(Logan Maunder #23 of the Lindsay Muskies protects the crease from Jacob Vreugdenhil #16 of the Wellington Dukes as goaltender Ethan Fraser of Belleville looks on at the play during an OJHL game from earlier this season at the Lindsay Recreation Centre. Photo by Andy Corneau/OJHL Images)
By Jeff Gard/Total Sports Quinte
The host Lindsay Muskies withstood a late push from the Wellington Dukes to win their second straight Ontario Junior Hockey League game 4-3 Friday night.
Wellington scored twice after falling behind 4-1 in the third period, but couldn’t muster the tying goal as their three-game win streak came to an end. The two wins for the Muskies come after losing eight in a row.
William Jones opened the scoring for the Muskies 5:31 into Friday night’s contest. Boyd Stahlbaum made it 2-0 coming out of that opening frame with his goal at 17:23.
Goaltender Matt Dunsmoor started in net for the Dukes and stopped 10 of the 11 shots he faced, but was injured on a play in the 16th minute and was replaced by Ethan Morrow.
The Muskies maintained the two-goal advantage until David Campbell replied for the Dukes with just nine seconds left in the second. Emmet Pierce earned an assist on the play.
Power-play goals by Mael Plante at 2:14 and Stahlbaum at 5:19 put Lindsay back in control early in the third. Stahlbaum leads the Muskies with 11 goals and 12 assists through 25 games.
Wellington’s Jacob Vreugdenhil cut the deficit to two at 8:58 with Ethan Esposito, in his Dukes debut, and Barret Joynt drawing assists. Prior to the game, the Dukes announced the acquisition of Esposito, an 18-year-old forward, from the Kemptville 73’s of the CCHL for future considerations.
Defenceman Cole Maguire scored his first of the season to pull the Dukes within one at the 13:22 mark of the third, but the rally ultimately fell short. Campbell assisted on the play and now has six goals and eight assists in 14 games with the club.
Belleville’s Ethan Fraser made 28 saves in earning the goaltending victory for Lindsay (11-11-0-3) while Morrow stopped 16 of the 19 shots he faced in relief of Dunsmoor.
Wellington (11-9-0-2) returns to action at home Sunday afternoon against the Haliburton County Huskies (12-7-1-1). Game time is 2:30 p.m. at Lehigh Arena.
The Quinte Smart Homes/Dukes Season Grand Prize Giveaway continues throughout the season. At every home game in Wellington this season, fans can enter the contest by scanning the QR code on their ticket/pass or by visiting QuinteSmartHomes.ca and clicking on the contest link.
Current prizes up for grabs include a one year supply of Uncle Chester’s Flaming Hot Pepper Sauce (UncleChesters.ca), which includes 12 jars of various heat levels; a $100 gift card from Midtown Brewing Company (MidtownBrewingCompany.com); a $100 gift card from the Boathouse Seafood Restaurant & Waterfront Patio (boathouselure.ca) and a $500 Sonos Move Speaker from contest sponsor Quinte Smart Homes.
The current grand prize value is already over $950 and growing. Smaller prize draws will take place each week. The Grand Prize winner will be drawn at the Dukes final regular season home game on March 4.