January 23, 2012

M-HOCKEY ROUNDUP: Lakehead drops two against Western

Toronto Varsity Blues @ Ryerson Rams

TORONTO - Troy Passingham stopped 23 shots for his second shutout of the season as the Ryerson Rams men's hockey team won its third straight game with a 3-0 win over the visiting Toronto Varsity Blues on Thursday night.

With the victory, the Rams (10-8-3) move into a tie with the Blues (10-8-3) for sixth place in the OUA East. The Rams also lead the season series against their downtown rivals with a record of 2-1. The teams will meet one more time at George Bell Arena on February 5.

Norwich University transfer Matt McCann, playing in his first game as a Ram, opened the scoring on a shorthanded tally with just under five minutes remaining in the first period. McCann skated the puck up the ice on a 3-on-1 and instead of passing, fired the puck past Toronto goaltender Garrett Sheehan.

The Rams held the 1-0 lead until the final minute of the middle frame when Victor Terreri banged in a loose puck past Sheehan for his first in a Rams uniform, giving the home side a 2- 0 advantage after 40 minutes.

Winger David Harris would add an insurance marker midway through the third period. After Jason Kelly won the face-off toward the boards, Harris would fire a shot past a screened Sheehan.

Ryerson was 0-for-7 on the power play, while Toronto was 0-for-10 with the man advantage. Sheehan stopped 17 of 20 shots in a losing cause for the Blues.

Source: Rams Athletics

Carleton Ravens @ McGill Redmen

MONTREAL - Alex Picard-Hooper of Boucherville, Que., scored the only goal in a post-overtime shootout to give No.2-ranked McGill a hard-fought 1-0 victory over the visiting Carleton Ravens before a raucous capacity crowd of 1,039 in men's university hockey at McConnell Arena, Friday.

It marked the 10th consecutive year that the Redmen prevailed in their annual faculty of management Winter Carnival game. As such, it was fitting that Picard-Hooper, a management senior, would tally the game-winner, although it doesn't officially count, as it occurred in the shootout.

"I wasn't thinking about anything specific on the play other than to look for a small hole to shoot at," said Picard-Hooper, who was voted CIS player of the year last season. "I found a spot to aim for, took my shot and it went well. The crowd was great for us and it was fun to win it for them."

Netminder Hubert Morin of St. Georges de Beauce, Que., celebrated his 100th career game with the Redmen by registering a 32-save shutout, improving to 9-3 on the season. It was the league-leading third whitewash of the season for Morin, who bounced back in fine fashion after a sub-par performance in a 4-3 loss at Toronto last week. He now tops all OUA goalies with a stingy 1.97 goals-against average, to go along with a stellar .923 save percentage. The civil engineering senior owns a lifetime 68-25-2 overall record with eight shutouts since he joined the Redmen in 2008.

Carleton, which had a 32-25 edge in shots, kept the potent Redmen offence at bay, largely with the help of 21 blocked shots buttressed by a solid performance between the pipes from goaltender Matthew Dopud. The 5-foot-9, 200-pound native of Pte. Claire, Que., stopped all 24 shots faced but was finally beaten during the shootout as his record dropped to 7-9.

"It was a big team effort in front of an outstanding crowd," said McGill head coach Kelly Nobes. "It was a solid 65-minute effort and obviously Morin was a big part of it. We created a lot of offensive opportunities with good cycles and our D-men did a good job of keeping pucks alive in the offensive zone. But we needed to do a better job of getting pucks to the net and I think that was reflected by our low shot total and by how many shots Carleton blocked."

The Redmen were 0-for-3 with the man-advantage and killed off the lone Ravens power-play opportunity. The McGill penalty-killing unit has now successfully snuffed out 20 consecutive shorthanded situations since they were last beaten on Jan. 7 (by Ryerson). McGill is now ranked third in the league with an 86.8 PK success rate (killing of 92 of 106 PP chances).

Carleton, which sits fourth in the OUA East with an 11-7-3 record, plays at Concordia (11-9-2) on Saturday at 2 p.m.

McGill, which leads the OUA East with a 17-2-2 mark, needs one more victory to clinch a playoff berth for the eighth consecutive year. They will have to wait a week until their next game, however, when they host the Ottawa Gee-Gees on Jan. 27.

Source: Redmen Athletics

Ryerson Rams @ RMC Paladins

KINGSTON, Ont. - Kelly Geoffrey scored a natural hat-trick and Steve Gleeson stopped 24 shots for the shutout as the Ryerson Rams blanked the Royal Military College (RMC) Paladins 4-0 for their fourth consecutive win.

