In Finland, Joel Armia (+1) finished with two shots on goal as Assat edged SaiPa 3-2. Assat takes on TPS on Saturday.
In the OHL, Dan Catenacci snapped his four-game goal drought as Owen Sound lost at Niagara 3-2 in a shootout. Catenacci's goal, his 22th of the year, came on a first period power play to knot the score 1-1. He'd later miss on a wrister in shootout attempt. The Attack battle Kingston on Saturday.
Alex Lepkowski returned to the Barrie lineup for the first time since Dec. 15 as the Colts earned a 5-4 shootout win over Mississauga. Lepkowski, who missed seven games while recovering from a shoulder injury, finished with a game-best plus three rating while skating with 2014 draft eligible Aaron Ekblad. Barrie visits Guelph on Friday.
In QMJHL play, Mikhail Grigorenko (-1) fired two shots on goal but seemed to show travel wear late as Quebec was defeated by Chicoutimi 4-1. Grigorenko, who nearly notched his 30th goal of the year when he rang off a shot off the post, finished the game with a 25% success rate on faceoffs.