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windsorspitfires.com staff reports
It was a fate they didn't want to suffer again.
Tobias Rieder scored with 1:26 to play, as the Kitchener Rangers beat the Windsor Spitfires, 5-3, on Wednesday night.
It was the second time in two weeks the Spits allowed their 401 rivals to escape their building with two big points.
Jerry D'Amigo had two goals and an assist. Ben Thomson and Jason Akeson had the other goals for Kitchener (33-15-3-3).
The win moved the Rangers seven points up on Windsor (30-19-2-3) in the Western Conference standings; a deficit the Spits will have a hard time making up, with just 14 games to play.
Tom Kuhnhackl scored twice for the home side and Ryan Ellis had three assists in a losing cause.
Tied at 2-2 after a spirited, hard-hitting 40 minutes, Thomson picked defenceman Grant Webermin's pocket and slid one past John Cullen to give Kitchener at 3-2 lead at 2:48 of the third period.
With five minutes to play, Ellis made an outstanding play to set up the tying goal, darting past a pair of defenders before spotting Kuhnhackl in front for his second of the night.
But the Spits couldn't hang on in the late going.
After a solid minute in the Windsor zone, Rieder wrapped one past Cullen to give the visitors a lead they wouldn't give back.
The Spits tried to get Cullen to the bench for the extra attacker, but coughed up the puck at centre ice allowing D'Amigo to score his second of the night as the netminder scrambled to get back.
Zack Kassian scored for a third straight game, his 200th in the OHL.
Tom Kuhnhackl was given a match penalty for slew footing in the closing seconds; an offense that carries a minimum two-game suspension.
SCORING
FIRST PERIOD
No Scoring
SECOND PERIOD
Akeson, (21) (D'Amigo), 2:39
WSR Kassian, (24) (Ryan, Ellis), 10:17 (PP)
WSR Kuhnhackl, (30) (Ebert, Ellis), 18:36 (PP
KIT D'Amigo, (4) (Murphy), 19:22
THIRD PERIOD
KIT Thomson, (6) , 2:48
WSR Kuhnhackl, (31) (Ellis, Kassian), 15:06
KIT Rieder, (21) (Sol, Crescenzi), 18:34
KIT D'Amigo, (5) (Catenacci), 18:56
SHOTS ON GOAL
WINDSOR: 10 - 18 - 5 = 33
KITCHENER: 8 - 12 - 11 = 31
POWER PLAYS
WINDSOR 2-FOR-4
KITCHENER 0-FOR-5
