It’s been anything but home sweet home for the Barrie Colts this season.
Ryder Cali and Arseny Pronin scored just 57 seconds apart midway through the third period to rally the North Bay Battalion to a come-from-behind 4-3 win over the struggling Barrie Colts, Saturday night, at Sadlon Arena.
The loss was the fourth straight for the Colts (3-6-0-2), who have now dropped six of their eight contests on home ice to open the season.
“The games haven’t been going the way we wanted them, but it’s really early in the season. Kind of a learning curve,” said Barrie defenceman Kashawn Aitcheson. “We have a really young team with a lot of new guys, so I’m not too worried.
“I think it’s just a stepping-stone towards the direction we want to be. We take all these losses as learning lessons where we can get better.”
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The loss was an especially bitter pill for the Colts to swallow after having battled back from a 2-0 first-period deficit to take a 3-2 lead into the final period.
Cali tied it at 9:34 for North Bay (5-5) when he took a feed in the slot from Cam Warren and rifled it over the right shoulder of Ben Hrebik.
Pronin notched the winner seconds later when he knocked down a long Colts’ pass at centre ice, raced in on the left side and sped around the net, and on the wraparound banked it off the inside of Hrebik’s right pad and in.
“I feel like we’ve had a problem closing all year,” said Lowe of the blown lead in the third. “I think it’s just a matter of time before we start clicking. We just have to bear down and finish the job.
“Luckily, we’re in their building tomorrow, so it will be a good one for us to win.”
With this being rivalry week in the OHL, the Colts were looking to kick off the home-and-home set with their Central Division rivals in fine fashion, but inconsistent play has plagued them at the Sadlon Arena.
Barrie has yet to put together a complete 60-minute effort at home this season. Both teams, actually, were sloppy throughout the contest.
“Yeah, it is what it is,” said Lowe of the struggles on home ice. “It’s a matter of time before we click. A couple of these young guys are not used to playing in front of these crowds. I think it’s a matter of time before they start feeding off of that and doing good things.”
Aitcheson knows he and his teammates have to be better at home, but he’s confident they will get things turned around.
“We’re just trying to figure it out,” said Aitcheson, who scored his sixth of the season and added an assist in the loss. “We’ll take it game by game. I’m not too worried about it. I know we’re going to turn it around. We have a lot of character in this room.
“We’re just going to take it day-by-day. It’s a new day tomorrow. We’re going to go into North Bay and have a killer mentality, and we’re going to take those two points.”
North Bay grabbed the early lead in this one when Cam Warren, on the power play, and Briir Long scored just 44 seconds apart just before the midway point of the opening period.
Brad Gardiner, with his first of two on the night, cut the lead in half on the power play at 13:39 when he buried a rebound in front past Battalion goaltender Mike McIvor.
Playing their best hockey of the game – feeding off a late period fight between captains Cole Beaudoin and Ethan Procyszyn – the Colts jumped into the lead in the second. Aitcheson crept to the front and took a pretty feed from behind the net by Alex Assadourian to tie at 17:08.
Gardiner gave Barrie its first lead of the game with 44 seconds remaining in the middle frame when McIvor stopped Assadourian’s shot in front, but the overage forward was there to tap in the rebound for his team-leading seventh goal of the season.
The Battalion stepped things up midway through the third, getting the equalizer and go-ahead goals while outshooting the Colts, 17-9, in the period.
The slumping Colts had no answer.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say confidence,” said Aitcheson, when asked if the team was short on theirs. “It’s just a team that’s struggling a bit. It’s a learning curve. Every team goes through ups and downs. We had a hell of a team last year, and we went through two five-game skids.
“It’s still early in the year, so it’s good to get it out of the way now. Then one (win) turns into two, and we just get rolling.”
The Colts will look to get a little revenge on Sunday afternoon when the two division rivals return to North Bay.
Like the Colts, the Battalion have had their own issues on home ice this season. While they have racked up a 4-1 record on the road, they have just one win in five games in front of hometown fans.
“Obviously, it’s a massive game going into that building,” said Lowe. “I know the fans don’t like us too much, and hopefully we can do a good job of shutting them up.”
For the Colts, last night’s loss will be front and centre on their minds.
“Blowing the lead, no one’s happy,” said Aitcheson. “That’s the best thing about it being back-to-back, you got a chance at going right back at them the next day.”
ICE CHIPS
Kent Greer appeared to have iced the contest with a little more than a minute left when he slid the puck into an empty net, but a video review of the goal showed the Battalion were clearly offside on the entry into the zone. . . North Bay outshot Barrie, 36-28. . . The Colts were 1-for-4 on the power play, while the Troops went 1-for-2. . . Gabriel Eliasson returned to the Barrie blueline having finished up a three-game suspension. . . Gardiner also had an assist to finish with three points and now has 14 points in 11 games.
ADD. OHL
Brantford 9 Brampton 3
Kingston 7 Oshawa 1
Flint 5 Saginaw 4
Niagara 4 Erie 3 (OT)
Guelph 6 Owen Sound 3
Peterborough 2 Ottawa 1
Sarnia 5 Windsor 3
Sault Ste. Marie 3 Sudbury 1
