SARNIA, Ontario – Nail Yakupov nearly beat the Erie Otters single-handedly Friday night.

But Anthony Luciani’s tiebreaking goal with 5 minutes, 16 seconds left in the game overcame Yakupov’s hat trick. Then Shawn Szydlowski capped the Otters’ 6-4 win in front of 3,490 at Sarnia Sports & Entertainment Centre by completing his fourth hat trick of the season.

The Otters (24-20-1-1) extended their winning streak to four games and moved their record four games above the .500 mark for the first time this season. Yakupov, the OHL’s highest-scoring rookie, tried his best to keep that from happening with his first career three-goal game.

The Otters built a 3-0 second-period lead on two goals from Shawn Szydlowski and another from rookie Macaulay McDonnell. But Yakupov and Brandon Alderson scored 3½ minutes early in the second to pull the Sting (17-20-4-2) within a goal. Mike Cazzola scored 9:42 into the second to extend the Otters’ lead to 4-2. But Yakupov scored twice in the opening 6 minutes of the third to tie the score at 3.

But Luciani snapped the tie less than 9 minutes later. Then Szydlowski added an empty-net goal with a second left for his third goal and fourth point of the night. Yakupov also had four points. Luciani (goal, assist), Cazzola (goal, assist) and David Shields (two assists) had two points apiece for the Otters.

SUMMARY

Otters 6, Sting 4

Erie  2  2  2  —  6

Sarnia  0  2  2  —  4

1^st Period — 1. Erie, Shawn Szydlowski 23 (Shields, Varone), :39. 2. Erie, Macaulay McDonnell 7 (Cazzola, Cook), 13:15. Penalties — Sarnia, bench minor (served by Pawlaczyk), :39; Shields (E) tripping, 8:56; Alderson (S) hooking, 19:11.

2^nd Period — 3. Erie, Szydlowski 24 (Luciani), 2:07. 4. Sarnia, Nail Yakupov 31 (Chiarlitti, Alderson), 5:33. 5. Sarnia, Brandon Alderson 11 (Yakupov, Peters), 8:54. 6. Erie, Mike Cazzola 12 (unassisted), 9:42. Penalties — McGuire (E) 5-min. fighting, 13:22; Flemington (S) 5-min. fighting, 13:22.

3^rd Period — 7. Sarnia, Yakupov 32 (Kerbashian, Francisco), :46. 8. Sarnia, Yakupov 33 (Galchenyuk), 6:01. 9. Erie, Anthony Luciani 17 (Szydlowski), 14:44. 10. Erie, Szydlowski 25 (unassisted), 19:59 (en). Penalties — Szydlowski (E) cross checking, 16:44.

Shots on goal — Erie, 15-13-12—40; Sarnia, 7-13-12—32.

Goaltenders — Erie, Ramis Sadikov 24-14-1-1 (32 shots, 28 saves); Sarnia, Troy Passingham 11-6-2-2 (39 shots, 34 saves).

Power plays — Erie (0-2), Sarnia (0-2).

Referees — Joe Monette, Brad Beer. Linesmen — Glenn Anderson, Chris Thornton.

Attendance — 3,490.

Three stars

* Nail Yakupov, Sting (3 goals, assist) ** Shawn Szydlowski, Otters (3 goals, assist) *** Anthony Luciani, Otters (GW goal, assist)

The Erie Otters were a shot off the post away from tying a decade-old franchise record.

The Otters scored 12 goals – the second-highest total in their 15-year history – in a 12-3 win against Barrie in front of 2,905 at Tullio Arena Friday night.

Shawn Szydlowski nearly scored No. 13 in the game’s final seconds, which would have tied the mark set in a 13-4 win against Windsor on March 5, 1998. But the shot glanced off the post.

Fifteen different Otters recorded points in the win, which snapped a two-game losing streak.

Anthony Luciani (two goals, assist), Mike Cazzola (goal, two assists), Szydlowski (goal, two assists) and Phil Varone (goal, two assists) led the Otters (21-20-1-1) with three points. Greg McKegg reached the 30-goal mark with two scores before taking the third period off to rest some nagging bumps and bruises. Brett Thompson, Brett Cook and Matthew Paton had a goal and assist apiece. Luke Cairns had two assists.

The Otters wasted no time in building a commanding 4-0 lead. They recorded the game’s first two shots on goal. McKegg and Luciani scored on both of them less than 3 minutes apart. McKegg opened the scoring 1:53 into the opening period. Luciani scored on the power play at the 4:09 mark.

McKegg also scored on the power play with two minutes left in the period. In between, rookie Johnny McGuire, who was recalled Thursday, scored his first OHL goal in his second career game. Rookie Mark Gazdic, who moved to wing from forward for the game, had an assist for his career point. The Otters scored all four goals on nine shots.

The onslaught continued in the second period, as the Otters scored six goals on 15 shots

Szydlowski, Macaulay McDonnell and Varone scored 2:19 apart early in the period. John Chartrand replaced rookie Josh Malecki in goal for the Colts following McDonnell’s goal.