The Rams, who began the week in ninth place in the OUA East division, find themselves tied for fourth on Friday night.

A first-year forward from Newmarket, Ont., Geoffrey scored once in the first period and twice in the second. Defenceman Frank Carbonaro netted his second goal of the season on the power play to round out the scoring for Ryerson.

Gleeson improves to 3-0 as a starter and picks up his second shutout of the season. The first-year goaltender from Toronto posted his first shutout in a 3-0 win over the Paladins on October 29.

The Rams will host Nipissing on Thursday and Queen's on Friday next week.

Source: Rams Athletics

York Lions @ Brock Badgers

Mark Cross scored with less than four minutes remaining in regulation to force overtime, but the York University Lions men's hockey team could not complete the comeback as it took a costly penalty in the extra frame that resulted in a goal and a 5-4 loss to the Brock Badgers on Friday (Jan. 20) in St. Catharines, Ont.

The Lions (10-8-4), who came into the game on a two-game winning streak, fought back to tie the game on three different occasions and actually held a 2-1 lead early in the second period, but they were unable to shake the Badgers (11-9-1), who picked up the extra point and now trail the Lions by just a single point for fourth place in the OUA West.

Just nine seconds after Thomas Stajan (Mississauga, Ont.) put the Badgers up 1-0 on a power play goal early in the first, Lions rookie winger Ryan Andersen (Wainwright, Alta.) scored his first goal of the season to tie the game at ones.

Not to be outdone, rookie defenceman Scott Charbonneau (St. Catharines, Ont.) net his first goal of the season just 18 seconds into the second period to give the Lions a 2-1 lead.

The Badgers, however, would equalize late in the second on a goal from Matt Abercrombie (Sarnia, Ont.) and retake the lead early in the third period on a goal from Ryan Allen (Fort McMurray, Alta.) just 32 seconds into the frame.

Andersen responded less than six minutes later with his second of the game to tie the contest at 3-3, but with just over four minutes remaining in the regulation, Allen would also pot his second of the night, which put the Badgers back out in front 4-3.

Continuing the trend of quick strikes, Cross (Strasbourg, Sask.) would score just 49 seconds after Allen to tie the game once again and force overtime.

In the extra frame, with Tyler McGee (Timmins, Ont.) in the penalty box serving a charging minor, Isaac Smeltzer (Estevan, Ont.) would score on a one-timer to lift the Badgers to victory.

David Blair (Ajax, Ont.), starting his first game since mid-November, was stellar in the loss, stopping 29 shots against. His counterpart, Kurt Jory (Brandon, Man.), had to make just 18 saves en route to his 10th win of the season.

Source: Lions Athletics

Ottawa Gee-Gees @ Concordia Stingers

The Gee-Gees started out strong in a game which swung dramatically in favour of the Concordia Stingers midway through the second period. After Ottawa built a 3-0 lead the high-powered Stingers offense rattled off four second period goals which the Gee-Gees were unable to overcome, ultimately falling 8-4 in Montreal.

Good pressure from the Gee-Gees in the early going resulted in a scoring chance on a series of rebounds in front of the Stingers net, but the rolling puck rattled off the post. Ottawa controlled the puck for much of the first period, and capitalized on their first power play opportunity to take a 1-0 lead.

Dominic Jalbert slapped a shot from the blue line which ricocheted off the post and right to Maxime Chamberland in the circle where he quickly snapped the puck into the back of the net. The goal was scored just as the fourth Stinger stepped back onto the ice after sharing the penalty box while the Gees enjoyed a minute long two-man advantage.

Ottawa increased their lead early in the second period when Paul Forster broke in on a two-on-one and held onto the puck until he had a nice shooting angle and shelved his shot over the goalie’s blocker. Shortly thereafter Steven Blunden picked up the puck behind the Stingers’ net and got a pass out in front to Matt White for the goal and a 3-0 lead.

Concordia’s Coach Figsby called a timeout following White’s goal to try to regroup his crew. The Stingers responded by drawing a penalty with strong play along the boards, and the OUA’s leading goal scorer George Lovatsis scored his 18th of the season on a crafty move coming off the side board. That seemed to open the floodgates for Concordia as their top line went to work and scored the next three goals, giving the Stingers the lead before the second intermission.

Goaltender Karvouniaris locked down the Gee-Gees for the remainder of the game, making 22 saves in the final two periods while the Stingers padded their lead. Alexandre Touchette added the final marker for the Gee-Gees on the power play, but by that time Concordia had the game well in hand. Lovatsis added his 19th goal, Dominic Martel and Francois Lanctot-Marcotte each netted two, and linemates Etienne Archambault and Mike Stinziani were the goal scorers for Concordia.

