ST. THOMAS – The struggling Sarnia Legionnaires dropped their third straight game here last night.

Coach Jeff Perry's Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League squad was defeated 7-3 by the St. Thomas Stars.

With his team saddled with a disappointing 2-5 won-lost record, Perry is hoping fresh troops can be inserted into the lineup soon.

The Legionnaires are still awaiting permission from Hockey Canada to dress its two European skaters.

Ilya Arkolav of Russia and Jan Rodziewicz of Poland both showed flashes of brilliance in the exhibition schedule, and both made the team. Rodziewicz, in fact, got three points (two goals and an assist) in three post season contests.

Both are also enrolled in local schools – one at Lambton College and the other at Northern Collegiate. Because of that, getting approval for them to play should not be a problem.

"We're hoping to hear (from Hockey Canada) this week,” Perry said. “The sooner the better.”

More help is also coming in the form of Andy Sokol, who has completed a seven-game suspension picked up in an exhibition match. Sokol, a two-year veteran, had 10 goals, 10 assists and 99 penalty minutes last year. He also played on the club's 2009 championship team.

Perry said some veterans could find themselves becoming “healthy scratches” once the three reinforcements arrive. And that could mean three and four year vets, he warned.

Thompson shines

One player who did well last night was Brett Thompson. The rookie scored his third and fourth goals of the campaign and was named the third star. On his first goal, he snapped a shot under the crossbar after being sent into the clear by Jeff Schroeter.

 His second was a blistering drive from the faceoff circle.

Chase Clark also scored for Sarnia, picking up his fifth of the year with a backhander from close range. Clark is one of the few veterans who is producing, having put up 10 points in seven games.

Pathetic penalty killing

The Legionnaires continued to struggle when shorthanded, giving up two goals in four such situations. On average, they're only killing penalties off  65 per cent of the time, which is one of the worst marks in the Western Ontario Hockey Conference. Although they got two powerplay goals of their own last night (on nine tries) their overall record with the man advantage has also been discouraging, with a success rate of just 15.56 per cent.

• Captain Tyler Cicchini missed the game due to a foot injury. Perry said he is “day-to-day.” Tanner Ferguson was also out with a lower body injury that is expected to sideline him for at least three more weeks.

• Sarnia native Chris Rocca got a goal for the Stars.

• Starting goalie Mike Reed surrendered five goals in taking the loss. Truth be told, however, he let in only one soft goal. Kyle Washer came on in relief early in the second period and played an outstanding game the rest of the way.

• Jeff Paulley was engaged in a third period fight and appeared to get the better of his opponent.

• Shots on goal were 38-33 for St. Thomas.