If you’re going to be a contender in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), winning games in multiple ways is essential. Despite their normally high-octane offence, the Windsor Spitfires showed defensive poise, grabbing a low-scoring win at home on Thursday night over the Barrie Colts.
Coming off of a three-game road trip, the Spitfires were itching for some home cooking. While they beat the North Bay Battalion, they had tough outings against the Sudbury Wolves (9-3 loss) and the Soo Greyhounds (2-1 in overtime). They returned to the WFCU Centre to face the Colts, one of the early contenders in the Eastern Conference. This was a game the Spitfires needed for the standings and their own mental game. They were in third in the the Western Conference (ranked 10th in Canada), behind the London Knights and Kitchener Rangers, with no desire to fall further. Here are three takeaways from a 2-1 win over the Colts on Thursday night.
Low-Scoring Wins Benefit Spitfires in the Future
Coming into Thursday, the Spitfires were third in the OHL with 89 goals through 21 games. The Colts were mid-pack offensively but led the league with just 54 goals against in 19 games. It became the defensive battle we expected.
The Spitfires have struggled with their starts since late October. However, they were ready here. They came out with energy and beat Colts’ goaltender Sam Hillebrandt just four minutes into the contest thanks to forward Ethan Martin. In the second, defenceman Anthony Cristoforo added his fifth of the season on a seeing-eye shot to give them a 2-0 lead. While Colts’ veteran Dalyn Wakely ended Joey Costanzo’s shutout bid early in the third, the home side put the press on and came away with a 2-1 win.
After the game, Spitfires’ head coach Greg Walters said they stuck to the game plan and structure and shut down a very good Colts’ team.
“All the credit goes to (the players),” he said. “We were connected all over the ice. We smothered them; we were in really good structure. That’s a really good hockey team and I think we kept them to under 10 scoring chances against, which is amazing … I thought we came out really good, we were connected, making five-to-10-foot passes all over the ice, and when we did turn it over, we were on top of them.”
After the Jan. 10 trade deadline, you’re not going to score four or five goals every night. You’ll have to win those low-scoring battles. Walters said it’s good to learn now.
“We want these 2-1 games because that’s what it’s going to be in the playoffs,” he said. “Obviously, we’d love to score goals and blow teams out, but that’s not always going to be the case.”
Spitfires’ Power Play Needs Work
One of the Spitfires’ biggest issues in November has been their power play. While they’ve been near the top of the league all season, it has started to struggle to find consistency. They entered the game just five-for-31 in the month of November. That trend didn’t change on Thursday.
Despite having forwards like Liam Greentree (Los Angeles Kings), A.J. Spellacy (Chicago Blackhawks), Ilya Protas (Washington Capitals), and 2024 first-overall pick Ethan Belchetz at their disposal, they haven’t been able to take advantage of the extra man on the ice.
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Against the Colts, they looked for the pretty play, stickhandled into turnovers, and seemed hesitant to get shots on Hillebrandt. The result was no goals in seven chances, something Walters frustratingly chuckled about after. He said they’re being too unselfish and it almost cost them.
“It could have cost us the game, honestly,” he said. “It’s surprising because we were 33-34 percent three weeks ago … We’ve made an adjustment; (assistant coach) Casey Torres is taking over the power play and (assistant coach) Kris Newbury is taking over the penalty kill. We had some good looks but it wasn’t pretty … We brought up a lot of video from when we were successful. These kids are so close and they have to be selfish and shoot pucks. You watch so many goals, they’re trying to make everything look cute right now. You look at Cristoforo’s game winner, it can be the same on the power play. Get it to the net and win some puck battles at the net.”
While it’s better to struggle with the power play now rather than in March or April, you still don’t want to get caught with a lengthy issue. Sometimes, the old “K.I.S.S.” rule is best – keep it simple, Spitfires.
Depth Continues to Matter
While Walters, Torres, and Newbury can roll out some top-line players on any given night, we can’t ignore the depth the Spitfires have. There will be nights where Greentree, Protas, Spellacy, and Belchetz aren’t on their top game. That’s where others come into play, such as Owen Outwater, rookie Nathan Gaymes, or even 19-year-old forward Ethan Martin.
The Windsor #Spitfires used a strong defensive effort to come out with a 2-1 win over the Barrie #Colts at the WFCU Centre on Thursday. #OHL pic.twitter.com/nkwwqz7r4d
— Dave Jewell (@DaveJewellOHL) November 22, 2024
He chipped in the first goal on Thursday, taking a pass from rookie defenceman Adrian Manzo, and promptly placing it blocker side. After the game, he said it was a nice confidence booster for the team.
“It was big to get us up early in the game,” he said. “It was my first shift of the game. I came out there, was feeling good, just laid a hit, and the puck just got to me. I cut to the middle, shot on net, and luckily it went in … It’s huge, especially when you’ve got guys contributing further down the lineup, playing as a team.”
It’s great to have high-end talent on your roster. However, if the Spitfires are going to continue to stay near the top of the Western Conference standings, they’re going to need contributions from their third and fourth lines. They’re not always going to be beautiful goals but the OHL doesn’t have a column for that in the standings. You take what you can get as they all count the same. The club now hits the road to take on the Kitchener Rangers on Friday before returning home on Saturday to face the Ottawa 67’s.
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