Source: Gee-Gees Athletics

Laurier Golden Hawks @ Guelph Gryphons

The Sleeman Centre hosted the annual Guelph Gryphon’s men’s hockey Winter Homecoming Frosty Mug game tonight (Jan. 20th) in Guelph. Both teams came to the game ready to play and more than 1,500 fans in attendance were in for an exciting night right from the start. Both teams fought hard but the Gryphons ultimately came out on top with a final score of 5-3.

Guelph’s record moves to 7-12-4 on the season while the Golden Hawks drop to 6-14-1. Gryphon scoring was led tonight by fourth year Justin Gvora (Thunder Bay, Ont.) who tallied a hat trick and has scored five goals in the last two games.

Three minutes into the first period the first goal of the game was scored by Golden Hawk Mitchell Good (Wellesley, ON) after sneaking in behind Gryphon goalie Cody St Jacques (Iroquois Falls, ON) into the right corner of the net. He was assisted by Mitch Lebar (Aurora, ON) and Tyler Stothers (Oakville, ON).

Guelph had a number of shots on net in the first including a close one from Justin Gvora 11 minutes in. Gryphon Patrick Campbell (Sauble Beach, ON) helped keep the score under control for the rest of the first with his aggressive defence and by intercepting Laurier passes.

The game picked up in the second period seeing five goals across the board. The first for the Gryphons came from Gvora on a power play after some quick thinking from JT MacDonald (Niagara Falls, ON) and Zach Lillie, (Bracebridge, ON) at 8:58 in the second. Laurier returned only minutes later with their second goal from Mike Masciolii (Azilda, ON) after an assist from Zach Woolford (Rockwood, ON) at 10:18.

Only seconds later the Gryphons tied up the game again after Mike Kusy (St. Catharines, ON) shot into the right corner of the net before Golden Hawk goalie Ryan Daniels (Pickering, ON) could respond. He was assisted by Matthew Lyall (Richmond Hill, ON) and Ken Peroff (Astorville, ON). Laurier came back once again and took the lead with a goal from Stothers to bring the score to 3-2.

Gvora captured one more goal for the Gryphons, and his second of the night, before the end of the second with only 36 seconds left on the board. He snuck the puck into the left corner after being assisted by Peroff and MacDonald. The second period ended in a stale-mate 3-3.

The Gryphons finally took the lead three minutes into the third after a scrimmage outside of the Golden Hawk net left them vulnerable to Gryphon attack. Philip Teri (Elora, ON) pocketed the goal after a quick pass from Cale Jeffries (Glenboro, ON). St Jacques made some fantastic saves in the third as Laurier pushed harder in their attacks to try and catch up to the Gryphons.

In the last minutes of the game Laurier pulled their goalie to put their offence into full force but they were left with an open net when Gvora scored his third of the night, confirming the Gryphon win.

The Gryphons next play the York Lions in Toronto on January 26. Puck drops at 7pm.

Source: Gryphons Athletics

Western Mustangs @ Lakehead Thunderwolves

THUNDER BAY, Ont. – Keaton Turkiewicz’s lone goal rallied the Western Mustangs 1-0 over the Lakehead Thunderwolves on Fri. Jan 20 in front of 3,735 fans.

Mustangs Kevin Baker and Scott Aarssen added assists on the play.

Netminder Josh Unice made 27 saves for the shutout while Lakehead’s Alex Dupuis made 21.

Western capitalized on one of nine powerplays as they held the Thunderwolves scoreless on eight man-advantage opportunities.

With the win, the Mustangs (17-2-2) move four points ahead of Lakehead (16-5-0) for first place in the OUA West.

Source: Mustangs Athletics

Nipissing Lakers @ Queen’s Gaels

KINGSTON — Dorian Peca and Brogan Bailey provided some late-game heroics to turn what could have been a loss into an important two points for the Nipissing Lakers, Friday.

Peca tied the game with one minute remaining to force overtime and Bailey scored the only goal of the shootout as the Lakers (11-6-4) rallied for a 4-3 win over the Queen’s Gaels (10-8-2) in OUA men’s hockey action.

On the tying goal, with Lakers goalie Daniel Spence on his way to the bench for an extra attacker, Nipissing defenceman Jason Gray kept the puck in at the blueline and fed Doug Clarkson, who fired a cross-crease pass to Peca for the tap-in.