Later in the period, Matthew Paton’s goal began a stretch of three straight goals in 4½ minutes. Thompson, acquired from Sault Ste. Marie on Monday, capped the surge with his first goal as an Otter. The Otters scored those 10 goals on 20 shots. They finished with 12 goals on 33 shots. Mackenzie Braid had two points for the Colts (8-29-2-2).

* News and notes: The Otters tied a franchise mark for the largest margin of victory, which was set in the 1998 win against Windsor and tied in a 10-1 win at Toronto St. Michael’s on Jan. 10, 1999. … Veteran defenseman David Shields also sat out the third to rest. … Cook set a new single-season career high with six goals. … Former Otter Jordan Coccimiglio, who was claimed off waivers by the Colts a week ago, was the second-line center. He also played on the power play and penalty kill.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Otters 12, Colts 3

Barrie  0  0  3  —  3

Erie  4  6  2  —  12

1^st Period — 1. Erie, Greg McKegg 29 (Cazzola), 1:53. 2. Erie, Anthony Luciani 14 (Shields, Cairns), 4:09 (pp). 3. Erie, Johnny McGuire 1 (Gazdic), 16:21. 4. Erie, McKegg 30 (Varone, Holden), 18:00 (pp). Penalties — Ashman (B) interference, 2:28; Shields (E) hooking, 12:14; Locke (B) interference, 12:40; Malecki (B) tripping (served by Scheifele), 16:54.

2^nd Period — 5. Erie, Shawn Szydlowski 21 (Varone, Grant), 5:21. 6. Macaulay McDonnell 6 (Cairns, Paton), 6:19. 7. Erie, Phil Varone 17 (Szydlowski), 7:40 (sh). 8. Erie, Matthew Paton 6 (Grant), 12:08. 9. Erie, Brett Cook 6 (Luciani, Szydlowski), 15:56 (pp). 10. Erie, Brett Thompson 26 (Holden, Cazzola), 16:40. Penalties — Holden (E) tripping, :10; Shields (E) slashing, 6:56; Barrie, too many men (served by Pearson), 9:08; McGuire (E) 5-min. fighting, 11:46; Lepkowski (B) 5-min. fighting, 11:46; Mort (B) holding, 14:37; Mort (B) slashing, 16:59.

3^rd Period — 11. Barrie, Tanner Pearson 9 (Devlin, Braid), 4:50 (pp). 12. Erie, Mike Cazzola 11 (Thompson), 8:51 (sh). 13. Erie, Luciani 15 (unassisted), 12:29. 14. Barrie, Mackenzie Braid 5 (Beyers), 13:59. 15. Barrie, Colin Behenna 22 (Bennett), 16:11. Penalties — Crisp (E) delay of game, 3:23; Pelech (E) tripping, 7:08.

Shots on goal — Barrie, 9-8-9—26; Erie, 10-15-8—33.

Goaltenders — Barrie, Josh Malecki 0-1-0-0 (12 shots, 6 saves), John Chartrand (21 shots, 15 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 21-14-1-1 (26 shots, 23 saves).

Power plays — Barrie (1-5), Erie (3-6).

Referees — Darren Price, Joe Celestin. Linesmen — Chris Thornton, Mike Harrington.

Attendance — 2,905.

Three stars

* Mike Cazzola, Otters (goal, 2 assists) ** Matthew Paton, Otters (goal, assist) *** Kris Grant, Otters (2 assists)

The Erie Otters have finished the first half of the season with a winning record.

Greg McKegg made sure of that.

The Otters captain redirected rookie Adam Pelech’s pass past Sudbury goaltender Alain Valiquette 1 minute, 2 seconds into overtime to seal Erie’s 3-2 win in front of 3,987 at Tullio Arena on Saturday night.

With the victory, the Otters head into the Christmas break with a 17-16-1-1 record.

“We know we can win now,” McKegg said. “We’ve beaten the best teams.”

The Otters controlled play in the opening period. They enjoyed continued stretches in the offensive zone.

But Valiquette stymied the Otters every time. Valiquette stopped all 12 shots he faced in the period.

Meanwhile, Otters goaltender Ramis Sadikov stopped all seven shots in the period.

Sadikov and Valiquette remained in the spotlight during the opening half of the second period.

But a faceoff win late in the period allowed the Wolves (11-20-2-0) to score the game’s first goal. Michael Sgarbossa deflected Ryan Hanes’ shot from the blue line past Sadikov with 7:25 left in the period. Sgarbossa set up the scoring play by winning the faceoff and then crashing the net. He has four goals and five points in three games since being acquired from Saginaw last week in the John McFarland trade.

Otters defenseman David Shields matched Sgarbossa’s goal less than four minutes later. His point shot slipped through Valiquette for Shields’ third goal of the season. McKegg and rookie Macaulay McDonnell assisted on the goal with 4:02 left in the period.

The teams headed into the third still tied at 1 – just like the Otters and Brampton did Friday night.

