BRAMPTON, Ont. – Brandon Robinson scores when it counts.

Rookie Robinson, the Brampton Battalion’s lone underager, provided his fourth game-winning goal of the Ontario Hockey League season Sunday when he opened the scoring in a 3-0 victory over the visiting Niagara IceDogs.

“It’s nice that in my first year I can contribute like I have been,” said Robinson. “It’s a big confidence-booster for me, knowing that I can carry the puck and have confidence in myself to shoot and make plays instead of just dumping it in all the time.”

Left winger Robinson, a first-round pick in the OHL Priority Selection in May, has registered six goals and four assists for 10 points in 27 games. His four game-winners lead the Troops, who have a won-lost-extended record of 15-10-4 for 34 points, first in the Central Division.

Robinson opened the scoring with his first OHL goal in a 4-0 blanking of the visiting Peterborough Petes on Oct. 23, netted the winner in a 4-3 home-ice decision Oct. 28 against the Barrie Colts and had the difference-maker in a 5-3 road win Nov. 23 over the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors.

“It’s good for our hockey team,” said Battalion coach Stan Butler. “Robinson is what we need here. He’s a game-breaker.”

Said Robinson: “Earlier in the year, the first couple of games, I didn’t have the confidence I have now to carry the puck or look around and see what’s open.”

He collected four goals and two assists for six points in a six-game points streak that started Oct. 23 and ran through a 4-2 road loss Nov. 4 to the London Knights. Robinson tied the game 2-2 on the power play at 16:54 of the third period before the Knights scored two goals, one into an empty net, in the final minute.

“As the year went on after I got my first goal, and that little point streak I had, has just given me the confidence to know that I can play in this league. Knowing that I can make plays instead of just getting pucks in and getting pucks out has helped me a lot.”

Robinson, a Pickering, Ont., resident who turned 16 on Oct. 13, was named to the Ontario Under-17 team that will compete in the 2012 World Under-17 Challenge at Windsor starting Dec. 29.

“It gave me a little extra confidence just to know they noticed that I’m playing well and having a good year,” said Robinson. “I just know I need to go out there every night and play hard.”

The tournament comprises five regional Canadian teams and five age-group national teams. Team Ontario is in a preliminary division with Canadian entities Team Pacific and Team West as well as Sweden and Germany.

Said Butler: “At the end of the day, a lot of it is based on opportunity. We told the kids you’re going to get lots of opportunity, so it’s what you do with it.”