The North Bay Battalion return to North Bay Memorial Gardens Thursday night to face the Windsor Spitfires.
The Troops are back home after they split a two-game western road trip which included a 5-4 win last Thursday in Windsor followed by a 6-2 setback at the hands of the London Knights last Friday.
With the split, the Battalion sits at 8-8-2 on the season.
Ryan Oulahen says the high-flying Spitfires (13-4-1) will be looking for some payback.
“We knew that we got a good jump on them in their building, so we’ve got to be ready for them looking for a little bit of redemption,” Battalion coach Ryan Oulahen said Wednesday of the Spitfires.
“We saw how dangerous and how good they could become there in the last five minutes of that hockey game, so I think that’s the biggest thing going into tomorrow. It’s the first game of the week for both teams, and you’re always trying to get off to a good start.”
The Battalion stunned the Spits by taking a 3-0 first-period lead before Windsor cut its deficit to 3-2. Left winger Owen Van Steensel then scored two second-period goals for the Troops, who saw the Spitfires climb back within a goal by 16:22 of the final frame.
Mathurin returns
The game marks the first time defenceman Tnias Mathurin returns to Memorial Gardens since an Aug. 8 trade. In his first game facing his former teammates, he assisted on the Spitfires’ last goal, by left winger Cole Davis.
The Battalion dealt overager Mathurin and a 13th-round pick in the 2025 OHL Priority Selection for a second-rounder in 2025, fourth- and sixth-round picks in 2026, and a 13th-rounder next year. He was North Bay’s third-round choice in 2020 from the Ajax-Pickering Raiders minor midgets.
Injuries were a factor in limiting Mathurin to 96 games over three seasons with the Troops in which he scored six goals and added 26 assists for 32 points. He had three goals and 14 assists for 17 points in 51 games in 2023-24.
In three playoff springs, in each of which the Battalion advanced to the Eastern Conference final, Mathurin played 40 games, scoring one goal and earning 12 assists for 13 points.
Left winger Owen Outwater, North Bay’s first-round pick in 2021, also is with Windsor. He was traded to the Kingston Frontenacs after one season with the Battalion.
McIvor still a question mark
There's still no definitive time frame as to when goaltender Mike McIvor will return to action.
The Warkworth, Ontario product has not played this month since he sustained an upper-body injury in a collision with Sudbury's Kieron Walton in a 3-1 loss to the Wolves in Sudbury on October 25.
Oulahen hinted before practice that McIvor may be close to a return as the Battalion was “hoping for all the best.”
Romani and Pazii still healing
Meantime, with right winger Anthony Romani and left winger Ihnat Pazii recovering from broken collarbones, younger Troops have been getting more opportunities including rookies Stepan Chukharev, Reyth Smith, and Ryder Carey.
“You just look at the ice time some of our young guys are getting,” noted Oulahen.
“That hasn’t been the case here in the last couple of years with our roster, so we’re able to escalate that learning.
“I’ve seen huge growth from week to week with the bottom half of our roster. It’s very impressive and, when I say executing with the puck and having poise and having confidence, it’s been with those players. It’s exciting. It’s something that we’re able to do.
“We’re able to teach on the fly. We’re able to have tons of video. It’s really healthy right now with what we’re going through and getting through things and scraping and clawing as a group and as a team and still able to find some points here.”
Honouring Butch
The North Bay Battalion will be honouring local sports icon Butch Turcotte on Thursday night, sponsored by Dave’s Heating & Cooling.
The long-time hockey coach and member of the North Bay Sports Hall of Fame passed away this summer.
His family, which includes his son and former NHLer Darren Turcotte, will be involved in a pre-game ceremony and perhaps another surprise for fans during pre-game warmups.
Santa Claus Parade late start Sunday
The Sudbury Wolves visit at 3 p.m. Sunday in a game featuring a later-than-usual start because of the Santa Claus parade.
