The Sarnia Legionnaires will be looking for a little payback when they host the St. Thomas Stars tonight. That's because the last time the Stars were in town, they humiliated the Legionnaires 8-1.
 

Here's a preview of the contest:

WHO: Sarnia Legionnaires (18-19-6, 42 points) vs. St. Thomas Stars (19-19-4, 42 points).

WHEN: Saturday, Jan. 30, Sarnia Arena, 7:30 p.m.

 

SIGNIFICANCE: The two teams are tied for sixth place in the nine-team Western Conference of the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League. Whoever gets sixth at the end of the schedule should have an easier opponent in the first round of the playoffs. That's because the sixth place club will face the third seeded team, while the seventh place squad will be up against the No. 2 team in the conference.

 

WHO TO WATCH

Sarnia – Veteran centre Owen Rogers has eight points in his last five games, including three goals and five assists.

St. Thomas – Scott Stafford has eight points in his last five games, including two goals and six assists.

SPECIAL TEAMS – Sarnia has the better powerplay, at least statistically. In fact, the Legionnaires have scored 19 per cent of the time with the extra man, compared to only 15.8 per cent for the Stars. But St. Thomas has killed penalties off at an 82.8 per cent clip, compared to just 79.9 for Sarnia.

HISTORY – The teams have split four games this season, with both picking up a road win.

 

HOME ICE FACTOR – There could be a big crowd on hand because the Legionnaires are holding a major cancer fundraiser. Among other things, they have given 500 tickets to the Canadian Cancer Society. Sarnia's home record is 11-8-2 while St. Thomas is 9-9-1 on the road.