Bailey was the fourth shooter in the shootout, with Spence stopping all four Gaels’ attempts to preserve the win.

“I thought we played pretty well the whole game, we just couldn’t score,” said Lakers head coach Mike McParland. “Luckily, we got one in the last minute and got the chance to win it in the shootout.

“These are big points. All of these games are big.”

The Gaels led 2-1 after the first period on goals by Kelly Jackson and Tyler Moore, with Clarkson replying for the Lakers.

Bailey tied the game 2-2 in the second period, before Jackson’s second of the game gave Queen’s a 3-2 lead after 40 minutes.

The shots were even at 40-40, with Spence making 37 saves to earn the win.

The Lakers remain in Kingston Saturday to face the RMC Paladins (3-18-1). Lakers leading scorer Conor O’Donnell was not in Friday’s lineup, but McParland said there might be some changes for Saturday.

“We have a couple of guys banged up, so we’ll see what the morning brings us,” he said.

Source: Nipissing Athletics

Windsor Lancers @ Waterloo Warriors

The Warriors found their first win of 2012 in thrilling fashion as they slipped past the Windsor Lancers 3-2 in a shootout on Friday night at the Columbia Icefield Arena in Waterloo.

Windsor's Derek Lanoue (Tecumseh, Ont.) scored late in the third period what looked to be the game winning goal but Blake Chartier (Winnipeg) of the Warriors tied it up 37 seconds later to send the game into overtime.

With the extra period solving nothing, Andy Smith (Rosetown) was the lone player to score in the shootout lifting his team to the 3-2 victory.

Starting goalie Justin Leclerc (Saskatoon) was solid between the pipes for Waterloo stopping 36 shots and all three shootout attempts for the win while Dan Savelli made several key saves of his own and allowed only two goals on 30 shots.

The first period was all Windsor as the Lancers showed off their outside speed and nose for the net. With Waterloo in penalty trouble the Lancers would pepper Leclerc with all types of shots on a 5-on-3 opportunity but the Warrior netminder was equal to the task, stopping all 16 shots faced in the opening frame.

The second period would open up as both teams went on the attack. Waterloo found the first goal of the game at the 3:16 mark as rookie Josh Woolley (Cambridge) would net his first goal as a Warrior to put the home squad up by one. Woolley made good after his own tip putting home the rebound while falling to the ice. Jarred Parent (West Montrose) and Ryan Molle (Calgary) were credited with the assists.

The Lancers would respond two minutes later as Brett Vandehogen (Chatham, Ont.) picked up an errand pass by Spencer Prommels (Grand Prairie, Alta.) and slid the puck home on his backhand past Leclerc.

Both squads would exchange chances in the next ten minutes but Leclerc and Savelli stood tall keeping the contest locked at one's as the period would end with a Waterloo penalty to Justin Larson (Buckhorn).

Windsor was unable to capitalize on their third period power play as Waterloo's penalty killers did a good job of getting in the shooting lanes. Both teams would continue to exchange chances before Windsor found the go ahead marker at 17:16 by Lanoue. Lancers captain Matt McCready (Kingsville, Ont.) ripped a shot that bounced off Lanoue past Leclerc.

The Warriors would not let down, pressuring Windsor and would be rewarded 37 seconds later as Chartier would pick up a rebound on the goal mouth following a Larson shot that was tipped by Jarrett Schnurr (Waterloo).

With overtime settling nothing, Andy Smith (Rosetown) stepped up as the third and final shooter for Waterloo sliding the puck low blocker side on Sanelli to give Waterloo the extra point.

The win gives Waterloo a little more breathing room in third spot in the OUA west with 28 points (12-6-4) while Windsor sits alone in sixth with 19 points (9-11-1).

Source: Warriors Athletics

Carleton Ravens @ Concordia Stingers

The Carleton University Ravens men’s hockey team slugged out a 5-4 victory over OUA East rivals, the Concordia University Stingers, on Saturday afternoon.

The Ravens entered play looking to turn their season around after a string of disappointing results. Carleton had lost eight of their last nine, including a 1-0 heartbreaker in a shootout on Friday to the OUA East-leading McGill University Redmen and a 7-2 loss to the Stingers in early December.

While goals were hard to come by in Friday’s affair, the Ravens had no problem lighting the lamp in this one.

Connor Barrett (Washington D.C.) opened the scoring with seven minutes to play in the opening period, putting his team up one.

The Ravens kept up the pressure and extended their lead to two when Joey Manley (Ottawa) tipped home a Charles Carre (Sudbury, Ont.) point shot just over a minute later.

