The North Bay Battalion's strong showing against the Sarnia Sting this afternoon goes a long way towards solidifying their bid for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Going into the contest, the Battalion held a two-point lead over the Ottawa 67's with two games in hand.
By the halfway mark in the game, North Bay held a 3-1 lead with goals from the Leblanc twins and Ihnat Pazii. Nick Wellenreiter and trade deadline acquisition Parker Vaughan added tallies to make it 5-1 by the end of the game.
The win was a complete team effort featuring five different scorers and a strong performance by 2006-born goaltender Mike McIvor who made 33 saves on 34 shots.
While picking up a pair of points is always impactful, these two are all the more important because Ottawa fell at the hands of the Brantford Bulldogs this afternoon. This resulted in North Bay gaining a four-point lead on the other team vying for eighth all while maintaining their two games in hand.
The race between Ottawa and North Bay has swung back and forth repeatedly during the season.
While Ottawa seemed to have the final playoff spot nailed down before the deadline, they have struggled recently. This is partially due to a string of injuries that heavily impacted the team's offense during the last month and a half.
The Battalion has gathered momentum in the last few weeks winning five of their last six games including a critical game against Ottawa on Feb. 17.
Both of these teams are in rebuilds, though North Bay's rebuild is in much better shape than Ottawa's having consistently traded players away throughout the year. In return, they've acquired young players like Vaughan whom they are working to develop.
A playoff spot would do wonders for the young talent in North Bay. While they are unlikely to win a round, they will gain valuable experience that will be critical for the team as they continue to rebuild.
North Bay will face Ottawa twice more this season once in February and once in March. The pair of games could very well determine which team books a ticket to the postseason.
By picking up the win this weekend, North Bay has put pressure on Ottawa to find a way to close the growing gap between the two squads.