Pinder powers Soo to win at Powassan

NORTHERN ONTARIO JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE

NOJHL MEDIA UPDATE

Release Date: Sunday, Feb. 22, 2015

Pinder powers Soo to win at Powassan

POWASSAN – Matt Pinder of the Soo Thunderbirds scored a pair of special teams tallies to help lead his club to a 6-1 win over the Powassan Voodoos Sunday afternoon in a Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League contest at the Powassan Sportsplex.

The Thunderbirds also shut down the league’s hottest player, in the Voodoos Steve Harland, keeping the rookie forward off the score sheet for the first time since Halloween and thus snapping his impressive consecutive game point streak at 31.

Capitalizing on a power play opportunity, Powassan notched the game’s opening tally as Brendan D’Agostino connected during a man advantage at 13:38 of the first as he picked up his 16th goal of the season.

Sault Ste. Marie answered with an even strength effort off the stick of Nicolas Tassone less than two minutes later for his 29th marker of the campaign.

A turning point in the contest came late in the frame as the Thunderbirds’ Pinder struck for a shorthanded goal with just six seconds left in the session.

The T-Birds built on that momentum by tacking on two more tallies in the middle session to go up 4-1 after two periods of play.

Boris Katchouk added his 17th of the year seven minutes into the stanza to go along with two assists helped him extend a point streak to eight in a row.

Pinder added another special teams effort at 16:48 as he scored during a Soo power play to put the visitors up by three.

Tassone reached the 30-goal mark for the season five and a half minutes into the third to put his club in control of the game.

Devin Shell then capped off the one-sided victory for the Soo with a marker in the final minute.

Nicolas Sicoly also added two assists for the T-Birds in the triumph.

Shots on goal favoured the Thunderbirds 32-14 with Mario Culina picking up the win and Jack Ondrovic the loss.