Monday Highlights: Holiday hat-tricks

(Photo Credit: Mistele – Metcalfe Photography / Marchment, Lammikko, Luff – OHL Images)

Monday February 15, 2016

Goals were plentiful on Family Day as jam-packed rinks around the league were treated to exciting fast-paced action as four different players recorded hat-tricks.

Matt Mistele headlined Monday’s action, tying a Sarnia Sting franchise record with five goals as his club became the fourth Western Conference team to secure a playoff spot in a 11-4 win over Saginaw.

Florida Panthers prospect Juho Lammikko potted three for the Kingston Frontenacs as they scored a big 6-4 win over the Barrie Colts to become the first Eastern Conference team to punch their ticket to the post-season.

Erie’s Jake Marchment and Hamilton’s Matt Luff also netted hat-tricks in wins for their teams on Monday.

Here’s a look at how things unfolded on Family Day around the OHL.

SARNIA 11 SAGINAW 4 – The Sarnia Sting put forth their highest goal output since February 22, 2013, burying 11 goals on the visiting Saginaw Spirit with Los Angeles Kings prospect Matt Mistele staking claim to five of those. Mistele’s five markers tied a Sting franchise record as he joined four others in franchise history (Johnston ’95, Yarema ’96, Sim ’97, DiBenedetto ’08) to accomplish the feat. Mistele’s five brought his season total to 25 goals while rookie Ryan McGregor had two goals and an assist and Devon Paliani had three helpers against his former club. The Sting are playoff-bound for a second straight season as they remain in the hunt for their first West Division title since 2004, currently holding a three point lead on second place Windsor. Veteran forward Kris Bennett scored twice for Saginaw as the Spirit suffered their eighth straight loss.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS

KINGSTON 6 BARRIE 4 – The Kingston Frontenacs became the first Eastern Conference club to clinch a playoff spot, taking a big win in a showdown with the Barrie Colts on home ice. Florida Panthers prospect Juho Lammikko scored three times for his first OHL hat-trick and multi-goal performance while Lawson Crouse and Roland McKeown both had two assists. Michael Dal Colle scored in a sixth straight contest to extend his point streak to 11 games. Fronts goaltender Lucas Peressini recorded a career-high 50 saves to earn first star honours in the victory. Barrie’s Andrew Mangiapane stayed hot with two goals and an assist as the Colts saw their eight game winning streak come to an end. Colts forward Kevin Labanc recorded a goal and an assist to surpass Michael Henrich (1996-2000) for fourth on the franchise’s all-time scoring list with 245 points. The Frontenacs are playoff-bound for a fourth straight year as they’re in the hunt for their first East Division title since 1995.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS

HAMILTON 5 KITCHENER 4 – Matt Luff’s first OHL hat-trick led the Hamilton Bulldogs to a 5-4 win over the Kitchener Rangers. Luff brought his goal total to 10 in the month of February as the Dogs hung on to collect two points despite being under siege late in the third period. The Rangers surged for three in the third after falling behind 5-1 on the scoreboard. Bulldogs veteran Niki Petti had a goal and two assists while Jesse Saban had a pair of helpers and Kaden Fulcher made 32 saves in goal. Darby Llewellyn scored a pair of goals for Kitchener while Arizona Coyotes prospect Ryan MacInnis had a goal and an assist. The Hamilton win keeps them even with the Oshawa Generals for eight place in the Eastern Conference.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS

ERIE 6 GUELPH 1 – The Erie Otters snapped a three game skid as Los Angeles Kings prospect Jake Marchment recorded his second hat-trick of the season in a 6-1 win over Guelph. Otters rookie Vanya Lodnia finished the afternoon with a goal and two assists while Nick Betz scored and Dylan Strome netted his 29th of the season. Rookie Liam Stevens provided Guelph’s lone marker as the Storm dropped their fourth straight decision. The Otters sit four points ahead of second place London in the Midwest Division.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS

PETERBOROUGH 6 WINDSOR 5 OT – Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Dominik Masin scored 2:49 into overtime as the Peterborough Petes snuck by the Windsor Spitfires 6-5. Christian Fischer’s 26th of the season with 2:20 remaining helped the Spitfires earn a point before the Petes prevailed behind two goal performances from Hunter Garlent and Greg Betzold. Peterborough captain Eric Cornel collected three assists in the win while Matthew Mancina made 35 saves. The Spitfires had two goals and two assists from Fischer while Brendan Lemieux scored twice and added an assist. Windsor’s fourth straight loss sees them trail first place Sarnia by three points in the West Division.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS

OSHAWA 5 OWEN SOUND 4 OT – The Oshawa Generals charged back from a 4-1 deficit to stun the Owen Sound Attack 5-4 in overtime. Kenny Huether tied the game with 1:23 to spare before netting the overtime winner 1:30 into the extra frame as the Generals kept pace with Hamilton in a battle for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Huether finished the afternoon with a career-high five points with two goals and three assists while Anthony Cirelli and Lukas Lofquist each had a goal and an assist. Owen Sound blueliners Thomas Schemitsch and Damir Sharipzyanov each contributed as the former scored twice and the latter pitched in with two assists. The Attack collect a point to jump ahead of Sault Ste. Marie for sixth in the Western Conference.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS

NORTH BAY 3 OTTAWA 2 – Los Angeles Kings prospect Mike Amadio followed up a five-goal performance on Saturday with two more to his credit, leading the North Bay Battalion to a 3-2 win in Ottawa. The Troops avenged a 4-3 overtime loss in Ottawa on Tuesday as goaltender Jake Smith made 26 saves while Steve Harland also found the back of the net as the Battalion went 2-for-3 on the man advantage. Artur Tyanulin and Stepan Falkovsky struck for Ottawa as the 67’s saw their four-game winning streak come to an end. 67’s forward Dante Salituro extended his point streak to 13 games with an assist in the loss.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS

MISSISSAUGA 7 SUDBURY 5 – The Sudbury Wolves made things interesting, but a late surge from the Mississauga Steelheads saw them swim away with a 7-5 victory at the Hershey Centre. Goals from Daniel Muzito-Bagenda, Mason Marchment and Josh Burnside helped the fish recover from a 5-4 deficit midway through the third to come away with two points. Rookie defenceman Nicolas Hague had two goals on the afternoon while Muzito-Bagenda extended his point streak to five games with a goal and an assist and Alexander Nylander scored and added two helpers. Sudbury forward Mikkel Aagaard scored in a fifth straight game while rookie winger Dmitry Sokolov had a goal and an assist. Mississauga rookie Joseph Murdaca made 34 saves to record his first OHL win.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS

LONDON 5 FLINT 2 – Mitch Marner’s two goals and an assist led the London Knights to a 5-2 win over the visiting Flint Firebirds. Christian Dvorak and Matthew Tkachuk each scored and added two assists while Aaron Berisha also scored and Tyler Parsons made 22 saves in goal. Knights rookie Robert Thomas went 12-for-14 in the faceoff circle to earn second star honours. Flint goals came from Luke Kirwan and Nicholas Caamano while Brent Moran turned aside 29 shots. The Knights and Firebirds were knotted at two early in the third period before London put things out of reach with three unanswered.
GAME SUMMARY • HIGHLIGHTS