The Windsor Spitfires are going to have to earn every point they get during the final month of the 2025-26 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) season. They started on the right path on Thursday night, getting a big win at home over an Eastern Conference foe.
With less than a month remaining in the regular season, the Spitfires are battling multiple teams for the top spot in the Western Conference. If they want the top seed, they can’t afford to lose many (if any) points with just 11 games left. Thursday night, they welcomed the Eastern Conference’s fourth-seeded Peterborough Petes to town. That’s a club who bought at the January trade deadline and wasn’t about to be pushed aside. Here are four takeaways from the WFU Centre.
Shots, Shots, and More Shots!
After scoring just one goal on 48 shots last weekend in a pair of games, Spitfires’ head coach Greg Walters wanted to see them work on getting shots and bodies to the net. It was mission accomplished.
The Spitfires put everything they could on Petes’ goaltender Easton Rye. They fired from all angles, at any chance they had, and it worked. Defenceman Jakub Fibigr (Seattle Kraken) scored his 10th of the season and was quickly followed by captain Liam Greentree (New York Rangers) for a 2-0 lead after the first period.
The Petes weren’t going away, though. They forced the Spitfires to the outside, cutting the second period shots in half. After some hard work, they potted two, including one from deadline acquisition, veteran Kieron Walton (Winnipeg Jets), to tie it. Greentree added his second of the night before the period ended, though, for a 3-2 lead after 40 minutes.
While the Spitfires got more shots on Rye in the third, it was the Petes who forced overtime thanks to a mid-period goal. The extra time didn’t decide anything, so the clubs headed to a shootout. That’s where Greentree beat Rye, followed by three big stops from Spitfires’ goaltender Joey Costanzo, for a 4-3 home win.
After the game, Walters said that, while they went back into old habits in the middle part of the game, the first period was one of their better periods in quite some time.
“I thought the first period was probably the best period we’ve played in a long, long time,” he said.”(Getting) 16 shots, we’ve been talking about getting pucks to the net and shot-first mentality. For whatever reason, in the second period, we got back into our old habits. We played well and a ton of zone time, but everything was on the outside.”
Greentree led by example with a pair of goals and the shootout winner. He said they have a great defensive game, but their offensive-zone stats aren’t good enough. The message was getting pucks and bodies to the net. It makes the game a lot easier when you have a start like that.
“We started really well today,” he said. “We got a lot of shots on net. They played a huge role in our success. We’ve been struggling to start games that hot, and it makes the game a lot easier when you do.”
Costanzo Makes It Work
While offence and defence are important, the Spitfires may not have had the two points without Costanzo. The 20-year-old Toronto native came into the game among the best in the OHL with a 2.11 goals-against average (GAA) and .910 save percentage (SV%). Plus, he was 2-0 in shootouts.
Costanzo didn’t see many pucks early but was able to keep his focus and stop 25 shots, plus three more in the shootout. He credited his teammates, and his trump card, with helping him.
“It was a little bit scrambly,” he said. “I thought I did a good job using my athleticism. I kind of had that as my trump card today. The defence helped me out in front, moving guys and letting me see the puck.”
While getting to the shootout can be stressful for the fans, the club was eager to participate. Costanzo said that he feeds off the crowd’s energy, and he’s enjoyed the concept since he was a kid.
“I’ve always loved (shootouts), even in minor hockey,” he said. “Greentree had a big (goal) for us, which certainly helps. Out of those three (shootout wins), two have been at home, and I think we really feed off the crowd in those moments … There’s a bit of strategy that goes into it, but, at the end of the day, I try to use my athleticism.”
The Windsor #Spitfires got two goals from captain Liam Greentree, plus 25 saves (and anther three in the shootout) from goaltender Joey Costanzo, in a 4-3 shootout win over the Peterborough #Petes on Thursday at the WFCU Centre. #OHL pic.twitter.com/sjNcpeyze8
— Dave Jewell (@DaveJewellOHL) February 27, 2026
Greentree said, between overtime and the shootout, you can’t ask much more from Costanzo. This was a confidence booster.
“Joe was great for us today,” he said. “Saving all three shots in the shootout, you can’t ask for more than that. He played a really solid game, especially in overtime. They had the puck possession for most of that, and he played really well. I think that’s a good confidence buildup for him, especially coming into this weekend.”
With the win, Costanzo has 103 in his OHL career and 98 as a Spitfire. However, he continues to say that it’s not just him that deserves accolades for their wins.
“The team does such a good job in front of me,” he said. “It’s a team sport, and it’s a bit of a team stat as well. I’m just glad (general manager) Bill (Bowler) has kept me around this long to do that. It’s been a ton of fun, and I wouldn’t trade this experience for the world.”
Walters Holds Spitfires Accountable
Since the trade deadline, the Spitfires have risen to near the top of the OHL in one frustrating stat – penalty minutes. It’s not something they’re necessarily proud of. Sticking up for teammates is one thing. Taking unnecessary penalties and putting your team at a disadvantage is another.
Walters wasn’t going to let them get away with needless penalties. He’s holding them accountable and, over the last few weeks, multiple veterans have sat for a period or more as a result. That includes newcomers Nathan Villeneuve (Kraken) and Alex Pharand (Chicago Blackhawks).
Related: Spitfires Acquire Villenevue and Pharand from Wolves in Blockbuster
On Thursday, veteran forward Jack Nesbitt (Philadelphia Flyers) took a third-period cross-checking penalty in front of the Petes’ goal. The Petes scored on the power play. Nesbitt was then benched by Walters. After the game, the coach said they have to set this standard for the playoffs.
“We’ve been taking guys’ ice time away with penalties,” Walters said. “They have to be (getting the message). It’s Villeneuve, Pharand, and Nesbitt. If those guys are getting sat, you know anybody will. This is all about the bigger picture of them understanding that, when it’s playoff time, we can’t be doing that. Just trying to send the message. It’s worked because our penalties are way down once we started doing it. Jack feels bad and, hopefully, the guys hold their emotions in check.”
Humans get emotional at times. However, if it’s going to cost you two points or, in the playoffs, a series, that hurts the team. If you learn now, it will benefit you when everything is on the line.
Petes Are No Pushover
Coming into the game, the Spitfires were 3-0 against the Petes in the last two seasons, including a 6-3 win in Peterborough in December.
Now, the Petes are fighting off the North Bay Battalion for the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference (now three points up) and looking to make as long a run as possible. With Rye, Walton, plus forward Adam Novotny (first-round 2024 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Import Draft) and his 59 points in 49 games, this isn’t a team you can ignore.
This Petes’ club is a different one than the Spitfires faced in December. They’re hungry, confident, and Walters said they’ve already beaten serious contenders.
“They also made some trades at the deadline to get better,” he said. “(They) brought in a big piece in Walton. They’re a good hockey team. They beat the Rangers, Ottawa (67’s), and Brantford (Bulldogs) where they had 53 shots on net. They’re a real good team.”
Costanzo played with the Niagara IceDogs in 2021-22 prior to being traded to the Spitfires. He said the Petes play a different style in the East.
“I think they’re a big, strong club who are well coached,” he said. “Whenever the East teams come here, it’s a little bit different. Maybe a little more dump the puck rather than carry it in on the rush. I played in the East for a season, so I know a little about that hockey. They have strong forwards up front, and I think their defence is underrated.”
The win gives the Spitfires nice momentum heading into the weekend. They have no time to rest as they hit the road to play the London Knights on Friday before returning home Saturday to face the CHL’s fifth-seeded Barrie Colts.
