The Kingston Voyageurs got a fantastic 37 save effort from newcomer Daniel Urbani to defeat Oakville 2-1 on Friday night.
The Blades were hungry for a comeback. A week after grabbing just one point in a two game stretch, Oakville was hoping to return to their form, as seen during their eight game winning streak that stretched for most of November. The team showed their eagerness early in the first when they began quickly pressuring Urbani . It was just Urbani’s second game since being acquired earlier in the week, as Matt Penta has acted as the starting goalie in 25 of the first 30 Kingston games. Despite having little playing time this year, he looked sharp, becoming the busier of the two goalies in the first ten minutes.
Before the game was even ten minutes old, the game saw its first ejection. Matt Hoover, one of the better defensemen on Kingston, got kicked out after hitting Daniel Jelic from behind.
Kingston got the first goal of the game. With 5:08 left in the period, Adam Brady hooked Josh Kosack to no call. Brady then picked up the puck and roofed it past Daniel Mannella, giving the Vees the 1-0 lead. The lead wouldn’t last for long, as Max Lindsay scored his eighth goal of the season on a wrist shot, tying the game at two apiece.
The final five minutes weren’t done. With Lindsay out for ten minutes following a head contact penalty, Alex Tonge got a wrap-around goal on Mannella to give Kingston the 2-1 lead.
The Blades had a lot of momentum to start the second, but somehow, they weren’t able to score. First, Tanner Shaw’s point shot hit the inside of the crossbar but trickled out and missed by the offence in front. Seconds later, Ross Sloan had an amazing scoring chance from just a foot outside of the net, but Urbani flung his right leg in the air and kept the puck out with a Miikka Kiprusoff style save. Urbani had a fantastic second period, making 18 saves in a scoreless effort for the Blades.
The Blades were desperate to tie the game up. With less than five minutes to go, the team had about six or seven good scoring chances that either barely missed the net or were stopped by Urbani. Oakville’s full force offense was complimented by their counterparts on the blue line that weren’t budging anytime Kingston tried to force a rush.
With Oakville losing a bit of steam with under three minutes to go, the frustration finally boiled over. After a giveaway in the neutral zone, Gregory Campbell was finished for the game following a hit from behind. The Blades did get some scoring chances at the end, but they were unable to tie the game up at two apiece as Kingston finished with a 2-1 victory.