SPITFIRES’ OFFENCE ROARS TO LIFE AGAINST FIREBIRDS
It’s never too early for a big game.
While the season is still young, the rebuilding Windsor Spitfires are putting maximum value on every point this season.
With the club’s best offensive performance of the season, the Spitfires scored a 6-1 win in Flint over the West Division-rival Firebirds before a crowd of 1,984 at the Dort Event Center on Sunday.
“It’s a big game,” Spitfires head coach Trevor Letowski said.
“You look at the schedule, and we’ve had a tough schedule to this point, and we’re back on the road for a while. When you have a chance to get points, you have to get them.”
Playing the first of fourstraight road games, the Spitfires and Firebirds came into the game tied in the standings.
“You have to grab your points when you can, especially in the division and conference points.” Spitfires goalie Mikey DiPietro said. “How tight we are (in the standings), these points are really valuable.”
DiPietro, who allowed four goals on 16 shots in a loss on Thursday to Peterborough, was solid in an opening period that had plenty of chances for both sides to get on the scoreboard.
“It’s one of those games where it bugs you,” DiPietro said of Thursday’s loss. “Four (goals) on 16 (shots), no one likes that.
“I hate letting in more than two goals on 60 shots. For myself, it was a really important game for me to get back in a rhythm and confidence.”
DiPietro made 16 saves in the opening period and 34 in the game while Aaron Luchuk and Mathew MacDougall scored 47-seconds apart in the final two minutes of the period to give Windsor a 2-0 lead.
“I thought we came out with really good jump in the first (period),” Letowski said. “It was a little loose defensively, but we just created so much.
“It was almost like; here we go again, we can’t convert, but we stayed with it and I thought we looked real dangerous offensively.”
Fedor Gordeev’s power play goal was the only one allowed by DiPietro and got the Firebirds to within 2-1, but the Spitfires quickly regained a two-goal lead on the first OHL goal by rookie defenceman Nathan Staios.
“That was awesome to finally get one,” said the 16-year-old Staios, who was the team’s firstround pick in April’s OHL Draft. “I’ve had a bunch of chances, but haven’t been able to capitalize, so it was good to finally get the first one.”
Luchuk’s second goal of the game, with five seconds left in the second period, extended Windsor’s lead to 4-1 and Jake Smith and Luke Kutkevicius added third-period goals as Windsor hit a season high offensively with six goals.
“I think that was huge for us, especially to get that late goal in the second and get a couple more in the third,” said Luchuk, whose team improved to 7-4-1-0 on the season.