SHAWINIGAN, Quebec – The Erie Otters have a connection to Sunday’s Memorial Cup title game.
Former Otters Brett Cook, Greg McKegg and Tyson Teichmann play for the London Knights, which face the host Shawinigan Cataractes at 7 p.m. for the Canadian Hockey League championship.
McKegg has one point, a goal, in three games at the four-team tournament, while Cook has no points, a minus-1 rating and 13 penalty minutes in three games. Teichmann has not appeared in any games.
The OHL champion Knights advanced to the final with a 2-1 record. They beat Saint John, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champion, 5-3, before losing to Shawinigan 6-2. Then the Knights beat the Edmonton, the Western Hockey League champion 6-2.
The game can be seen live on NHL Network.

The Erie Otters endured two close calls this weekend.

After a one-goal loss to Niagara on Friday, the Otters lost 2-1 in overtime to Peterborough in front of 3,524 at Tullio Arena on Saturday night.

Petes winger Lino Martschini scored 3 minutes, 8 seconds into overtime to send the Otters (5-36-2-1) to London on Sunday with a 10-game losing streak.

The Otters and Petes played to a scoreless tie in the opening period. But the Otters had a chance to take control early in the game. Derek Mathers knee-to-knee hit on Otters winger Dane Fox, which briefly shook up Fox, led to Mathers’ game misconduct and a five-minute power play for the Otters.

Yet the Otters managed only three shots on goal during the extended man advantage. The teams finished the period with 10 shots on goal apiece. Otters goaltender Ramis Sadikov and the Petes’ Mike Morrison traded saves in the opening half of the second period as well.

But the Otters’ Dane Fox snapped the tie. His shot from a tight angle along the side of the net caromed off Morrison and trickled into the net to hand the Otters a 1-0 lead with 6:35 left in the period. Connor Brown and Sondre Olden had assists.

Meanwhile, Sadikov stopped the Petes (21-18-3-3) on all 15 shots in the period. But he couldn’t stop Nick Ritchie’s tying goal 37 seconds into the third. Alan Quine turned a blocked shot at the Petes’ blue line into a centering pass to Ritchie for the goal.

Sadikov and Morrison stood tall for the rest of the period, with Sadikov stopping 11-of-12 in the third. But Martschini’s shot slipped past Sadikov and tucked into the left corner of the net to keep the Otters winless in the second half of the season.

Sadikov finished with 39 saves while Morrison stopped 28-of-29 shots. Former Otter Andrew Yogan, who had two goals in the Petes’ home win against the Otters last month, had no points and was a minus-1 in his first game in Erie since being traded in August.

The Otters face off against London – and former teammates Brett Cook, Greg McKegg and Tyson Teichmann – at John Labatt Centre on Sunday at 2 p.m. Fox and Troy Donnay play against the Knights for the first time since the trade earlier this month.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Petes 2, Otters 1 (OT)

Peterborough  0  0  1  1  —  2

Erie  0  1  0  0  —  1

1^st Period — None. Penalties — Glass (E) high sticking, 1:39; Mathers (P) 5-min. kneeing, 10:03; Mathers (P) game misconduct, 10:03; Erie, too many men (served by McDonnell), 19:10.

2^nd Period — 1. Erie, Dane Fox 17 (Brown, Olden), 13:25. Penalties — Donnay (E) roughing, 1:18; Hatcher (P) hooking, 17:14.

3^rd Period — 2. Peterborough, Nick Ritchie 10 (Quine), :37. Penalties — None.

Overtime — 3. Peterborough, Lino Martschini 12 (unassisted), 3:08. Penalties — None.

Shots on goal — Peterborough, 10-15-12-4—41; Erie, 10-9-8-2—29.

Goaltenders — Peterborough, Mike Morrison 8-12-2-3 (29 shots, 28 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 3-17-2-1 (41 shots, 39 saves).

Power plays — Peterborough (0-3), Erie (0-2).

Referees — Ben Wilson, Jason Goldenberg. Linesmen — Ryan Wilson, Rick Janco.

Attendance — 3,524.

