Michalsky gives Colts overtime win

Barrie, ON 22 March 08 - Daniel Michalsky's second goal of the game, at 13:35 of overtime, gave the Barrie Colts a 3-2 Ontario Hockey League victory Saturday night over the Brampton Battalion and a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference quarterfinal.

Tomas Marcinko and Alex Hutchings assisted on the winning goal, which Michalsky knocked out of the air in the goalmouth after the puck deflected high off defender Bobby Sanguinetti's skate in heavy traffic.

Shawn Frank scored the first goal for Barrie, while goaltender Michael Hutchinson made 49 saves, including six in overtime, before a crowd of 3,763.

Barrie, which won the opener 3-1 on Battalion ice Thursday night, can take a commanding series lead with a victory in the third game, at Brampton at 6 p.m. Sunday. Game 4 is scheduled at Barrie at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Cody Hodgson and Thomas Stajan scored for the Battalion, which finished first in the Central Division, 26 points ahead of the fourth-place Colts. Goaltender Bryan Pitton faced 39 shots, 11 of them in overtime.

Pitton was shaken up midway in the third period when he was run by Andrew Clouthier, fresh out of the penalty box after serving a tripping penalty to Hutchinson. Clouthier barreled into Pitton, knocking the net loose, after letting go a high backhander, but there was no penalty.

The Battalion has lost 10 consecutive playoff games, all against Barrie, including the last four games of a five-game conference semifinal in 2005-06 and all four games of a conference quarterfinal last season. The Troops' last win was a 4-1 home-ice decision on April 6, 2006.

Stajan precipitated overtime when he scored his first career playoff goal at 16:44 of the third period. Sanguinetti carried the puck into the left-wing corner and backhanded it back to the onrushing Stajan in the slot.

The Battalion killed a two-man disadvantage lasting 1:02 early in the period after Luke VanMoerkerke and Jason Dale were called for interference and hooking respectively.

Michalsky gave Barrie a 2-1 lead at 18:58 of the second period off a dump-in into the Battalion zone. Pitton went behind the net to keep the puck from the forechecking Marcinko but misplayed it while falling, and Michalsky grabbed the disc and carried it in front for the conversion.

Hodgson had tied it at 16:36 after Jaroslav Hertl and Luke Lynes worked the puck up the right wing. Hodgson, driving to the deep slot from the right-wing boards, backhanded it home for his second goal of the series.

Hodgson and Cory Emmerton had a two-man breakaway in the ninth minute of the period, but Hutchinson got his blocker on Hodgson's close-in shot. Hutchinson then made his best save to that point in the 15th minute, performing gloved robbery against Lynes on the rebound of a shot by Sanguinetti.

Frank scored at 10:13 of the first period, finding himself alone in front to slip the puck inside the left post after Stefan Della Rovere threw it toward the net from the right-wing boards.

The Battalion went on the offensive early after Dalton Prout was penalized for hooking John Hughes 12 seconds into the game. Hutchinson fended off the assault but, on a dump-in just after the penalty expired, Lynes stole the puck behind the goal and almost stuffed it inside the right post.

VanMoerkerke was sent off for slashing at 5:38, and Zack Shepley followed for crosschecking at 7:11, putting the Battalion down two men for 27 seconds, but Barrie managed just one shot during that time.

Battalion scratches were Ben Alavie, Matt Clark, Alexander Eriksson, Mike Lomas and Kody Musselman. Barrie scratched Brett Halstead, Jaroslav Kruzik, Colt Kennedy and Cory McGillis.

BATTALION NOTEBOOK: The Battalion went 0-for-4 on the power play. The Colts were 0-for-7 … The Battalion has a 4-8 won-lost record all-time in playoff overtime games, including 1-2 on the road … The teams switched ends to start overtime, a departure from past OHL practice … Opening Battalion line combinations included Hodgson centring left winger Emmerton and right winger Dale, Stajan pivoting left winger Graham McNabb and right winger Hughes and Matt Duchene centring left winger Lynes and right winger Kyle DeCoste. Scott Tanski centred left winger VanMoerkerke and right winger Chris Beauchamp … Beauchamp, who played 13 games with the Battalion this season as a call-up from the Brampton Capitals of the Provincial Junior A League, made his OHL playoff debut in place of Musselman. He served a one-game suspension as the result of a major penalty for checking from behind in the series opener … Alavie has a broken collarbone, and Eriksson is out for the season after knee surgery. Lomas has a charley horse … With Halstead and Kennedy sitting out, Adam Payerl and Brian Lashoff made their series debuts. Kruzik again was a healthy scratch, and McGillis served the second game of a five-game suspension for bullying … Michalsky, who had two assists in the opener, has four points in the series. Marcinko scored two goals in Game 1 and has three points in the set, as does Hutchings, with three assists … Barrie indulged its hillbilly element before the game, when three stock cars were pushed onto the ice to promote a speedway. They left dirty tracks all over the Battalion's defensive zone, necessitating an extra visit by the ice-resurfacing machine.