Unlike Erie’s 2-1 loss to the Battalion, the Otters took a one-goal lead on Derek Holden’s power-play goal 4:07 into the period. Anthony Luciani and Phil Varone assisted on Holden’s third goal of the season.

Yet Sgarbossa’s second goal of the night and 12^th goal of the season – a rebound of his own shot in front of Sadikov – tied the score at 2 with 7:18 left. But McKegg’s heroics ended the first half on a high note.

“It’s definitely huge,” Shields said. “We’re coming back hard (in the second half).”

* News and notes: The Otters finish the half tied for fifth in the Western Conference. … Sadikov joins Team Russia on Sunday in Jamestown, N.Y., for an evaluation camp leading into the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship, which begins Dec. 26 in Buffalo. If Sadikov makes the team, the Otters would be without him for the start of the second half. The Otters return to action Dec. 28 in Plymouth. … Defenseman Brady Austin, who missed Friday’s game, replaced winger Jordan Coccimiglio in the lineup. … Coach Robbie Ftorek’s Hoses team defeated assistant coach Peter Sidorkiewicz’s Guns 9-3 in the inaugural Guns & Hoses Charity Hockey Game at Tullio on Saturday. Team captains John Sorge (Hoses) and Rick Skonieczka (Guns) from the game, which benefited the Children’s Advocacy Center of Erie County, dropped a ceremonial first puck before the Otters’ game.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Otters 3, Wolves 2 (OT)

Sudbury  0  1  1  0  —  2

Erie  0  1  1  1  —  3

1^st Period — None. Penalties — Erie, too many men (served by McDonnell), 3:46; Silk (S) boarding, 3:46; Dodero (S) hooking, 5:38; Marchese (E) unsportsmanlike conduct, 10:59; Silk (S) unsportsmanlike conduct, 10:59; Appio (E) 5-min. fighting, 11:01; Hanes (S) 5-min. fighting, 11:01; Cook (E) interference, 11:25; Sefton (S) slashing, 11:25; McKegg (E) interference, 15:32; Sefton (S) high sticking, 19:31.

2^nd Period — 1. Sudbury, Michael Sgarbossa 11 (Hanes, Jambrosich), 12:35. 2. Erie, David Shields 3 (McKegg, McDonnell), 15:58. Penalties — Pelech (E) tripping, 1:58.

3^rd Period — 3. Erie, Derek Holden 3 (Luciani, Varone), 4:07 (pp). 4. Sudbury, Sgarbossa 12 (Lomas), 12:42. Penalties — Sgarbossa (S) hooking, 3:55; Sgarbossa (S) high sticking, 7:34; Appio (E) 5-min. fighting, 15:07; Sefton (S) 5-min. fighting, 15:07.

Overtime — 5. Erie, Greg McKegg 25 (Pelech), 1:02. Penalties — None.

Shots on goal — Sudbury, 7-12-4-0—23; Erie, 12-13-1—34.

Goaltenders — Sudbury, Alain Valiquette 11-15-2-0 (34 shots, 31 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 17-12-1-1 (23 shots, 21 saves).

Power plays — Sudbury (0-2), Erie (1-4).

Referees — Bob Langdon, Dave Gauthier. Linesmen — Daryl Wolfe, Jesse Wilmot.

Attendance — 3,987.

Three stars

* Greg McKegg, Otters (GW goal, assist) ** David Shields, Otters (goal) *** Michael Sgarbossa, Wolves (2 goals)

The Brampton Battalion stuck to their defensive plan game on Friday night.

Then they capitalized on a late chance, as Barclay Goodrow scored with 1 minute, 23 seconds left in the game to steal a 2-1 win from the Erie Otters in front of 3,393 at Tullio Arena.

After a first period that featured several scoring chances for each team but not goals, the Battalion (13-14-0-4) jumped on the Otters (16-16-1-1) early in the second. Stephon Thorne snapped the scoreless tie 23 seconds into the period on assists from Matt MacLeod and goaltender Matej Machovsky.

But the Otters responded a minute later, as rookie winger Macaulay McDonnell poked a rebound past Machovsky to tie the score at 1. Linemates Shawn Szydlowski and Greg McKegg assisted on the goal. After that, the Battalion stifled Erie’s attack. The Otters went a stretch of 13 minutes in the period without a shot. Brampton outshot the Otters 15-3 in the period. The Otters managed to outshoot Brampton 12-11 in the third period, but failed to capitalize on quality scoring chances.

Goodrow didn’t miss on his final attempt, as his wrist from in front trickled through Otters goaltender Ramis Sadikov for the winning goal. Sadikov, who set a franchise record with his 24^th straight start, finished with 33 saves. Machovsky stopped 26-of-27 shots for the Battalion.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Battalion 2, Otters 1

Brampton  0  1  1  —  2

Erie  0  1  0  —  1

1^st Period — None. Penalties — Moore (B) slashing, 12:01.

