Overtime stings Battalion
Alessandro Di Iorio’s second goal of the game 45 seconds into overtime gave the Sarnia Sting a 6-5 Ontario Hockey League victory Sunday over the North Bay Battalion, foiling a furious late rally by the Troops.
Easton Walos had one goal and one assist, and Jack Van Volsen, Liam Beamish and Ben Pickell also scored for Sarnia, which trailed 2-1 after one period and led 3-2 after two.
Goaltender Charlie Larocque, acquired from the Battalion in an Oct. 2 trade, made 28 saves before a crowd of 3,449 at the Progressive Auto Sales Arena. Sarnia has a won-lost-extended record of 6-8-4 for 16 points, fifth in the West Division.
Di Iorio, the second overall pick in the 2024 OHL Priority Selection from the Vaughan Kings U16s, made his season debut after being injured in a 7-2 preseason loss to the Battalion at Midland, Ont., on Sept. 5.
Lirim Amidovski scored two goals for North Bay, and Evgeny Dubrovtsev contributed one goal and two assists. Shamar Moses and Ihnat Pazii also scored, while goaltender Mike McIvor faced 25 shots.
The Battalion, 9-9-1 for 19 points, third in the Central Division, completed a road trip of three games in as many days with a record of 1-1-1. The Troops, who drilled the Saginaw Spirit 7-1 Saturday night after a 9-3 loss Friday night to the Flint Firebirds, faced a Sting team that rested Saturday.
North Bay trailed 5-3 before Sarnia’s Jordan Bax and Mitch Young were banished for high-sticking and crosschecking respectively at 17:38 of the third period. With McIvor on the bench for a sixth attacker, Amidovski cut the deficit to one with his sixth goal of the season at 18:36, converting at the goalmouth on assists by Dubrovtsev and Nick Wellenreiter.
With McIvor still on the bench, Pazii precipitated overtime at 19:47, darting off the left side to net his fifth goal from Aaron Enright and Kent Greer.
Di Iorio ended it in the extra session when he wired the puck from the right circle on assists by Beckham Edwards and Young.
Pickell made it 4-2 for Sarnia at 4:50 of the third period before Moses replied with his fourth goal 51 seconds later. Di Iorio struck unassisted on a screened drive from the left circle at 12:13.
Van Volsen tied it 2-2 on the power play at 15:00 of the second period with his sixth goal. Lukas Fischer, who made a good play to keep the puck in the zone at the mid blue line, and Edwards assisted as Van Volsen fired a one-timer from the right circle.
Beamish struck at 17:54 on another power play, beating McIvor from the left faceoff dot. Matthew Manza and Walos had the assists on Beamish’s third goal.
The Battalion jumped to a quick 2-0 lead, sparked by Amidovski at 1:05 of the first period. He dashed down the left side, went to his forehand and put the puck off Larocque’s right shoulder. Bronson Ride and Nolan Laird assisted.
Dubrovtsev capitalized with the man advantage 44 seconds later after Bax was called for roughing at the goal stoppage. Dubrovtsev netted his third goal from the right dot, assisted by Brandt Harper and Arseny Pronin.
Walos replied on the power play at 10:29, scoring to the far side from high in the left circle. Young and Ryan Brown assisted on Walos’s eighth goal, tied with Edwards for the team lead.
The Battalion plays host to the Erie Otters at 7 p.m. Thursday on Rug-A-Roo Night.
BATTALION BULLETS: The Battalion went 2-for-7 on the power play. Sarnia was 3-for-3 … Opening lines included Ethan Procyszyn centring left winger Wellenreiter and right winger Parker Vaughan, Pazii centring left winger Laird and right winger Amidovski and Dubrovtsev pivoting left winger Pronin and right winger Ryder Carey. Quinn Kipfer centred left winger Jax Pereira and right winger Moses … Defence pairings saw Ride with Harper, Enright with Greer and Jonathan Kapageridis with Adrian Manzo … The Battalion was without Briir Long, Declan Gallivan, Cam Warren, Carter Kunopaski and Ryder Cali … Kipfer, a fifth-rounder in 2024 from the Huron Perth Lakers U16s, made his OHL debut after being called up from the junior B Stratford Warriors, with whom he has three goals and seven assists for 10 points in 13 games this season … Among the missing for Sarnia were Brenner Lammens and Kaden Aucoin, first- and second-round picks respectively in 2025. They played with Canada White at the six-team U17 World Challenge at Truro, N.S. It ended Saturday night with Warren’s Canada Red entry defeating Canada White 6-3 in the title game … Larocque made his third appearance and second start since joining Sarnia … The Sting’s Hughston Hurt returned from a one-game suspension after he drew a kneeing major and game misconduct in a 6-4 home-ice win Wednesday morning over the Owen Sound Attack.
