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Sting Head into Holidays on a Winning Note

saturday December 20, 2014


By DAVE PAUL


The Sarnia Sting blitzed the Saginaw Spirit with three goals in a span of 3:10 during the first period of Friday night's OHL game at RBC Centre.
They then rode that early surge to a 4-1 win to close out the pre-Christmas portion of the schedule with a 17-13-1-2 record.

The 17 wins matches the Sting total from last season.

It was a big night for the line of centre Stephen Pierog and wingers Hayden Hodgson and Brandon Lindberg, which was on the ice for all four Sting goals.


Lindberg opened the scoring at 4:11, finishing off a rush with a shot that beat Spirit goalie David Ovsjannikov. Less than three minutes later, Hodgson converted a nice backhanded feed from Pierog to give the Sting a two-goal lead.

Then, just 13 seconds later, Jakob Chychrun -- playing in his first game after a lengthy absence with an injured shoulder -- scored a pretty goal, sneaking in from the blueline to take a pass from defence partner Jeff King.

Saginaw tried to fight back in the second period, with Kris Bennett scoring early on a rebound. But the Sting restored the three-goal lead just over a minute later when Lindberg got his second of the game on a wrist shot that beat what appeared to be a screened Ovsjannikov.

The Spirit didn't give up, however, and outplayed the Sting for much of the middle period, getting numerous quality scoring chances in the process.
But, as he has been so often for the Sting in recent weeks, goalie Taylor Dupuis was outstanding in slamming the door on the Spirit, time and again.
Final shots on goal in the game were 32-28 for Sarnia.

Saginaw's best chance to get back in the game came around the five-minute mark of the third period when the Sting took two minor penalties, 20 seconds apart. And, while the Spirit did ring a shot off the post, Dupuis and the Sting penalty killers stood tall in fighting off the Spirit two-man advantage.


The Sting were missing many key players, some at World Jr. Championship camps (Anthony DeAngelo and Pavel Zacha) and some due to injury (including Josh Chapman and Davis Brown).

With 37 points, the Sting now sit sixth in the Western Conference standings but are now just one point behind fifth-place Owen Sound and three back of fourth-place Guelph, with a game in hand.

The Sting are now idle until Sunday, Dec. 28 when they will host the Plymouth Whalers in a 4:05 start.

 

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