the puck behind them and go at them more, which I don’t think we did in the first period. Once we did that I think they coughed it up a couple of times,” McDonald said. “I thought our energy was better and our physicality was better.”
Lakehead roared out to the lead in the second, potting three goals in the first 5:40 of the period.
Gray got things started, crashing the net and jamming the puck past Waterloo goalie Mike Morrison. Dylan Butler found the equalizer 84 seconds later after his cross-ice pass went off a defender’s stick and in. Jake Wright gave the Thunderwolves the lead with a power play goal after grabbing a rebound off the glass and burying the wraparound attempt.
Ainsworth added insurance, first driving to the net and beating Morrison to close out the four-goal middle stanza. He got his second of the night with the only goal of the third after his shot went through the Waterloo keeper.
The win marks the fifth straight Friday night victory for Lakehead. However, they have yet to find a way to complete the series sweep on the Saturday, dropping all four of the following contests.
“We won on Friday but now the big test is how do we win on Saturday,” McDonald said. “I think it’s just all mental. If you go on the road, you’re probably looking for a split. They didn’t get the (win) and they’re going to play harder (Saturday) and we know that. We have to be as high as them mentally and physically and if we’re not we’ll probably lose the game.”
Claw marks: With four assists on the night, Jenkins leads the Wolves in regular season scoring with 23 points in 19 games...Lakehead has had 26 power play goals scored against this season, the second highest mark in the OUA...The two teams will take to the ice at the Fort William Gardens on Saturday with puck drop scheduled for 7 p.m.
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1. Waterloo, Behenna (Silas, Mackie) 14:04 pp. 2. Waterloo, Behenna 2 (Silas, Underwood) 16:46 pp. Penalties: Alexander LAK (hooking) 13:28; Springer LAK (boarding) 15:50.
SECOND PERIOD
Scoring: 3. Lakehead, Gray (Ainsworth, Jenkins) 2:05. 4. Lakehead, Butler (Wright, Ringuette) 3:29. 5. Lakehead, Wright (Jenkins, Sefton) 5:40 pp. 6. Lakehead, Ainsworth (Jenkins, Gray) 17:58; Penalties: Perigo WAT (holding) 5:07; Gilbert LAK (tripping) 6:28; Tsicos WAT (slashing) 8:11; Sefton LAK (holding) 19:57.
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 7. Lakehead, Ainsworth 2 (Gray, Jenkins) 9:46. Penalties: B. Dubchak LAK (holding) 3:45; Alexander LAK (interference) 7:31; Maw LAK (boarding) 10:03; Perigo WAT (roughing) 17:48; Mackie WAT (slashing) 19:32.
GAME DATA – SOG – Waterloo (18-11-14-43), Lakehead (9-11-10-30); Power plays (goals-chances): Waterloo (2-7), Lakehead (1-3); Goaltenders – Waterloo: Mike Morrison (25 saves, 30 shots), Lakehead: Devin Green (41 saves, 43 shots); A – 2,075.
