The North Bay Battalion had a chance to create even more separation between themselves and the Ottawa 67’s in the race for the final playoff spot. Unfortunately, it didn’t go the Troops way in the nation's capital on Friday evening as the 67’s skated away with a 5-2 victory to pull within three points of eighth place in the Eastern Conference.
It was just ten days ago that when North Bay overcame a 2-1 deficit in Ottawa to beat the 67’s 3-2, but they didn’t have enough gas in the tank in the third to overcome a 2-0 second period deficit on Friday as the 67’s second line of Luca Pinelli, Filip Ekberg and Cooper Foster combined for three goals and seven points on the evening.
Perhaps part of that is due to the Battalion having played six times since their last meeting with Ottawa on Family Day Monday, while Ottawa has suited up just twice before hosting the Troops on Friday.
Regardless of the loss, the Battalion (23-30-5-0) have been playing their best hockey of the season lately and will look to carry that over into the final month of the regular season. After winning a combined six games in December and January, the Battalion have turned things around in February. They end the month with a 6-4-2-0 record and have leap frogged the 67’s (20-30-3-5) for the final playoff spot.
Both teams knew what was on the line in this game and they came out with some feisty play throughout the first. The Battalion got the first advantage early on when Ottawa’s Zach Houben was called for interference just 2:15 in. North Bay couldn’t capitalize and then found themselves shorthanded near the end of the period when Bronson Ride was sent to the box for roughing at 17:31. The Battalion killed that off, punctuated by a slick pad save by Mike McIvor (17-15-2-0) on a shot from the point by Pinelli.
The first twenty minutes expired with neither side able to get on to the scoreboard as both goaltenders did their job, with McIvor turning aside 10 shots and Jaeden Nelson (12-11-2-3) making six saves.
It was late in the second period when the 67’s put the first point on the score board. Ottawa’s first round pick (2024, #33 overall) Ekberg got behind the defence and waited for a trickling puck to find its way through some skates right onto his stick at point blank range. He beat McIvor for his 11th goal of the season and a 1-0 Ottawa lead at 16:25.
It was Ekberg again at 19:42 of the second period giving the home side a 2-0 lead. Ekberg got a lead pass from Pinelli to go down the middle of the North Bay zone on a breakaway and he dragged the puck from his right-to-left to put it in past McIvor off the forehand for his 12th of the year.
North Bay responded early in the third when Ethan Procyszyn (31) tipped in a point shot from Jacob LeBlanc on the power play to pull the Troops to within a goal, 2-1 at 2:50. With a 30-goal season already in his back pocket, the Anaheim Ducks prospect could be chasing down 40 with 10 games left in the regular season. That was also Procyszyn’s 17th power play goal this year, the third most in the OHL.
The Battalion had a chance to tie the game during an Ottawa power play near the 5:45 mark. The 67’s turned the puck over at the North Bay blue line and Nick Wellenreiter took off, gaining possession in the neutral zone and driving in towards the goaltender Nelson. Wellenreiter took the puck to his right and shot glove side high, but Nelson stuck with him and kept it out of the back of the net.
Just as the Ottawa power play ended, they managed to tie the game. Pinelli’s shot off the faceoff was wide of the net, but the puck bounced off the end boards right back out in front and Foster (17) tucked the puck home for a 3-1 Ottawa lead at 6:49.
North Bay responded again at 9:22 with a Jacob Therrien (13) power play goal. Shamar Moses brought the puck to the high slot before dishing it off to Therrien down low at the far side circle. Therrien then ripped a high shot that got past Nelson and put the Troops back to within a goal, 3-2. That goal gives Therrien at least a point in ten of the 13 games he played this month, racking up six goals and eleven points.
But that’s as close as they would get as Ottawa would add an empty net goal at 18:32 courtesy of Chris Barlas (10), and Will Gerrior (27) added some insurance at 18:54.
The Battalion have one more game on tap before the weekend is through. One more game to end this grueling stretch of ten games over 18 days with just one instance of having two days off in between games. They’ll host the Spirit on Sunday, a team that beat the Battalion in Saginaw last week. After that point, the Battalion can finally breath, regroup and refocus as they are in the driver's seat with a chance to clinch a postseason berth.