2^nd Period — 1. Brampton, Stephon Thorne 5 (MacLeod, Machovsky), :23. 2. Erie, Macaulay McDonnell 5 (Szydlowski, McKegg), 1:23. Penalties — Szydlowski (E) checking from behind, 11:21; Carrick (B) hooking, 12:23; Carrick (B) tripping, 18:24.

3^rd Period — 3. Brampton, Barclay Goodrow 9 (Carrick, Watters), 18:37. Penalties — Varone (E) tripping, 1:13; Lane (B) hooking, 2:11; Abraham (B) tripping, 10:49.

Shots on goal — Brampton, 9-15-11—35; Erie, 12-3-12—27.

Goaltenders — Brampton, Matej Machovsky 4-2-0-1 (27 shots, 26 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 16-12-1-1 (35 shots, 33 saves).

Power plays — Brampton (0-2), Erie (0-5).

Referees — Mike Bolibruck, Brad Beer. Linesmen — Daryl Wolfe, Jesse Wilmot.

Attendance — 3,393.

Three stars

* Barclay Goodrow, Battalion (GW goal) ** Ramis Sadikov, Otters (33 saves) *** Matej Machovsky, Battalion (26 saves)

The Erie Otters found a new heartbreaking way to lose Friday night.

One minute, Greg McKegg appeared to score the tying goal as time expired. The next minute, the video replay judge disallowed the goal, which sealed the Otters’ 4-3 loss to Saginaw at Tullio Arena.

Moments earlier, a second or two extra appeared to run off the clock after officials called a slashing penalty on Spirit defenseman Matt Ashman. The officials chose not to replace that time, leaving the Otters (7-13-1-0) with two seconds left on the clock.

McKegg scored off a rebound of Shawn Szydlowski’s shot as the green light, which signifies the end of the game, emerged. Seconds later, the green light was replaced by the red light, which signifies a goal.

After a review that lasted a few minutes, the crowd of 2,869 erupted into a chorus of

Sherry Bassin (Contributed/Erie Otters)

boos. Otters coach Robbie Ftorek argued vehemently with the officials for several minutes. Meanwhile, Sherry Bassin, Otters managing partner and general manager, voiced his displeasure long after the game ended. Then afterwards, Bassin and other club officials watched footage of the game’s final seconds. They determined the referees should have set the clock at 3.6 seconds, Bassin said.

According to Bassin, off-ice officials told Shawn Waskiewicz, Otters assistant general manager, that they didn’t hear the whistle over the crowd noise. At that point, Bassin said, the off-ice officials should have discussed the situation with the referees. “We got suckered in our own building for time,” Bassin said.

Video of the controversial goal was inconclusive, Bassin said.

Meanwhile, the Spirit (14-4-1-1) celebrated a win that snapped a two-game losing streak.

The teams battled to a scoreless tie for the first half of the opening period. Then Spirit center Michael Sgarbossa snuck a rebound past goaltender Ramis Sadikov for a 1-0 lead with 6:18 left in the period.

The Spirit extended the lead to 2-0 on a rebound, as Mathew Sisca fired a shot over a fallen Sadikov for Sisca’s sixth goal of the season. Meanwhile, the Otters squandered several scoring chances, headlined by Anthony Luciani’s wrist shot off the left post during a power play late in the period.

Yet the Otters capitalized on the power play 3:59 into the second, as defenseman Tyler Hostetter floated a shot from the point past Spirit goaltender Tadeas Galansky to slice Saginaw’s lead to 2-1.

That sparked a three-goal outburst that built a 3-2 lead heading to the third period. Rookie Macaulay McDonnell and Jordan Coccimiglio scored 1:47 apart late in the period. McDonnell poked a rebound through Galansky to tie the score at 2 with 6:11 left. Coccimiglio deflected defenseman Derek Holden’s shot from the blue line past Galansky to snap the tie with 4:36 remaining.

Sadikov stymied a Spirit attack that failed to score on all 18 shots on goal in the period. But the Spirit tied the score at 3 at the 7:16 mark of the third on Josh Shalla’s 14^th goal of the season. Kantor then turned Ivan Telegin’s pinpoint cross-crease pass into the eventual winning goal.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Spirit 4, Otters 3

Saginaw  2  0  2  —  4

Erie  0  3  0  —  3

1^st Period — 1. Saginaw, Michael Sgarbossa 5 (Saad), 13:42. 2. Saginaw, Mathew Sisca 6 (Szwarz, Shalla), 19:26. Penalties — Crisp (E) 5-min. fighting, 10:59; Kea (E) 5-min. fighting, 10:59; Camara (S) interference, 15:15.

2^nd Period — 3. Erie, Tyler Hostetter 4 (Cairns, Marchese), 3:59 (pp). 4. Erie, Macaulay McDonnell 4 (Marchese, Hostetter), 13:49. 5. Erie, Jordan Coccimiglio 3 (Holden, Paton), 15:24. Penalties — Kantor (S) goaltender interference, :53; Kantor (S) interference, 3:38; Appio (E) 5-min. fighting, 11:43; Kantor (S) 5-min. fighting, 11:43.

