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Bulls Tie Team Win Record with 2-0 Victory over Ottawa
 Mike Murphy stopped all 21 shots he faced to help the Belleville Bulls defeat the Ottawa 67's 2-0 Wednesday night at the Yardmen Arena.
The Belleville Bulls tied a team record by recording the 44th victory of the season with a 2-0 win over the Ottawa 67’s Wednesday night at the Yardmen Arena. Goaltender Mike Murphy stopped 21 shots to earn his third shutout of the season and tie the team record for most goaltending victories in a single season with 33. The Bulls scored twice in the third period to break a scoreless tie and skate away with the win, as they now lead the Eastern Conference by 11 points.
The Bulls came out fast to begin the game, forcing 67’s goaltender Adam Courchaine to make several outstanding saves to keep the game scoreless. Belleville was also terrific defensively, as the 67’s were not able to generate much offence during the opening twenty minutes of play. Shots on goal in the first period were 15-3 Belleville.
The two sides continued to play tight, checking defensive hockey into the second period while both Murphy and Courchaine were excellent when called upon. The 67’s were able to generate more offence during the middle frame but were unable to open the scoring. The Bulls took a series of penalties late in the second period but a strong penalty killing unit kept the game scoreless heading to the third period. Shots on goal in the second period favoured the Bulls 10-8.
The Bulls finally opened the scoring nine minutes into the third period when Shawn Matthias beat Courchaine on a rebound after the 67’s goaltender had stopped Eric Tangradi on the original shot. Cory Tanaka also assisted on Matthias’ 29th goal of the season. Matthias now has a league leading nine game winning goals. Belleville then got some insurance with six and a half minutes remaining in the game when Bryan Cameron tipped a P.K. Subban point shot past Courchaine to extend his point streak to five games. Matt Beleskey also assisted on Cameron’s 35th goal of the season. The Bulls then played very strong defensive hockey to preserve the shutout victory. Shots on goal in the third period were 10-10 and overall favoured the Bulls 35-21.
Murphy stopped all 21 shots he faced to improve his record to 33-7-3-2 this season, tying Kory Cooper for the most victories in a single season. Courchaine was also outstanding, making 33 saves in a losing effort for Ottawa. The Bulls finished the game scoreless in two power play chances while Ottawa failed to convert in four opportunities with the man advantage. The three stars of the game were Murphy, Matthias, and Courchaine. Wednesday’s game was shown live province wide on Rogers Sportsnet. With the win, the Bulls improve their record to 44-13-4-2 while Ottawa falls to 26-32-2-3 with the loss. Belleville finishes the season series with a 5-1-1-1 record against the 67’s. Next home game for the Bulls is on Saturday night when the Barrie Colts will make their lone regular season trip to Belleville this year. Game time is 7:15pm at the Yardmen Arena and tickets are available at the Bulls Box Office. Saturday’s game is sponsored by Culligan and will feature the final qualifier for the McDougall Insurance Million Dollar Shootout.
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