Otters rock shorthanded Rangers

Playing shorthanded is never a good thing.

When you're icing just four defencemen for the second time in four days, it becomes a bad thing.

The Erie Otters jumped on the Kitchener Rangers early, for three goals in the first period, and the bevy romped the Rangers 6-3.

“The games we've lost, our kind of calling card for these losses is a slow start,” said head coach Chris Dennis. “I thought Erie did a really good job in the first period. We didn't deserve it.”

“We were willing to change chances, and kind of just watch while they had the puck and hope Marco would make a big save for us, which he made a number of them,” said Dennis. “We needed a full team effort. We knew we were depleted up front and we knew we were depleted on the back end, and we didn't get it.”

Newcomer Filip Mešár missed Friday's game, because he was sick. The flu has been running through the team for the last couple weeks.

To make matters worse, for the second game in a row, the Rangers dressed just four defencemen.

Import defenceman Tomas Hamara missed his final game of a two-game suspension. So, he'll be back for Sunday's matinee.

Simon Motew is expected to miss Sunday's game, which would be his third, and overage rearguard Jack Harper is no longer with the team.

Francesco Pinelli and Carson Rehkopf each earned two points, and defenceman Hunter Brzustewicz extended his point, and assists, streak to nine games. 

“Winning is a process. It's important we have a sixty minute game. We don't play bad the whole game, we have moments it's just really bad and it's individuals we need more from. I think we'll get that Sunday,” said Dennis.

That's when the Rangers try and get redemption, in Erie. The Harris Law Pregame show begins on City News 570 at 1:30 p.m. with Mike Farwell and Chris Pope.