3^rd Period — 6. Saginaw, Josh Shalla 14 (Szwarz, Sisca), 7:16. 7. Saginaw, Michael Kantor 7 (Telegin, Trocheck), 17:15. Penalties — Ashman (S) slashing, 19:58.

Shots on goal — Saginaw, 8-18-8—34; Erie, 12-13-10—35.

Goaltenders — Saginaw, Tadeas Galansky 5-0-1-0 (35 shots, 32 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 7-10-1-0 (34 shots, 30 saves).

Power plays — Saginaw (0-0), Erie (1-4).

Referees — Darren Price, Chris Carnegie. Linesmen — Fraser McIntire, Sean Pindar.

Attendance — 2,869.

Three stars

* Josh Shalla, Spirit (goal, assist) ** Jordan Coccimiglio, Otters (goal) *** Tyler Hostetter, Otters (goal, assist)

The Erie Otters’ second winning streak of the season will have to wait a little longer.

Owen Sound scored twice early in the third period to hand the Otters a 3-2 loss at Tullio Arena on Saturday night and salvage a split of the two-game series in Erie. The Otters won 4-0 on Friday night.

“We didn’t get the job done,” Otters coach Robbie Ftorek said. “It’s unfortunate.”

The game immediately turned into a battle between Otters goaltender Ramis Sadikov and Owen Sound backup Jordan Binnington. Both teams had several quality scoring opportunities in the first period. But Sadikov made 11 saves and Binnington stopped 10 to maintain a scoreless tie.

Both made several key saves in the opening half of the second period. But the Attack enjoyed the first fortunate bounce of the period to take a 1-0 lead at the 11:53 mark.

Sadikov stopped defenseman Keevin Cutting’s shot from the left wing. But the puck caromed off Attack winger Andrew Fritsch’s body in front and into the net for the goal. Meanwhile, the Otters had shots from Tyler Hostetter and rookie Chris Marchese bounce off posts. Yet less than two minutes after Fritsch’s goal, Otters center Mike Cazzola scored during a delayed penalty to tie the score at 1.

Hostetter and rookie winger Macaulay McDonnell assisted on Cazzola’s ninth goal of the season, which momentarily tied linemate Greg McKegg for the team lead. But Cazzola and Hostetter assisted on McKegg’s 10^th goal of the season 2:05 later, which handed the Otters a 2-1 lead. Sadikov stopped 15-of-16 shots in the period to carry that one-goal advantage into the third.

The Attack tied the score at 2 on Joey Hishon’s ninth goal of the season, off assists from Fritsch and Garrett Wilson, three minutes into the third. Then 5:30 into the period, Wilson scored his Ontario Hockey League-leading 18^th goal of the season to hand the Attack their first lead of the game at 5-3.

The Otters failed on a 5-on-3 for a full minute midway through the period. Hostetter seemed to score the tying goal with 8:30 left, as his shot from the point appeared to hit the back post inside the upper portion of the net and bounce out. But the referee disallowed the goal. The video replay judge upheld the ruling.

The Otters finished with only three shots on goal in the period and 24 for the game. Owen Sound had 35 shots. Fritsch led the Attack with a goal and two assists. Wilson added two points. Hostetter and Cazzola had two points apiece for the Otters while Sadikov made 32 saves.

* News and notes: The Otters lost veteran winger Shawn Szydlowski to an undisclosed injury while skating through a rut during pregame warm-up. The Otters already were without right wing Anthony Luciani (broken right wrist). … Defenseman Brady Austin, who has replaced the departed Mitch Gaulton in the rotation, left the game in the first period with an apparent injury.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Attack 3, Otters 2

Owen Sound  0  1  2  —  3

Erie  0  2  0  —  2

1^st Period — None. Penalties — Appio (E) 5-min. fighting, 8:31; Heelis (O) 5-min. fighting, 8:31; Varone (E) slashing, 16:52; Wilson (O) roughing, 16:52; Shaw (O) roughing, 18:30. Missed penalty shot — Cazzola (E) 17:13.

2^nd Period — 1. Owen Sound, Andrew Fritsch 4 (Cutting), 11:53. 2. Erie, Mike Cazzola 9 (Hostetter, McDonnell), 13:02. 3. Erie, Greg McKegg 10 (Cazzola, Hostetter), 15:07. Penalties — Shields (E) tripping, 8:02; Blacker (O) tripping, 8:48; Zweep (O) interference, 15:53.

3^rd Period — 4. Owen Sound, Joey Hishon 9 (Fritsch, Wilson), 3:00. 5. Owen Sound, Garrett Wilson 18 (Blacker, Fritsch), 5:30. Penalties — Heelis (O) checking to the head, :13; Shaw (O) high sticking, 6:38; Heelis (O) tripping, 7:38.

Shots on goal — Owen Sound, 11-16-8—35; Erie, 10-11-3—24.

Goaltenders — Owen Sound, Jordan Binnington 3-2-0-1 (24 shots, 22 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 5-9-1-0 (35 shots, 32 saves).

