The Sudbury Wolves were saddled with their first loss of the 2026 OHL pre-season - and still there was plenty to like from a 4-2 setback at the hands of the Soo Greyhounds in the minds of head coach Scott Barney and company.

After spotting the Hounds a 2-0 first period lead, the Wolves fought back to deadlock the game at 2-2, with a pair of third period strikes from the homeside proving to be the difference in the encounter which left the locals sporting a 2-1 record in exhibition play to date.

Jordan Charron and Colin Fitzgerald got the Soo going in the opening frame only to see Jean-Cristoph Lemieux sprung free on a breakaway pass from Hudson Martin, halving the deficit at the 9:01 mark of period two.

Local product Mason Walker pulled the Wolves even some six minutes later, with Norman Greene and Patrik Ula picking up the assists before Fitzgerald netted the game-winner and Travis Hayes added a little insurance.

The outcome did not necessarily reflect the overall flow of play as Sudbury outshot Sault Ste Marie 40-28, with Bjorn Bronas going the distance between the pipes for the Pack.

Though the contest marked the first pre-season play for the returning troika of Jan Chovan, Adam Nemec and Rowan Henderson, the Wolves did not dress defensemen Artem Gonchar and Genc Ula or forwards Hudson Chitaroni and Blake Clayton, all of whom are being counted on heavily this year.

Although the current landscape of OHL hockey, with the increased roster transiency, makes pre-season predictions a fool's errand, many in the know are suggesting that a top four Eastern Conference finish and first round home ice advantage is not out of the question in the least for the Sudbury Wolves this year.

The lads will embark on one more exhibition game road trip on Sunday, facing the North Bay Battalion at 2:00 p.m. before finally getting the chance to play in front of the hometown crowd on Friday (September 11th), with the Greyhounds in town.

Their pre-season schedule wraps up with a game against the Kingston Frontenacs on Saturday (September 12th) in Newmarket, kicking off regular season play a week later at home, with the Peterborough Petes providing the opposition.

After launching the 2025-2026 season with a glut of road games last fall, Sudbury sees the favour returned this year, contesting four of their first five games of the year in the friendly confines of the Sudbury Arena.