Three stars

* Ramis Sadikov, Otters (39 saves) ** Dane Fox, Otters (goal) *** Mike Morrison, Petes (28 saves)

The new-look Sarnia Sting looked better than the new-look Erie Otters Friday night.

Ryan Spooner had two goals and an assist and J.P. Anderson stopped all 30 shots to lead the Sting to a 4-0 win against the Otters in front of 2,395 at Tullio Arena.

With the win, the Sting (20-14-1-4) snapped a two-game losing streak to the rebuilding Otters (5-31-1-1), which lost their fourth straight game.

The Sting unveiled the newly acquired Anderson, defenseman Adrian Robertson and forwards Spooner and Tyler J. Brown. Forward Dane Fox and defenseman Troy Donnay made their debuts for the Otters.

Fox and Donnay were acquired Thursday in the trade that sent veterans Greg McKegg, Brett Cook and Tyson Teichmann to London. The newest members of the Sting made an immediate impact.

Spooner and Brown assisted on rookie Connor Murphy’s first OHL goal, a power-play score that opened the scoring with 2:12 left in the first period. Then Spooner fired a wrist shot past Otters goaltender Ramis Sadikov with 34.6 seconds left in the period. Robertson assisted on Spooner’s 100^th career goal.

Meanwhile, Anderson stopped all 13 shots he faced. He was acquired from Mississauga St. Michael’s on Friday for former Otters draft pick Brandon Maxwell and two picks. The Sting built a 3-0 lead with 8:48 left in the second, as Craig Hottot’s shot trickled past Sadikov and just across the goal line.

Anderson continued his strong start, as he stopped 9-of-9 shots to keep his shutout bid intact. Then Spooner scored his second goal on an unassisted breakaway for a 4-0 Sting lead 4:37 into the third. Anderson capped his first shutout of the season and ninth of his career. Hottot had a goal and assist. Sadikov made 26 saves in a losing effort for the Otters.

In other news, McKegg had a goal and assist in his debut for the Knights, a 3-1 win in Sudbury on Friday. Cook had an assist and was a plus-1. Teichmann didn’t dress for the Knights. Derek Holden didn’t play for Windsor on Friday in Sault Ste. Marie. But former Otter Chris Marchese scored twice in the Spitfires’ 5-3 win. He has five goals and seven points in six games.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Sting 4, Otters 0

Sarnia  2  1  1  —  4

Erie  0  0  0  —  0

1^st Period — 1. Sarnia, Connor Murphy 1 (Spooner, Brown), 17:48 (pp). 2. Sarnia, Ryan Spooner 15 (Hottot, Robertson), 19:25. Penalties — Hottot (S) high sticking, :49; Dundas (S) interference, 10:03; Grant (E) cross checking, 17:12.

2^nd Period — 3. Sarnia, Craig Hottot 14 (Thompson, DeAngelo), 11:12. Penalties — Basso (S) checking to head, 2:13; Donnay (S) high sticking, 9:11.

3^rd Period — 4. Sarnia, Spooner 16 (unassisted), 4:37. Penalties — McGuire (E) cross checking, 6:32.

Shots on goal — Sarnia, 13-9-8—30; Erie, 11-8-11—30.

Goaltenders — Sarnia, J.P. Anderson 16-11-1-3 (30 shots, 30 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 3-12-1-1 (30 shots, 26 saves).

Power plays — Sarnia (1-3), Erie (0-3).

Referees — T. J Foster, Craig Spada. Linesmen — Ryan Wilson, Daryl Wolfe.

Attendance — 2,395.

Three stars

* Ryan Spooner, Sting (2 goals, assist) ** Craig Hottot, Sting (goal, assist) *** J.P. Anderson, Sting (30 saves, shutout)

The deals needed to be done.

GM Sherry Bassin needed to trade Greg McKegg, Brett Cook and Derek Holden in order t officially begin rebuilding the Erie Otters. None will be in the OHL next season.

It’s too early to know if third-year forward Dane Fox and second-year defenseman Troy Donnay will develop into the players that will help turn the Otters into contenders in the next couple of seasons. But the first step is done.