Matthew Dopud (Pointe-Claire, Que.) was excellent in net for the second consecutive game as he battled 15 shots in the first period. He was foiled only by Etienne Archambault (St. Hyacinthe, Que.) who scored a power-play marker late in the frame.

The Ravens sprinted out the gate to start the second, trying to restore their two goal lead. They fired the first five shots on goal and then Joe Pleckaitis (Ottawa) scooped up a Stinger turnover and backhanded the puck past Peter Karvouniaris (Laval, Que.).

But Concordia didn’t let this one slip away, as Mike Stinziani (Montreal) responded with a goal two minutes later to keep the Stingers within one.

Then Carleton got into some penalty trouble. On a 5-on-3 advantage, Concordia’s Charles-Antoine Messier (Boucherville, Que.) roofed a bullet to even up the score at three apiece.

However, it only took Carleton two minutes to regain the lead on a hard shot from Matthew Stanisz (Boston) on the man-advantage. Then, Ryan Berard (Niagara Falls, Ont.) scored with 15 seconds left in the second to put the Ravens back up by two heading into the third.

The score held for most of the final frame. Both teams continued to bombard each other with shots but it was Stinger captain Eric Begin (St. Lambert, Que.) who tallied his third point of the day with a power-play goal with less than four minutes to play.

The Ravens held their ground for the final minutes of play and secured the 5-4 victory.

Manley led the Raven attack, finishing with one goal and two assists.

With only six games to play on the season, the Ravens (12-7-3) have 27 points and are in third place in the OUA East.

The team has little time to rest as they return to the Ice House on Tuesday, Jan. 24 to take on the Queen’s University Gaels. Puck drop is at 7 p.m.

Source: Ravens Athletics

Windsor Lancers @ Laurier Golden Hawks

WATERLOO, Ont. (January 21, 2012) - The Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks men's hockey team (7-14-1) looked to bounce back off a Friday night loss to the Guelph Gryphons (7-12-4) Saturday when the Windsor Lancers (9-11-1) came to Waterloo.

D.J. Turner of Windsor, Ont., opened the scoring for the Lancers half way through the first period. The lead was short lived however, and Mitchell Good of Wellesley, Ont., evened things up soon after. The Hawks were able to pull ahead towards the end of period when Jonathan Veerman of Burlington, Ont., scored his first goal as a Golden Hawk.

A tripping call against Laurier's Zackory Ray of Oakville, Ont., allowed the Lancers to tie the score part way through the second period.

The Lancers wouldn't be able to gain a lead though, and part way through the third, Mitch Lebar of Aurora, Ont., assisted by Good, scored what would become the game winner. Mike Mascioli of Azilda, Ont., would go on to put one in an empty Windsor net to secure the win.

Laurier goalie Ryan Daniels of Pickering, Ont., stood strong facing a total of 36 shots in the game. Trevor Atkinson of Burlington, Ont., Jonas Strom of Vasteras, Sweden, Frank Riddle of St. Catherines, Ont., Alexander Poutler of Broomfield, Co., and Zack Woolford of Rockwood, Ont., all registered assists in the game.

This is the Hawks third win in their last five games and they hope to add another on Friday as they travel to Oshawa to take on the UOIT Ridgebacks (4-17-1).

Source: Laurier Athletics

Nipissing Lakers @ RMC Paladins

The Nipissing Lakers men's hockey team weathered the storm, coming back from a 2-1 deficit to claim a 3-2 win over the RMC Paladins in Kingston, Saturday.

The win was the second in as many nights for the Lakers (12-6-4), who beat the Queen's Gaels 4-3 in a shootout Friday.

The last-place Paladins (3-19-1) weren't put away easily, taking a 2-1 lead in the first period and outshooting Nipissing 40-34 on the night.

After the Lakers' Doug Clarkson opened the scoring 9:05 into the game — his team-leading 12th goal and his sixth in the past four games — the Paladins went ahead 2-1 on goals by Alex Pym and Andrew Lalonde.

Nipissing's Andrew Marcoux tied the game 12:40 into the second period and Grant Toulmin's netted the game-winner with 2:49 remaining in the game.

Conor O'Donnell had two assists on the night.

Lakers goalie Daniel Spence stopped 38 of 40 shots for the win and was named the first star.

The Lakers, with 28 points, now hold third place in the tight OUA East division with six games remaining, one point up on the Carleton Ravens (12-7-3). Ottawa, Ryerson and Toronto are in a three-way tie for fifth place with 25 points each.

