OHL Preview: Otters vs. Attack

One of seven games on the OHL schedule for this Friday evening will see the Erie Otters visit conference rivals, the Owen Sound Attack, in a 7:30 p.m. matchup, the first of two such meetings in as many days.

Tonight’s game is the fourth of the month for the Owen Sound Attack, and the third game of the month for the Erie Otters. Owen Sound is coming off a 4-3 loss to London on March 6 and is 1-0-0-2 in the month of March. Erie looks to build on a recent 5-4 victory over Windsor on March 2 after dropping a 7-2 decision to Plymouth the day before.

Erie is tenth in the Western Conference and second-last overall in the OHL. The Otters have 44 points and a record of 18-37-3-5. They have the lowest goals-for in the conference and the highest goals-against in the conference and are 2-8-0-0 in their last ten games.

Owen Sound sits third in the Western Conference and tied for third overall in the OHL, with 84 points and a 39-18-1-5 record. They have the lowest goals-against in the league (155) and most penalty minutes (1173) and are 6-2-0-2 in their last ten games.

Otters captain Connor Brown leads his team across the board in goals (26), assists (40) and points (66). Fourteen of his 26 goals, or 54%, have come on the power play.

Center J.P. Labardo has 23 goals and 38 assists for 61 points in 62 games, and rookie center Connor McDavid has 60 points (25-35) in 58 games with the Otters. Center Connor Crisp leads the team with 130 penalty minutes.

Erie’s main netminder this season – aside from when he was downed by a concussion – has been Oscar Dansk, a 2012 draft pick of the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets. Dansk has appeared in 38 games for the Otters and has a 4.13 GAA and .889 save percentage, having allowed 149 goals against on 1,346 shots faced. Devin Williams has appeared in 30 games with a 4.53 GAA and .888 save percentage.

Center Dan Catenacci leads the Attack with 72 points (34-38) and 111 penalty minutes on the season. Right wing Cameron Brace has 32 goals and 31 assists for 63 points in 61 games, and defenseman Cody Ceci has 60 points on the season. Ceci’s point total includes 40 points from his time with Ottawa.

Jordan Binnington has appeared in 47 games for Owen Sound this season, winning 29 of them and carrying a 2.25 GAA and .931 save percentage. He has 1422 saves on 1528 shots faced this season. Brandon Hope, the Attack’s backup, has appeared in 18 games and has a 2.50 GAA and .919 save percentage.

Tonight’s game is the fifth of six meetings between the teams this season. Owen Sound won the first three meetings of the year by scores of 6-3, 6-1 and 6-1 before the Otters took the most recent meeting on January 9 by a score of 4-3. Following tonight’s game, the teams meet once more in Owen Sound on Saturday evening.

The Otters have four games remaining on the regular schedule after tonight. After Saturday’s matchup with Owen Sound, they’ll host London on March 13 before a home-and-home with Guelph to close out the year.

After tonight’s game, Owen Sound also has four games remaining on the regular season schedule. They’ll face the Otters again on Saturday evening before visiting Windsor and Sarnia, then close the season at home against the Sting.