Niagara's Next Visitors
Previewing the next few teams visiting the Gatorade Garden City Complex.
Kitchener Rangers - Thursday, January 14, at 7:30 p.m.
Rematch - final game of home-and-home between the two teams. Niagara gets a turn on home-ice to avenge their 3-2 loss to the Rangers in Kitchener last Sunday. Look for Ryan Strome to help kick-start the IceDogs offense, and Mark Visentin to play another solid game between the pipes.
Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors – Thursday, January 21, at 7:30 p.m.
Comfortably sitting in second place in the Central Division rankings, the St. Mike’s Majors are known for their solid defensive play, led by Cameron Gaunce, Blake Parlett, and David Corrente. The Majors have one of the better plus-minus averages in the Eastern Conference (Only 4 players with a negative rating). When Mississauaga and Niagara meet, you can always count on an exciting physical match-up.
Erie Otters – Thursday, January 28, at 7:30 p.m.
Maintaining their third place spot in the Midwest Division, the Otters are led by over-ager Zach Torquato, who ranks in the top ten for league scoring with 20 goals and 56 points. Erie also has three other players with 20 or more goals, and play an aggressively offensive game. When the two teams met on New Years Eve, the final score was 8-7 in favour of Erie. The IceDogs can expect a high-paced game when facing the Otters.
Kingston Frontenacs – Sunday, January 31, 2:00 p.m.
Coached by ex-Leaf Doug Gilmour, the Fronts are proving themselves to be a tough, competitive team. While they are a 500 hockey club midway through the season, their explosive offense, led by Nathan Moon, is a force to be reckoned with. Their physical play is no joke either, as they are ranked second in the OHL in penalty minutes, racking up a total of 840 in 42 games. Kingston should provide a tough physical match-up for the young Niagara team.
London Knights – Thursday, February 4, at 7:30 p.m.
The Knights have been a top-seeding team for the past few years, harvesting stars such as Corey Perry, John Tavares, and John Carlson. This year is no different, as Nazem Kadri, Steven Tarasuk, Justin Taylor, and recently acquired ex-IceDog Chris Desousa, lead London as they sit third overall in the OHL standings. This high-powered offense has been hard for teams to stop, with 169 goals for and only 11 regulation losses. Niagara will look to avenge their 6-3 loss to the Knights when they last met in London on January 8.
Windsor Spitfires – Saturday, February 6, at 7:00 p.m.
There’s not enough you can say about the Windsor Spitfires. Coming off a Memorial Cup win in the 08-09 season, the Spitfires are at it again this year as they sit first overall in the OHL. The roster is filled with future stars; Adam Henrique, Greg Nemisz, Cam Fowler, Ryan Ellis, and freshly acquired Zach Kassian, lead the unstoppable Spitfire offense – not to mention the NHL Central Scouting Report’s top ranked draft pick, Taylor Hall, who leads the OHL in goals and points. Windsor continues to prove they are a tough opponent to face, but an enjoyable team to watch.
Last edited by hockeymum; 01-13-2010 at 03:49 PM.
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01-13-2010, 03:17 PM
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