The Lakers hit the road Thursday to face Ryerson (11-8-3).

Source: Nipissing Athletics

UOIT Ridgebacks @ York Lions

The York University Lions men's hockey team scored two goals in just over one minute late in the second period to open up a close game en route to a 5-3 victory over the UOIT Ridgebacks at Canlan Ice Sports on Saturday night (Jan. 21).

The Lions (11-8-4) remain in sole possession of fourth place in the OUA West standings and are still just two points back of the Waterloo Warriors with five games to play. The Ridgebacks (4-18-1) remain in last place in the division.

The game was also part of the team's 50th anniversary celebrations, and nearly 100 former players and coaches were in attendance to watch the game and celebrate with the current team. As part of the night, York also announced the creation of the Arthur John Boynton Bursary in honour of former player and coach Art Boynton. Boynton passed away in March 2011 but his wife, Marilyn, was on hand for the ceremonial puck drop.

In a span of 3:08 the two teams combined for five goals in what was otherwise a strong defensive effort from both sides. The flurry began at the 17:17 mark of the second period, when team captain Jesse Messier (Keswick, Ont.) found the back of the net for his ninth goal of the season to give the Lions a 2-0 lead.

But just 18 seconds later UOIT's James Woodcroft (Milton, Ont.) scored his second of the year to cut the lead in half. Forty seconds after that, Mackenzie Micks (Orillia, Ont.) found himself alone in front of a wide open cage after a big rebound off the pad of Jason Guy (Whitby, Ont.) and he tapped in the puck for a 3-1 lead.

The Lions didn't get to enjoy that two-goal advantage for too long, however, as Luke VanMoerkerke (Tillsonburg, Ont.) again cut the deficit to one with a goal only eight seconds into the third period, and Evan Gravenor (Winnipeg) restored the two-goal lead 17 seconds later.

Mark Cross (Strasbourg, Sask.) scored his second goal in as many nights mid-way through the period to give the Lions a commanding 5-2 lead. Tony Rizzi (Kingston, Ont.) closed the game with his 10th of the season with six seconds on the clock, but by then the Lions had already secured the victory.

Messier continued his stellar season with another three points, including an assist on the game-winning goal. He is now ranked 10th in OUA scoring with 29 points on the year.

Also recording multi-point nights were Jeremie Perron (Calgary) and Bryan Weinberg (Thornhill, Ont.) with two assists each.

After a scoreless first period in which the two teams combined for just 16 shots, defenceman Matt Thomson (Kitchener, Ont.) netted the first goal of the game on a power play 7:24 into the second to give the Lions a 1-0 lead.

Both teams continued to struggle with scoring chances until late in the period, when the Lions and Ridgebacks began their back-and-forth offensive onslaught.

Rookie goaltender Andrew Perugini (King City, Ont.) earned his seventh win of the season with 24 saves on the night, while Guy made 25 in the loss before being replaced by Jacob Rattie (Niagara Falls, Ont.) with 14:55 left in the third period.

The Lions have now earned 11 of a possible 14 points in 2012 with a 5-1-1 record. They will go for their seventh win in nine games next weekend in a home-and-home series with the Guelph Gryphons. The first game is set for Thursday night (Jan. 26) at Canlan Ice Sports beginning at 7pm and two nights later the team will hit the ice in Guelph at 7:30pm.

Source: Lions Athletics

Western Mustangs @ Lakehead Thunderwolves

THUNDER BAY, Ont. – The Western Mustangs finished off a back-to-back game weekend against the Lakehead Thunderwolves with a 1-0 victory on Sat. Jan. 21.

Zach Harnden notched the game-winning goal with an assist from Matt Ashman.

Western downed the Thunderwolves in another 1-0 match last night. With tonight’s win, the Mustangs (18-2-2) pull six points ahead of second place Lakehead (17-5-0) for first place in the OUA West.

Josh Unice made 29 saves for his second shutout of the weekend.

Western will travel to Windsor on Thurs. Jan. 26 for a 7:30 p.m. puck drop. The Mustangs play host to Lakehead on Sat. Jan. 28 at Thompson Arena.

Source: Mustangs Athletics

Toronto Varsity Blues @ Queen’s Gaels

Varsity Blues rookie goaltender Brett Willows made 29 saves and recorded his first career shut out in a 3-0 victory over the Queen’s Gaels in OUA men’s hockey action on Saturday night (Jan. 21) at Kingston Memorial Centre.

Third-year forward Kyle Ventura of Scarborough, Ont., scored the game-winner on the powerplay with 2:23 remaining in the first period and also added an assist on Toronto’s third goal.