Power plays — Owen Sound (0-1), Erie (0-6).

Referees — Darcy Burchell, Chris Carnegie. Linesmen — Matthew Traub, Darryl Wolfe.

Attendance — 3,807.

Three stars

* Andrew Fritsch, Attack (goal, 2 assists) ** Mike Cazzola, Otters (goal, assist) *** David Shields, Otters (good defense)

The Erie Otters are close on the scoreboard. But they are falling behind in the standings.

The Otters fell to Oshawa 4-2 in front of 2,865 at Tullio Arena Saturday night, their second straight loss and ninth in the past 10 games. Erie (4-11-1-0) also has nine times by two goals or fewer.

“At least we’re in every game,” winger Shawn Szydlowski said. “At least we’re not getting blown out.”

The Generals (8-3-1-2), the highest-scoring team in the Eastern Conference and second highest overall, wasted little time in gaining the lead. Andy Andreoff scored his seventh goal of the season, off an assist from Lucas Lessio, to take a 1-0 lead 1:49 into the opening period. Meanwhile, the Otters’ power play, which ranks among the league leaders, failed on all three chances with the man advantage in the period.

The Otters finally solved Generals backup goaltender Kevin Bailie midway through the second period, as the No. 1 line of Mike Cazzola, Greg McKegg and Szydlowski combined to tie the score at 1. The Generals regained the lead at 2-1 on Andreoff’s second goal of the night 1:05 after Szydlowski’s goal. But rookie Macaulay McDonnell tied the score at 2 with 5:10 left in the period.

In the period’s waning moments, the Otters failed to capitalize on a puck in the crease. On Oshawa’s ensuing rush down ice, Jeff Brown pushed a rebound in the crease past Otters goaltender Ramis Sadikov for Brown’s first goal of the season and a 3-2 Generals’ lead.

That lead stood up in the third period, as Bailie faced only six shots he faced to earn his first win of the season. The Otters failed on three power-play opportunities in the third, including an early 5-on-3 for nearly two minutes, and finished the game 0-for-7.

With Sadikov on the bench for an extra attacker during a 6-on-4 power play late in the game, Generals winger Alain Berger sealed the Otters’ fate with a short-handed, empty-net goal.

Andreoff and Berger (goal, assist) led the Generals’ attack. Sadikov made 27 saves for the Otters.

* News and notes: Otters winger Anthony Luciani will have the cast on his injured right wrist removed on Tuesday. He hopes to learn a return date on that day. … The Generals played without leading scorer Christian Thomas (11 goals, 19 points), who was suspended because of a match penalty for slew footing on Friday against Belleville. … Aaron Beaton, a longtime Otters and Mercyhurst College fan who died Sept. 25 because of complications from a stroke, was honored in a pregame ceremony. Members from local youth, high school and college teams, including Lakers forwards Meghan Agosta and Brandon Coccimiglio, formed a circle at center ice and raised their sticks in the air during a moment of silence.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Generals 4, Otters 2

Oshawa  1  2  1  —  4

Erie  0  2  0  —  2

1^st Period — 1. Oshawa, Andy Andreoff 7 (Lessio), 1:49. Penalties — Sabourin (O) hooking, 3:13; Lessio (O) cross checking, 10:30; Szydlowski (E) hooking, 12:40. Penalties — McKegg (E) no goal, 11:02; Valentine (O) hooking, 17:04.

2^nd Period — 2. Erie, Shawn Szydlowski 7 (McKegg, Cazzola), 10:40. 3. Oshawa, Andreoff 8 (McDowell, Jensen), 11:45. 4. Erie, Macaulay McDonnell 3 (Holden, Broll), 14:50. 5. Oshawa, Jeff Brown 1 (Jenner, Berger), 18:53. Penalties — Cook (E) 5-min. fighting, 2:44; Clark (O) 5-min. fighting, 2:44; Valentine (O) slashing, 5:28; McKegg (E) holding the stick, 5:37.

3^rd Period — 8. Oshawa, Alain Berger 7 (Labardo), 18:39 (sh-en). Penalties — Clark (O) tripping, 6:19; Valentine (O) checking from behind, 6:29; Suellentrop (O) hooking, 17:30.

Shots on goal — Oshawa, 8-11-12—31; Erie, 10-11-6—27.

Goaltenders — Oshawa, Kevin Bailie 1-1-0-1 (27 shots, 25 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 4-8-1-0 (30 shots, 27 saves).

Power plays — Oshawa (0-2), Erie (0-7).

Referees — Joel Washkurak, Dave Lewis. Linesmen — Mike Harrington, Sean Pindar.

Attendance — 2,865.

Three stars

* Andy Andreoff, Generals (2 goals) ** Macaulay McDonnell, Otters (goal) *** Adam Pelech, Otters (defense)

The struggles continued for the reeling Erie Otters on Saturday night.

Shane Prince had two goals and two assists, including a decisive short-handed goal late in the second period, to lead the Ottawa 67’s past the Otters 6-3 in front of 3,345 at Tullio Arena Saturday night.