Fox is a proven young player who has averaged nearly a point per game in London (13 goals, 32 points in 34 games) this season. He arrives in Erie as the team’s leading scorer. Now he has to evolve into a frontline scorer on a team that will rely heavily on youth (Stephen Harper, Connor Brown, etc.) to produce offensively.

At 6 feet 7 inches and 183 pounds, Donnay should grow into an imposing presence with what should be decidedly greater ice time with the Otters. He has only 48 games of OHL experience to date.

But here’s the problem I have with the two deals the Otters made Thursday – Tyson Teichmann. What happens in goal?

Bassin traded 18-year-old defenseman Brady Austin to Belleville in August to acquire Teichmann. He was supposed to be in the future in net along with fellow 18-year-old Chris Festarini. They were entrenched enough to make overage goaltender Ramis Sadikov expendable – the same Sadikov who last season set a franchise record with 36 wins and nearly led the Otters past Windsor in the first round of the playoffs despite having a torn groin.

Festarini was traded to Niagara in October. Now Teichmann is in London. So barring an unforeseen deal, Sadikov is the team’s No. 1 goaltender for the rest of the season. Interest in Sadikov from other teams has waned. “We spent the better part of a month talking to some teams about Ramis,” said Dave Brown, Otters assistant manager of hockey operations.

But teams aren’t interested in a goaltender that fills precious OA and Import spots on a roster. Besides, 16-year-old backup Devin Williams has 18 minutes of OHL experience. That makes me think Bassin will dangle players like forwards Mike Cazzola and Sondre Olden in front of fellow GMs in hopes of landing a young goaltender to back up Sadikov this season and lead the way in net next season.

Either that, or Bassin heads a familiar route – the CHL Import Draft – for another Sadikov or Jaroslav Janus. Either way, the Otters need a proven goaltender next season to make this rebuild work. As Bassin always says, goaltending is 75 percent of the game. Unless you don’t have one, then it’s 100 percent. And right now, the Otters don’t have one.

- Victor Fernandes

OSHAWA, Ontario – The Erie Otters are nearly healthy for the first time this season.

Except for forwards Connor Crisp (shoulder) and Sondre Olden (reported minor injury), the Otters were at full strength for Wednesday night’s game against Oshawa at General Motors Centre.

But that didn’t keep the Otters from falling 4-1 to the Generals in Erie’s second-half opener. Special teams led to Erie’s downfall. The Otters (5-28-1-1) failed to score on six power-play chances while surrendering two power-play goals and a short-handed score.

The Otters squandered three power-play chances, including a pair of two-man advantages, in the opening four minutes of the game. However, the Generals (14-18-1-3) scored twice on a 5-on-3 late in the period.

Christian Thomas, a 54-goal scorer a season ago, scored his 14^th goal of the season with 2:13 left in the first to open the scoring. Then Scott Laughton scored 49 seconds later to hand the Generals a 2-0 lead.

Oshawa’s lead reached 3-0 on Jimmy McDowell’s first goal of the season – and seventh in 139 career games – with 1:01 left in the second period. The Otters finally snapped goaltender Daniel Altshuller’s bid for his first career shutout on Greg McKegg’s goal with 8:58 left in the game. Mike Cazzola and Adam Pelech assisted on the goal. Cazzola, who has endured two hand injuries, played in his first game in a month and eighth game this season. Brett Cook (knee) also played for the first time in a month.

But Laughton’s short-handed goal with 1:54 left stymied Erie’s comeback hopes. Tyson Teichmann stopped 36-of-40 shots in a losing effort for the Otters. Altshuller made 31 saves.

The Otters head to Peterborough today for a 7:05 p.m. game. They will face former teammate Andrew Yogan for the first time since he was traded in August. He has 15 goals and 31 points in 32 games.

- Victor Fernandes

Erie Otters (5-27-1-1) at Oshawa Generals (13-18-1-3)

When: Today, 7:05 p.m.

Where: General Motors Centre – Oshawa, Ontario

On the air: WJET-AM/1400, www.ottershockey.com (live stream)

Up next: at Peterborough (Thursday, 7:05 p.m.), at Barrie (Saturday, 7:30 p.m.)