The win lifts Blues (11-8-3) into a three-way tie for fifth place with Ottawa and Ryerson in the OUA East. The Gaels drop to 10-9-2 and sit in ninth.

"I thought we played with some desperation and took advantage of opportunities that we created," said Varsity Blues head coach Darren Lowe. "It good to get the two points."

The two teams set the tone early on in the first period with players from both sides finishing every check and not giving up an inch of ice. This physicality did however result in a trade-off of penalties for each team. The Blues took advantage of costly Gaels penalties on a 5-on-3 advantage. Ventura fired a rebound over the right shoulder of Gaels starting netminder Riley Whitlock to notch his 13th goal of the season and make it 1-0.

The Varsity Blues extended their lead early in the second period when second-year forward Anthony Bergin (Scarborough, Ont.) managed to squeak a shot through the pads of Whitlock.

Only 18 seconds into the third period, Michael Markovic added an insurance marker to round out the three-goal win.

Source: Varsity Blues Athletics

Brock Badgers @ Waterloo Warriors

HAMILTON, Ont. - The Waterloo Warriors scored three unanswered goals in the final period to capture the first ever OUA Outdoor Classic 3-1 on Sunday afternoon at Ivor Wynne Stadium in Hamilton.

Waterloo netminder Keaton Hartigan (Kitchener) was named the Harrow Sports Canada player of the game for his consistently stellar play between the pipes for the Warriors. Hartigan stopped 29 of 30 shots, ultimately keeping Waterloo in the game, while Badgers starting goalie Kurt Jory (Brandon, Man.) allowed two goals on 23 shots, as Waterloo's third marker was an empty net goal.

The atmosphere was buzzing and both teams shared the excitement of playing in the great outdoors. As each team took the ice it was impossible to miss the smiles on the coaching staff and players who were simply thrilled with the opportunity to play in the Outdoor Classic. The excitement quickly turned into spirited competition as both teams fought until the bitter end in a penalty filled affair.

The Badgers took advantage of the crowd's excitement with the first quality chance three minutes into the game. Josh Schram (Paris, Ont.) walked in alone on Hartigan, but the fourth year goalie managed to stick his blocker out, and keep the game scoreless. Hartigan would continue to stand tall for the first half of the opening frame. The period would end with Brock holding a slight edge in shots at 7-5, and the game locked at zeros.

The second period opened in similar fashion as the first, this time with Brock forward Derek Brochu (Welland, Ont) finding himself one-on-one with Hartigan, but again the Warrior netminder would turn aside the early period chance. Brock would continue their attack but could not solve Haritgan and the Warriors' defence.

Following a Badger penalty to Kevin Christmas (Hamilton, Ont.), the Warriors would get their best opportunity of the second period off the stick of leading scorer Kirt Hill (Winnipeg). Hill picked up the puck in the slot but fired it high glove, just missing the top corner.

Shortly after successfully killing their penalty, the visiting Brock Badgers were the first to find the scoreboard when Thomas Stajan (Mississauga, Ont.) made no mistake from the slot, firing home his tenth goal of the season.

Despite the fierce play from both sides in the opening two periods, the OUA Outdoor Classic became true to its name in the final frame as the competition turned fierce between the two combatants.

The Warriors found the equalizer at 6:39 as Jeff Einhorn (Red Deer)'s point shot made its way through a slew of bodies and past Jory. Andy Smith (Rosetown) picked up the lone helper on the Einhorn goal. Two minutes later Waterloo notched what would be the eventual game winner as Chris Ray (Kelowna) tipped home a Ryan Molle (Calgary) point shot. The goal was generated off a determined effort by Tyler Moir (Calgary) who picked up his own rebound and circled the net before sliding a perfect pass out to Molle.

With Waterloo leading the Badgers 2-1 late in the third, the game took on a whole new momentum. Brock defenceman Jake LaPlante (Mississauga, Ont.) took exception to an exchange of words by the Warriors and ended up serving a total of 19 minutes in penalties, giving Waterloo a seven minute power play.

The Warriors were not intent on killing the clock on their lengthy power play, and proceeded to dive into trouble of their own by taking three straight minor penalties to send Brock to a late 5-on-3 situation.

Hartigan and the Warrior penalty kill, led by Ray and Joe Underwood (Canton), remained poised and killed off the two-man Brock advantage. With only a minute remaining in an exciting outdoor contest the Warriors sealed the victory as Hill pinched the boards on a keep-in attempt by the Badgers and slid the puck into the empty net.

