STRATHROY –
Chazz Nixon made 26 saves on Saturday night, a save for every shot the 2nd place Nationals fired his way, earning his 2nd official shutout of the season. Nixon, a 5th round pick of the Flint Firebird in the 2020 OHL Draft, was stellar on route to the shutout, his second of the season, but his first in a game the Rockets won! (He was credited with a SO on Nov. 26, a game in which the Rockets lost 1-0 in the shootout.)
The Rockets got goals from Brendan Speziale and Owen Kindree, both their 5th of the season, to get the win and move within a pair of points of St. Thomas for 7th in the Western Conference. A big win on home ice with the playoffs around the corner, and an exciting night for the second largest crowd of the season at the WMMC.
On Sunday afternoon in Chatham, a rough start had the Rockets fighting from behind early. The maroons scored 4 goals in the first 15:37 of the game, before the Rockets finally got on the board and back in the game before the period was up. Unfortunately the early deficit couldn’t be overcome, Strathroy would get a within a goal with just over 4 minutes left in the game, but couldn’t find the equalizer. Chatham added an empty net goal with 8 seconds to go and the final would be 7-5.
Strathroy now sits 2 points behind the St. Thomas Stars for 7th in the Western Conference standings with just 3 games to play. St. Thomas will be in town Saturday night for a crucial matchup between the two teams. Puck drop is at 7:30pm at the WMMC. The Rockets will be recognizing 5 of their graduating players prior to the game on Saturday, make sure you come out and support with playoffs around the corner!
If you can’t make the game, all games will be streamed on HockeyTV.com, or you can listen live to Rockets Radio Broadcast on our YouTube page each game.
