Pickering travelled to Burlington to take on the Cougars and came away with a convincing 5-2 victory and another two points toward their playoff run. The Panthers dominated play for the first two periods, leading 3-0 after two periods on goals by Joey Zhang (PP) and Joseph Crngarov in the first and Owen Dunning in the second with a nice backhand goal after a pretty give and go pass from Blake Wright. For Dunning, it was his first in the past 12 games and his team-leading 15th this season.
Burlington broke Ian Michelone’s shutout 5 seconds into the third period on a power play and added another after the Panthers jumped to a 5-1 lead on goals from Joseph Cadorin and newcomer William Stewart. It was Stewart’s first as a Panther. Joey Zhang also played a pivotal role in the win, notching two assists, one on Crngarov’s goal in the first period and another on Cadorin’s tally in the third. A key factor in the game was Pickering’s PK that held off the Cougars for a four-minute power play midway through the third period to extinguish any hope that the Cougars had for a comeback.
Pickering definitely benefited from a full week of practice and a chance to integrate their four new players into the system, the return of Jason Zhou to the lineup, and the outstanding goaltending of Ian Michelone who made 42 saves and stoned the Cougars for much of the night. The Panthers checked Burlington into the ice and came up with a strong offensive and defensive game at the right time.
Pickering’s next game is an important one in Cobourg on Monday night, January 20th at 7:30 pm. The Cougars currently sit three points ahead of Pickering in 7th place in the standings with a game in hand.