The 67’s (5-3-0-0) handed the Otters (3-7-1-0) their season-high fifth straight loss.

After a quiet first period that featured few quality scoring chances for either team, the Otters endured one of their customary lulls that have hurt them this season. They appeared helpless as the 67’s scored three unanswered goals in a span of 4 minutes, 18 seconds early in the second period.

Jon Carnevale and Thomas Nesbitt scored 46 seconds apart to hand the 67’s a 2-0 lead. Cody Lindsay followed with his fifth goal of the season for a 3-0 Ottawa lead. The Otters seemed to have little chance to erase their three-goal deficit. But a 5-minute major penalty for kneeing opened the door for the Otters.

The Otters scored twice on the extended man advantage to pull within 3-2, even though forwards Mike Cazzola and Shawn Szydlowski – two-thirds of the team’s No. 1 line – were in the dressing room serving 10-minute misconducts stemming from Nesbitt’s hit on Cazzola. Nesbitt also earned a game misconduct.

Rookie Luke Cairns scored his first Ontario Hockey League goal on assists from David Broll and Mitch Gaulton with 2:14 left in the second. Then Tyler Hostetter scored an unassisted goal 37 seconds later.

But the Otters lost some momentum after a miscue at the 67’s blue line led to Prince’s short-handed goal with 10.8 seconds left in the period, which handed Ottawa a 4-2 lead. Ottawa’s Ryan Martindale began the third with another short-handed goal for a 5-2 lead.

Rookie Macaulay McDonnell provided the Otters with some life with his first OHL goal – a shot from the left wing that moved the Otters within 5-3 at the 3:36 mark of the period. Scott Mitchell assisted on the goal for his first career point. Nesbitt and Carnevale had a goal and assist for the 67’s. Ramis Sadikov allowed five goals on 38 shots in a losing effort. Petr Mrazek had 30 saves for the 67’s.

* News and notes: Gaulton headed to the dressing room in the third after aggravating a nagging hand injury. The Otters already are without fellow veterans Brett Cook and David Shields and rookie Connor Crisp on the blue line. … Given their lack of healthy depth on defense, the Otters used center Greg McKegg on the point during power plays late in the game.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

67’s 6, Otters 3

Ottawa  0  4  2  —  6

Erie  0  2  1  —  3

1^st Period — 1. None. Penalties — Szydlowski (E) 5-min. fighting, :03; Smith (O) 5-min. fighting, :03; Szydlowski (E) 10-min. misconduct, :03; Broll (E) slashing, 2:06; Zanetti (O) unsportsmanlike conduct, 2:06; Pelech (E) kneeing, 5:36; Monahan (O) holding, 17:04; Martindale (O) interference, 19:28.

2^nd Period — 1. Ottawa, Jon Carnevale 2 (Janes, Graovac), 3:10. 2. Ottawa, Thomas Nesbitt 3 (Prince, Zanetti), 3:56. 3. Ottawa, Cody Lindsay 5 (Nesbitt, Prince), 7:28. 4. Erie, Luke Cairns 1 (Gaulton, Broll), 17:46. 5. Erie, Tyler Hostetter 3 (unassisted), 18:23 (pp). 6. Ottawa, Shane Prince 3 (unassisted), 19:49 (sh). Penalties — McDonnell (E) hooking, 5:10; Mitchell (E) 5-min. fighting, 7:30; Hanes (O) 5-min. fighting, 7:30; Gibbons (O) cross checking, 11:23; Zanetti (O) slashing, 13:40; Nesbitt (O) 5-min. kneeing (served by Janes), 17:30; Szydlowski (E) 10-min. misconduct, 17:30; Cazzola (E) 10-min. misconduct, 17:30; Nesbitt (O) game misconduct, 17:30.

3^rd Period — 7. Ottawa, Ryan Martindale 5 (Toffoli), 2:22 (sh). 8. Erie, Macaulay McDonnell 1 (Mitchell), 3:36. 9. Ottawa, Prince 3 (Carnevale, Sedlak), 19:08. Penalties — Ceci (O) delay of game, 4:05; Smith (O) interference, 12:56; McKegg (E) boarding, 14:03.

Shots on goal — Ottawa, 11-9-19—39; Erie, 8-15-10—33.

Goaltenders — Ottawa, Petr Mrazek 2-3-0-0 (33 shots, 30 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 3-5-1-0 (38 shots, 33 saves).

Power plays — Ottawa (0-3), Erie (2-7).

Referees — Mike Bolibruck, Scott Ferguson. Linesmen — Rick Janco, Mike Harrington.

Attendance — 3,345.

Three stars

* Shane Prince, 67’s (2 goals, 2 assists) ** Ryan Martindale, 67’s (SH goal) *** Macaulay McDonnell, Otters (1^st OHL goal)

The Erie Otters had a two-goal lead against Kitchener on Saturday night.

But as usual, it didn’t last long. The Rangers made sure of that.

