BARRIE, Ont. – Aaron Ekblad’s power-play goal at 4:33 of overtime lifted the Barrie Colts to a 2-1 Ontario Hockey League victory Thursday night over the Brampton Battalion, giving the Colts a split of the teams’ home-and-home series.

With Marcus McIvor off for a questionable hooking call, defenceman Ekblad fired through traffic from the high slot, beating Battalion goaltender Matej Machovsky high to the glove side.

Mark Scheifele had one goal and one assist for Barrie, while goaltender Mathias Niederberger made 26 saves.

The Colts improved their won-lost-extended record to 10-3-1 for 21 points atop the Central Division and Eastern Conference.

Barclay Goodrow scored for the Battalion, which defeated Barrie 4-1 at Brampton on Sunday. Machovsky faced 29 shots, including seven in overtime, as the Troops moved to 5-4-5 for 15 points, tied with the Mississauga Steelheads for third place in the division.

"I thought that we played really hard defensively," said Battalion coach Stan Butler. "It’s tough to lose that one on a power-play goal in the final minute of overtime, especially when they missed the call before that on goaltender interference.

"It’s important that we don't quit and that we work hard out there. I think our team does work really hard."

Cameron Wind and Barrie’s Andreas Athanasiou were banished for roughing at 2:29 of overtime after Wind took exception to Athanasiou bumping Machovsky when he froze the puck. That left the teams skating three a side before McIvor was whistled for the phantom hooking infraction at 4:03 and the Colts got a four-on-three skating advantage.

Ekblad scored the winner, his third goal, four seconds after the penalties to Wind and Athanasiou expired.

Goodrow tied it 1-1 at 8:47 of the third period during a two-man advantage, knocking home a rebound from the lip of the crease on assists from Blake Clarke and Dylan Blujus. It was Goodrow’s team-leading seventh goal of the season.

Scheifele connected at 11:20 of the first period, seven seconds after a tripping penalty to the Battalion’s Mathew Santos ended. Ryan O’Connor fed the puck across the zone from the top of the left-wing circle to Scheifele deep in the right circle, and he snapped it behind Machovsky.

Connor Jarvis raced down the left wing and fired a shot at Niederberger in the eighth minute, but the rebound was too far to the right side for a possible conversion by the onrushing Nicholas Foglia.

Three penalties within a span of 20 seconds had the Troops skating four on three on the power play midway in the period and gave them a two-man advantage for 10 seconds, but the best scoring chance came in the final seconds of Scheifele’s time in the box for hooking, the last of the calls. Brendan Childerley rang a shot off the right post behind Niederberger.

Machovsky stoned Anthony Camara in the 18th minute after Steven Beyers, who had two assists, stepped around Blujus and fed Camara on the left side. Machovsky produced a sterling right-pad save.

Barrie enjoyed three power plays in the second period to one for the Battalion. After the Colts killed an early high-sticking penalty to Tyson Fawcett, referee Joe Celestin signaled a horrendous interference call against Nick Paul. Jarvis went off for hooking and Clarke for crosschecking later in the frame, but the Troops escaped without damage.

The Battalion scratched Brandon Robinson and Derek Froats. Barrie scratches were Liam Maaskant, C.J. Garcia and Zach Hall.

The Battalion visits Mississauga at 7:30 p.m. Friday. The game can be seen live in Brampton on Rogers Cable 10 and in Caledon and Orangeville on Rogers Cable 63.

BATTALION NOTEBOOK: Attendance at the Barrie Molson Centre was recorded as 3,000 … The Battalion went 1-for-5 on the power play. Barrie was 1-for-7 … The Colts, who boast the league’s No. 1 power play, scoring at 30.7 percent, went 2-for-13 in the home-and-home set … The Battalion is 1-1-4 within the division and 3-3-5 against conference opponents ... Brenden Miller fought Barrie’s Dylan Corson at 3:13 of the first period, drawing an instigating minor and a misconduct. The scrap essentially was a wrestling match … In 202 games, Goodrow has 63 goals and 57 assists for 120 points, ranking 22nd on the club’s career list, one point ahead of Tyler Harrison … Barrie resident Wind played his 240th game with the Troops, tying Ken Peroff for eighth place on the club’s all-time list … Opening line combinations included Patrik Machac centring left winger Paul and right winger Goodrow, Jamie Lewis centring left winger Clarke and right winger Matt MacLeod and Foglia pivoting left winger Jarvis and right winger Childerley. Mike Amadio centred Brennan Feasey on left wing and right winger Santos … Machac and Lewis sported the same red skate laces they wore Sunday to mark a Special Olympics fundraiser … Robinson sat out a fourth straight game with a hip flexor … With Froats hampered by a wrist injury, Feasey was recalled from the junior B Chatham Maroons. He played five games with the Troops earlier this season, scoring one goal … German import Niederberger is 9-1-1, including three wins via shootout … Scheifele leads the OHL in scoring with eight goals and 14 assists for 22 points in 14 games … Hall limped to the dressing room late in the game Sunday. Garcia has an upper-body injury … David Gauthier was the second referee.