Fast facts: The Otters begin the second half with a three-game Eastern Conference road trip. They are 0-9 against the East, including home losses to Oshawa (7-4 on Oct. 1) and Barrie (4-3 in a shootout on Dec. 2). … The Otters ended the first half with a 5-3 home win against Sarnia on Dec. 17. … C Mike Cazzola (hand) and D Brett Cook (knee) are expected to play tonight. They have missed a combined 37 man games this season. Cazzola has played in only seven of 34 games while Cook sat out the past 10 games. … Their return leaves F Connor Crisp (shoulder) as the only player on the injured list. … Coach Robbie Ftorek needs to scratch Cazzola, Cook or D Derek Holden if G Ramis Sadikov starts. … LW Sondre Olden has rejoined the team after capturing a silver medal with his native Norway at the IIHF World Junior Championship’s Division I Group A tournament in Germany earlier this month. … LW Stephen Harper and Ontario began their pursuit of gold at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge on Thursday against Germany. The tournament runs until Jan. 4 in Windsor, Ontario. … The Otters rank fifth in the OHL on the power play (21 percent), but are last on the penalty kill (78 percent). … The Generals begin the second half with losses in four straight games and seven of their last 10. … They have slipped to ninth in the East, six points behind Sudbury, Mississauga St. Michael’s and Peterborough for one of the conference’s final playoff spots. … They have allowed 136 goals, the OHL’s third-worst total behind only Erie (176) and Saginaw (144). … The Generals rank seventh with 123 goals scored.

- Victor Fernandes

Overage center Mike Cazzola has worn a cast on his surgically repaired hand this weekend as a precaution, said Sherry Bassin, Erie Otters managing partner and general manager. Doctors were concerned about scar tissue in his hand, Bassin said.

Cazzola could return to the ice Tuesday.

Meanwhile, goaltender Tyson Teichmann didn’t dress Thursday in Niagara and Friday against Barrie because of a sprained ankle, Bassin said. He dressed as Ramis Sadikov’s backup on Saturday, but likely won’t be able to play if needed.

Overage defenseman Brett Cook has a bruised, not torn, medial collateral ligament in his knee. Second-year winger Connor Crisp (shoulder) is skating but won’t be cleared for contact until late January.

- Victor Fernandes

Liam Maaskant chose the perfect time to score his first OHL goal.

“Absolutely,” the rookie defenseman said after his goal 3:22 into overtime snapped the Erie Otters’ eight-game losing streak in a 4-3 win against Kitchener in front of 2,329 at Tullio Arena on Saturday night.

Maaskant’s shot from the point slipped through a crowd and past Rangers goaltender Franky Palazzese to cap a strong effort from the Otters’ rookie class. First-round pick Stephen Harper recorded the first two-goal and three-point outings of his short career. Tyler McCarthy and Jake Evans also had points.

The Otters (2-12-0-0), which rallied from two-goal deficits twice to force overtime, won for the first time since a 7-5 home victory against defending league champion Owen Sound Oct. 7.

A night after making 43 saves in a loss to the Rangers (8-5-1-0), Otters goaltender Ramis Sadikov (26 saves) had a rough start early in the finale of this home-and-home series. He allowed highly touted rookie center Radek Faksa’s goal on Kitchener’s first shot for a 1-0 Rangers’ lead 1:25 into the opening period.

Then on Kitchener’s fourth shot, Matia Marcantuoni scored on Sadikov to hand the Rangers a 2-0 lead at the 6:07 mark. Yet the Otters responded 26 seconds later, as Johnny McGuire scored his first goal of the season and second of his career on assists from McCarthy and Evans. McCarthy recorded his first OHL point while Evans netted a point for his second straight game.

Kitchener regained a two-goal lead 22 seconds into the second on Tobias Rieder’s team-best ninth goal of the season. He scored during a scramble in front of Sadikov. But the Otters struck back 51 seconds later on Harper’s first of two goals to slice Kitchener’s lead to 3-2.

Then Harper scored again to tie the score at 3 at the 2:37 mark of the third and eventually force overtime. While standing with his back to the net, the rookie winger deflected Brett Cook’s point shot past Palazzese.