The Rangers scored five unanswered goals in the second and third periods to erase that two-goal deficit and hand the Otters a 6-5 loss in front of 3,082 at Tullio Arena. The Rangers (5-1-0-0) have won 10 straight games against the Otters (3-4-0-0) dating back to the start of the 2009-10 OHL season. Yet the Otters enjoyed a strong start against their Midwest Division rival.

Rookie center Chris Marchese’s first career goal – a power-play score off assists from Tyler Hostetter and Macaulay McDonnell – snapped the scoreless tie 12:59 into the opening period.

Kitchener’s Matthew Tipoff’s tied the score 1:12 later on assists from Tobias Rieder and Ryan Murphy, who tallied his league-best 10^th assist and 14^th point of the season. But the Otters took a 2-1 lead into the first intermission after Mike Cazzola scored his fourth goal of the season with 23 seconds left in the period.

Greg McKegg’s rebound goal – his team-leading fifth of the season – handed the Otters a 3-1 lead 5 minutes into the second. Yet the Rangers overpowered the Otters for three goals in less than two minutes.

Kitchener scored every goal by outmuscling Erie defenders for rebounds in front of goaltender Ramis Sadikov. Rieder scored his fifth goal of the season at the 10:48 mark to slice the Otters’ lead to 3-2.

Then Julian Melchiori and Andrew Crescenzi followed with goals 22 seconds apart to turn that one-goal deficit into a 4-3 Rangers lead heading to the third. Kitchener scored all three goals on eight shots. The Rangers extended their goal-scoring streak to four 1:05 into the third, as Jason Akeson scored on assists from rookie Matia Marcantuoni and Gabriel Landeskog for a 5-3 Rangers lead.

The streak reached five goals with 7:44 left, as Rieder stole the puck from Hostetter at the Otters’ blue line and scored unassisted for a 6-3 lead. The Otters finally responded on Jordan Coccimiglio’s goal with 6:08 left in regulation. Rookie Luke Cairns assisted on the goal for his OHL point. Shawn Szydlowski scored with Sadikov on the bench for an extra attacker with 1:45 left to pull the Otters within 6-5 – one of their 16 shots in the period. The Otters outshot Kitchener 38-27.

But the Otters scored the equalizer a second or two after the final buzzer sounded. Rieder led the Rangers with two goals and an assist. Akeson and Tipoff had a goal and assist apiece for the Rangers. McKegg and Szydlowski had two points apiece for the Otters.

* News and notes: Otters winger Anthony Luciani remained out of the lineup with an undisclosed injury, as did defenseman Brett Cook (undisclosed injury) and rookie center Connor Crisp (concussion). … The Otters and Rangers meet again on Monday at 1 p.m. in Kitchener.

- Victor Fernandes

SUMMARY

Rangers 6, Otters 5

Kitchener  1  3  2  —  6

Erie  2  1  2  —  5

1^st Period — 1. Erie, Chris Marchese 1 (Hostetter, McDonnell), 12:59 (pp). 2. Kitchener, Matthew Tipoff 4 (Rieder, Murphy), 14:11. 3. Erie, Mike Cazzola 4 (Szydlowski, McKegg), 19:37. Penalties — Pelech (E) tripping, 3:18; Melchiori (K) delay of game, 11:47; Thomson (K) hooking, 14:34.

2^nd Period — 4. Erie, Greg McKegg 5 (Cazzola, Pelech), 5:00. 5. Kitchener, Tobias Rieder 5 (Doornbosch, Tipoff), 10:48. 6. Kitchener, Julian Melchiori 1 (Catenacci, Akeson), 11:47. 7. Kitchener, Andrew Crescenzi 3 (Randell, Thomson), 12:19. Penalties — Austin (E) slashing, 2:39; Grant (E) hooking, 10:09; Gaulton (E) tripping, 12:26; Doornbosch (K) interference, 14:19; Appio (E) checking from behind, 18:00; Cazzola (E) hooking, 19:53.

3^rd Period — 8. Kitchener, Jason Akeson 4 (Marcantuoni, Landeskog), 1:05 (pp). 9. Kitchener, Rieder 6 (unassisted), 12:16. 10. Erie, Jordan Coccimiglio 2 (Cairns), 13:52. 11. Erie, Shawn Szydlowski 3 (McKegg, Cazzola), 18:15. Penalties — Melchiori (K) holding, 7:08; Appio (E) interference, 14:05; Marcantuoni (K) high sticking, 16:13.

Shots on goal — Kitchener, 13-8-6—27; Erie, 10-12-16—38.

Goaltenders — Kitchener, Brandon Maxwell 4-1-0-0 (38 shots, 33 saves); Erie, Ramis Sadikov 3-3-0-0 (27 shots, 21 saves).

Power plays — Kitchener (1-7), Erie (1-5).

Referees — Ryan Carroll, Seth Ferguson. Linesmen — Mike Harrington, Sean Pindar.

Attendance — 3,082.

Three stars

* Jason Akeson, Rangers (goal, assist) ** Greg McKegg, Otters (2 assists) *** Chris Marchese, Otters (first OHL goal)