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HomeNewsBattalion snaps skid at 11

Battalion snaps skid at 11

The North Bay Battalion got back in the win column with a gutsy 5-4 victory over the rival Barrie Colts.

“I’m happy we won the game,” Head coach and Director of Hockey Operations, Stan Butler said shortly after the final buzzer. “I thought it was good where other games where teams have scored and started to come back in games our guys have panicked, today we settled down and battled which was positive and a step in the right direction.”

The win marks the Troops first since October 14 when they defeated the Sault Ste Marie Greyhounds 7-5. The 11 game losing streak was the longest in franchise history, however, a 13 game winless draught is the all-time record from the 1998/99 season when the team was based in Brampton and ties were still part of league play.

“When you have a young team and their confidence is not at a high level, every little thing that happens can affect the guys in a negative way,” Butler explained. “You just have to try to reinforce with them what they are capable and able to do.”

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North Bay got off to a quick start when Luke Moncada buried his 10th goal just over a minute in. By the end of the first, the Troops had a 3-1 lead. Midway through the second period, rookie Josh Currie found the back of the net to collect his first career OHL goal.

“It was nice to see Josh get a goal, it was good for him,” Butler said but noted that other rookies played well. “The plays Liam Arnsby made on the fourth and fifth goal is something the people of North Bay will probably see more and more as he gets older and moves forward.”

The Battalion netminder, Joe Vrbetic also made some impressive saves in the game which drew the praise of Butler.

“I don’t know if there is another 17-year-old starting goalie in the league. There haven’t been many in my career. We’re trying to speed up his development and that means he is put in a lot of situations that are challenging for 19 and 20-year-old goalies, let alone 17.”

“I thought he hung in there and Grant Fuhr had a great quote that said ‘my job as a goalie is to stop one more shot than the other guy.’”

Barrie mounted a comeback in the third period, tying the game at four before Harrison Caines of the Battalion scored the game-winning goal with just a minute and a half to go before the end of the third period. The goal just trickled past the goal line, and after two reviews, one for if it had crossed the line and the other as a coach’s challenge from the Colts over potential goaltender interference. Both reviews came back to indicate the goal would stand.

Once the final buzzer sounded, the dark cloud that hung over Memorial Gardens was lifted and the fans acknowledged the effort of the team. The 1889 fans in attendance sounded more like the sold-out crowds of the 2013/14 season, serenading the team with a “go Troops go” chant as they headed off the ice.

“I think it is amazing,” Butler stated. “Our fans have been totally supportive of the kids and the kids realize it. It’s a really big thing and we really appreciate that. We said it before that it is a process with this group and I think what you are going to see, don’t know how much this year, but in years to come this group of kids will give the fans a lot to cheer about.”

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