The Sarnia Sting is hoping a new month brings better results for the Ontario Hockey League club.

The Sting returns to action tonight when they host the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds at the RBC Centre. Game time is 7:35 p.m.
 

It’s the third meeting in less than three weeks between the two clubs. The Greyhounds won both games, 2-0 at Sarnia and 7-1 last Saturday at home.
 

“The Soo is a hard-working team,” said Sting head coach Dave MacQueen on Wednesday. “Their strengths are on the blueline and in goal and it gives them a chance to win every night. Special teams are also part of their success against us.”
 

The Greyhounds scored five power play goals in Saturday’s 7-1 win. They rank second in the OHL on the power play operating at 26 per cent while they are third in penalty killing at 84 per cent.
 

The month of November was one the Sting would like to forget all about. They lost 11 of 12 games and have dropped eight games in a row.
 

“Frustration is the big thing right now,” said MacQueen. “The players are not reacting instinctively. They are afraid to make mistakes because when they do, the puck usually ends up in the back of our net. We are also afraid to finish our checks in fear we might get a penalty and our penalty killing hasn’t been very good of late. It’s tough on everybody.”

Despite the recent slide, MacQueen remains upbeat.
 

“We knew there was going to be peaks and valleys. We knocked off some good teams early in the year and things got magnified. I don’t think anyone expected to lose eight in a row. But everyone has to remember we have a young team and many of these players are still learning. They are still practicing hard every day.”
 

He added, “one of these games things are going to fall into place. It only takes one win most times to get your confidence back and start feeling good about yourself.”
 

The Sting will be without forward Kyle Neuber as he was given a one game suspension by the league this week for skating the red line during warmup in Saturday’s game with Sault Ste. Marie.
 

“He was warned earlier in the season by the league about it and we spoke to him as well,” said MacQueen.
 

Forward Brett Appio, who missed the last two games with a broken nose, is listed as day-to-day and will likely dress tonight. Goalie Adam Courchaine is also listed as day-to-day with an upper body injury.
 

“He’s close,” said MacQueen. “He skated and participated in practice this week. He will likely be a game-day decision.”

Courchaine suffered the injury Nov. 20th against Windsor.
 

Sarnia has fallen to last overall in the league with a 10-17-1-0 record. Sault Ste. Marie sits in fifth in the Western Conference with a 15-12-1-1 mark.
 

MacQueen, who is in his first season as general manager of the Sting, spent the weekend at a minor midget tournament in Whitby, along with the rest of the Sting scouting staff.
 

“It was definitely a good experience for me. There were probably eight of the top 10 kids listed to go in the first round at the tournament. It gave me a good chance to put some faces with some names. Now our scouting can continue to evaluate these players before I get another look at them again early in the New Year and see what their development is.”

MacQueen says he didn’t see any Steve Stamkos’ at the tournament, but said, “there are some very good players eligible this year. We realize we will likely be picking high in the draft and this draft is very important to this team going forward.”
 

He added, “our first pick will likely be a group decision by our staff with myself having the final call. After that I need to rely on the scouting staff as they will have seen most of these players several times over the course of the season.”

Right now for the top three rounds of the 2010 draft, Sarnia has their own first round pick, Belleville’s second rounder and Mississauga’s third round selection. They also have some extra picks in the later rounds.
 

Tonight is the start of three games in three nights for the Sting. Friday night they travel to St. Catharines to battle the IceDogs while Saturday night they are in Erie to face the Otters.
 

STING NOTES
 

-         Speciality teams continue to struggle for the Sting. Their power play has fallen to 16^th overall operating at only 15 percent while their penalty killing is last at only 72 percent. Sarnia has not scored a power play goal in their last five games.

-         Kale Kerbashian leads the Sting in scoring with eight goals and 15 assists for 23 points. Ben O’Quinn is second with seven goals and 10 assists while Jordan Hill and Joe Rogalski are tied for third with 14 point each.

-         Defenceman Jake Muzzin is the top scorer for Sault Ste. Marie with six goals and 25 assists for 31 points. Vern Cooper, the former first round draft pick of the Plymouth Whalers, is second with 12 goals and 15 assists while Brett Thompson has 25 points and Michael Quesnele 24.