Schmitz's Hat Trick, Whalers' Five-Goal Third Period Beats Windsor, 7-4

Sound bytes courtesy of Pete Krupsky and www.plymouthwhalers.com

WINDSOR - All season long, the Plymouth Whalers have demonstrated dominance in the third period.

On New Year's Eve, before a near sellout crowd of 6,295 at Windsor Family Credit Union Center, the Whalers emphatically erased a 4-2 Windsor lead with five unanswered goals in the final period to defeat the Spitfires, 7-4.

The Whalers finish December at 8-1-0-0 and move into a first place tie at the top of the Ontario Hockey League's Western Conference with London.  The Whalers and Knights both have 53 points; London has one more victory and a record of 26-8-0-1, while the Whalers finish 2011 at 25-9-1-2.

Windsor has lost five games in a row and is 17-19-3-1, good for 38 points and seventh place in the Western Conference race.

More coverage - Jim Parker, The Windsor Star.

Plymouth captain Beau Schmitz fueled the Whalers comeback with his first-ever Ontario Hockey League hat trick (9-10-11), scoring twice in the third period, cutting the Windsor lead to 4-3 with a goal at 2:29 and then scoring game-winner at 14:18 of the period on a power play.  

Schmitz may have been the first star, but he had plenty of help in the third-period comeback.  Alex Aleardi scored his team-leading 21st goal of the season to tie the game at 4-4 at 11:52 and added three assists.  Andy Bathgate also scored in the third period (13th) and worked with Aleardi to set up Schmitz for the game-winning goal.  Jamie Devane added an empty net goal (11th) with 1:44 left in regulation.

Way back in the second period, Chris Albertini scored his first OHL goal for Plymouth on a breakaway that tied the game at 2-2 at 5:49 at the time. Albertini accepted a pass from Danny Vanderwiel at center, broke into the Windsor zone and put a backhander, five-hole, past Windsor goaltender Jaroslav Pavelka.

Windsor received goals from Stephen Alonge (2nd), Grant Webermin (3rd), Ben Johnson (9th) and Kerby Rychel (22nd).

After Albertini tied the game, the Spits took the first two-goal lead in the hockey game when Johnson scored on a scramble at the right circle in the Plymouth zone at 14:37 and Rychel scored at 19:34.  Windsor outshot Plymouth, 14-2, in the second period.

But the Whalers took over in the third period, outshooting Windsor, 23-8.  Here is the audio of the first four Plymouth goals in the third period:

Beau Schmitz cuts the Windsor lead to 4-3 at 2:29 of the third period.

Alex Aleardi ties the game at 4-4 at 11:52 of the third period.

Beau Schmitz scores the game-winner at 14:18 of the third period.

Windsor calls time out, pulls the goaltender and Jamie Devane scores on the empty net at 18:16.

Plymouth outshot Windsor, 40-36.  

The Whalers have outsscored their opposition, 52-28, in the third period this season.

Plymouth plays three games next week - Wednesday in Saginaw (7 p.m., WSDP-FM, 88.1), Saturday at home against Saginaw (6:45 p.m., WSDP-FM, 88.1) and Sunday, Jan. 8 in Sarnia (1:45 p.m., WSDP-FM, 88.1).