Despite the loss, Brock Head Coach Murray Nystrom was thrilled with the experience. “We certainly enjoyed the whole setting, and I think the game lived up to the high expectations. We are grateful to the Hamilton Bulldogs for the opportunity to be a part of the festival, and we're very thankful to them for showcasing OUA hockey. The atmosphere was great, and the weather was spectacular. Though we would have preferred a different result, we'll look back years from now and reflect positively on the experience.”

Warriors' captain Chris Ray (Kelowna) shared Nystrom's sentiment. “I think when you're part of CIS hockey, you don't expect to be able to come to a venue like this, and I know everyone on Brock and our team feel very honoured. Only two teams in our league got the chance to play, and it feels special to be a part of the first OUA Outdoor Classic.”

Waterloo moved to 13-6-3 on the season, only two points back of second place Lakehead. Brock slipped back to 11-10-1 on the season, good for fifth in the OUA West.

The Warriors and Badgers will renew their established rivalry only three days from now as they meet again in St. Catharines on Wednesday night in what is sure to be a heated contest. Puck drop is set for 7:35pm at the Seymour-Hannah Centre.

Source: Warriors Athletics

UQTR Patriotes @ Ottawa Gee-Gees

The Gee-Gees entered Sunday afternoon’s matchup with the UQTR Patriotes hoping to snap a two game losing streak. However, a costly slow start would set the pace for the Gees’ afternoon, eventually losing by a score of 6-3.

Coming off of an 8-4 loss on the road against Concordia on Friday, the Garnet & Grey were looking for a strong start to get them back to their winning ways. However, the first period for the fifth place Gee-Gees was anything but strong, surrendering three goals and every bit of momentum in the opening frame. The first intermission did not help the Gee-Gees as far as making the proper adjustments, as they allowed another UQTR goal just 33 seconds into the second frame. Jean-Sebastien Breton’s goal sent Gee-Gees starting goaltender Aaron Barton (Carlisle, Ont.) packing to be replaced by usual starter Russell Abbot (Mill Bay, B.C.).

“We had some defensive breakdowns off their rushes,” explained Gee-Gees head coach Réal Paiement. “We just get lost and start chasing the puck. We start opening holes and a highly skilled team like UQTR will score if you give them those chances.”

The Gee-Gees’ frustration became evident in the second period, dishing out plenty of huge hits and initiating the gritty play at both ends of the ice. One such situation resulted in a 5-on-3 for the Gee-Gees, who finally capitalized on the power play with a perfect top corner snipe from captain Matt Methot (Ottawa, Ont.).

However, what little momentum the Gee-Gees could gather up was negated by yet another poor start to a period. This time the Garnet & Grey fell victim to poor defensive zone coverage and allowed a rebound goal just two minutes and 25 seconds into the frame.

“We had a territorial advantage early on, but we didn’t score and we got hypnotized by the puck,” explained Paiement. “From there, it’s a turnover and when we’re coming back we’re disorganized and they find a hole to score.”

The men in Garnet & Grey would manage to score two late third period goals by Methot and Stephen Blunden (Ottawa, Ont.), but it was too little too late for a Gee-Gees squad that has now lost three straight games, and four of six since returning from the exam break.

“Right now I think we need to stay away from the rink and reorganize,” said Paiment. “This past week we focused on practicing the basics and fundamentals, but we didn’t have good results this weekend. For now, we need to take a step back and find a way to rebound.”

The Gee-Gees will have a chance to do so next weekend when they travel to McGill to take on the Redmen on Friday, January 27, 7:00 p.m. before returning home to host the battle of the capital with the Carleton Ravens on Sunday, January 29, at 2:00 p.m.

Source: Gee-Gees Athletics

OUA SCHEDULE & RESULTS

January 19, 2012
Toronto, 0 @ Ryerson, 3
Guelph, 3 @ UOIT, 1

January 20, 2012
Carleton, 0 @ McGill, 1 (SO)
Ryerson, 4 @ RMC, 0
York, 4 @ Brock, 5 (OT)
Ottawa, 4 @ Concordia, 8
Laurier, 3 @ Guelph, 5
Western, 1 @ Lakehead, 0
Nipissing, 4 @ Queen’s, 3 (SO)
Windsor, 2 @ Waterloo, 3 (SO)

January 21, 2012
Carleton, 5 @ Concordia, 4
Windsor, 2 @ Laurier, 4
Nipissing, 3 @ RMC, 2
UOIT, 3 @ York, 5
Western, 1 @ Lakehead, 0
Toronto, 3 @ Queen’s, 0