Then Harper joined fellow rookie Connor Brown in assisting on Maaskant’s game-winning goal. Faksa had a goal and assist for the Rangers while Ben Thomson had two assists. Palazzese made 31 saves.

- Victor Fernandes

The Erie Otters couldn’t snap their long losing streak, even with Brad Boyes in attendance.

The Niagara IceDogs erased a two-goal deficit with a four-goal barrage in the second period to hand the Otters their seventh straight loss, 6-4, in front of 3,076 at Tullio Arena on Wednesday night.

Andrew Agozzino, Joel Wigle, Freddie Hamilton and Ryan Strome scored in the decisive period for the IceDogs (6-6-0-1), which turned a 3-1 deficit into a 5-3 lead.

Dougie Hamilton led the IceDogs with a goal and two assists. Agozzino had two goals while Freddie Hamilton and Strome had two points apiece.

A surprise visit from Boyes, the Buffalo Sabres forward and most revered player in Otters’ franchise history, seemed to inspire the home team. The Otters overcame Agozzino’s goal 1:15 into the game by scoring three straight goals, starting with Brett Cook’s tying goal at the 4:04 mark of the period.

Cook turned assists from Greg McKegg and Brett Thompson into his second goal of the season. Then the Otters scored twice in less than three minutes late in the period to take a 3-1 lead into the intermission.

Rookie winger Sondre Olden scored his team-leading fifth goal of the season, this one on the power play, on assists from Connor Brown and Kris Grant to snap the 1-1 tie with 5:31 left in the first. Then first-round pick Stephen Harper scored his second goal on an assist from Brown with 2:14 left in the period.

But things fell apart for the Otters in the second, as the IceDogs scored four goals to take a 5-3 lead.

Agozzino scored his second goal of the night, this time with the man advantage, at the 6:42 mark. Then the IceDogs capitalized on sloppy play from the Otters’ power play to take a two-goal lead.

Freddie Hamilton scored short-handed on an assist from David Pacan with 6:33 left in the period. Then a mix-up in front of Otters goaltender Tyson Teichmann led to Strome’s short-handed goal 10 seconds later. Erie rebounded early in the third with a short-handed goal, as Thompson and McKegg teamed to pull the Otters within 5-4 at the 2:45 mark while the IceDogs were on a 5-minute power play. But the IceDogs responded on the same power play, with Dougie Hamilton scoring 57 seconds later.

- Victor Fernandes

Ramis Sadikov’s season debut should take place tonight. It can’t arrive soon enough.

The struggles for the Erie Otters’ young, injury-plagued defense continued from the start Friday night in a 5-1 loss to the Plymouth Whalers in front of 2,158 at Tullio Arena on Friday night.

The Whalers scored on the power play 3:45 into the games to spark a three-goal barrage in the opening period. The Otters (1-9-0-0), which have lost five straight, has allowed at least four goals in all 10 games. They rank last in the OHL with 58 goals against (5.8 per game).

Tom Wilson scored his first goal of the season on Rickard Rakell and Garrett Meurs. Then at the 12:30 mark of the period, Wilson assisted on Mitchell Heard’s team-leading seventh goal. Heard scored off a rebound, with highly touted rookie J.T. Miller also earning an assist on the play.

Plymouth capped the decisive scoring barrage with a goal at the 17:47 mark, as Meurs redirected Dario Trutmann’s centering pass into his third goal and a 3-0 Whalers’ lead. The Otters gained a bit of momentum after killing off the Whalers’ nearly two-minute, two-man advantage to start the second.

The Whalers (5-4-2-0) stole momentum midway through the period. Jamie Devane turned Michael Whaley’s into a 4-0 lead 8:01 into the middle period. Three minutes later, Wilson scored his second goal on assists from Rakell and Danny Vanderwiel for a 5-0 lead. The Otters finally got on the scoreboard, as Brett Thompson scored on assists from Brett Cook and Greg McKegg with 6:08 left in the period.

Wilson (two goals, assist) and Rakell (three assists) led the Whalers with three points apiece. Meurs had two points while goaltender Matt Mahalak made 22 saves to improve to 3-2-0-0 on the season. Tyson Teichmann made 33 saves for the Otters.

- Victor Fernandes