OHL Preview: Ottawa vs. Peterborough

The Peterborough Petes and Ottawa 67’s finish out the month of February with a match-up tonight at 7:05 p.m. in one of four games on the OHL schedule.

The teams are ninth and tenth in the Eastern Conference, respectively. The Petes (21-32-3-4) have 49 points, while the 67’s (15-41-0-4) have 34 points on the season. Between them overall in the OHL are the Erie Otters, who have 42 points.

Peterborough, who is 5-5-0-0 in its last ten games, is coming off a pair of losses to Belleville and Oshawa. The team’s last win came on February 21, a 6-3 victory over the Generals, before they dropped a 5-2 decision to the Bulls and a 4-1 loss to Oshawa.

Ottawa is 2-8-0-0 in its last ten games and has lost seven consecutive games. The team’s last win came in an 8-5 victory over Windsor on February 9. Since then, the 67’s have suffered defeat at the hands of Belleville (three times), Barrie, Peterborough, Brampton, and Oshawa.

Petes center Brett Findlay leads the team with 39 points in 60 games this season; Findlay also leads the team in assists, with 24. Center Stephen Pierog leads the Petes in goals, with 16 in 59 games. Rookie Jonatan Tanus had 30 points (14-16) in 60 games this season, and Steven Trojanovic leads Petes defensemen with 26 points on the year.

For Ottawa, center Sean Monahan has been the story of the team with 69 points in 50 games. Monahan leads the team not only in goals (26) and points, but also in assists (43). Twelve of his 26 goals this season have come on the power play, and Monahan is ranked highly for the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.

Right winger Joseph Blandisi has 43 points in 55 games this season, including 18 points in as many games since he joined Ottawa. Rookie Dante Salituro, meanwhile, has 37 points (14-23) in 56 games.

Salituro ranks 8th in OHL rookies in points, while Tanus is ranked 14th in that same category.

Goaltending duties for the Petes have been split between Andrew D’Agostini and rookie Michael Giugovaz. D’Agostini is 12-16-1-3 on the year, has a 3.34 GAA and .913 save percentage and has stopped 1,151 of 1,261 shots faced. Giugovaz (’95), is 9-16-2-1 and has a 3.77 GAA and .898 save percentage.

Rookie Jacob Blair has appeared in 31 games for the 67’s this season. The 17-year-old has six wins and a 4.98 GAA on the season, with a .869 save percentage. Clint Windsor joined the 67’s after playing just a pair of games with the Steelheads; since then, he’s appeared in 28 games and has a 4.57 GAA and .893 save percentage.

Tonight’s game is the seventh of eight meetings between the teams this season. Peterborough has won four of the meetings this season, including both February games – a 10-6 win on the 6th, followed by a 5-1 victory on the 15th of this month. The teams will meet one last time this season, a matchup in Peterborough on March 10