AROUND OUA: Western fends off late Gryphons push for fifth straight victory
LONDON, Ont. – A late surge from Guelph wasn't enough to knock off the red hot Mustangs on Saturday night, as Western put up three goals through the first two periods to come away with a 3-2 victory over the Gryphons at Thompson Arena.
SCOREBOARD
McGill 3 @ Concordia 2
Western fends off late Gryphons push for fifth straight victory
LONDON, Ont. – A late surge from Guelph wasn't enough to knock off the red hot Mustangs on Saturday night, as Western put up three goals through the first two periods to come away with a 3-2 victory over the Gryphons at Thompson Arena.
"I didn't think we were that sharp," said Western head coach Clarke Singer after the game. "I think we've played a lot better this year and I thought we were fortunate. We had good goaltending and I think [Greg Dodds] stole the show there in the second and the third period for us."
"It wasn't pretty," agreed defenceman Stephen Gaskin about the effort. "Definitely could have played a lot better in the second there but you could tell they were coming off a day of rest and we were coming off a double overtime win."
The win is Western's fifth in a row and comes a night after the purple and white edged out the Varsity Blues on the road in extra frames. The dead tired Mustangs came out hot but cooled off, firing 18 shots in the first period before being outshot 26-9 through the final two frames.
Considering that the Mustangs haven't played with a full roster since the first night of the season, it's a testament to the compete level of their core players that they were able to pull out the win on Saturday, despite the fact that they weren't at their sharpest.
"We definitely have to step up—everyone has to," said Gaskin when asked about playing short-handed early in the season. "Even the young guys who are getting a lot more ice so I think we've done a good job as a team stepping up and sticking to our systems and that's kind of been the key to our success in the first five games here."
Dodds picked up the win for the Mustangs with 32 saves on 34 shots while his counterpart Scott Stajcer had 26 saves in the loss. A night after they were in all three goals, the line of Luke Karaim, Matt Marantz, and Trent Ouellette combined for five points, extending the point streaks of Marantz and Ouellette to five games each.
Gaskin had a goal and an assist on Saturday after assisting on Alex Micallef's goal in double overtime on Friday. His goal, which saw him deposit a pass from rookie Ray Huether at the hashmarks, stood up as the game-winner after Guelph's Stephen Hiff scored in the third.
Hiff was joined in the goal column by teammate Michael Stevens, whose second-period marker was sandwiched between a pair from Karaim and Gaskin. Karaim's goal was a no doubter, ringing in off the crossbar and in as Stajcer watched it fly over his shoulder.
Guelph largely outplayed Western through the final two frames, and even in the Mustangs' 17-shot first period they struggled to make their passes early. But a late goal from Marantz on a crisp passing play between him, Karaim, and Gaskin put any early worries to rest.
Things would begin to get a bit tougher late in the period, as the already short-staffed Mustangs, who dressed just 18 players for the third time this season, lost veteran Shaun Furlong on a call for checking from behind. Furlong was given two and ten, leaving Western with 15 skaters for a time.
Five of those skaters were defencemen, but somehow they didn't look outgunned. They came up particularly strong late in the third period, when another penalty from Furlong left the Mustangs down two men facing a hungry Gryphons squad. But Dodds came up strong, stopping 14 shots in the third period alone, and Western's defence was able to do the rest.
"You've obviously got to have confidence in those guys, they've done a great job for the longest time—even stretching back to last year," Singer said when asked about the work of his penalty killers late in the game. "Again, they did a great job tonight—six-on-four—so you know we've got great penalty killers."
"Not even thinking," said Marantz of his mentality during the late penalty kill. "Just in the moment and kill the penalty off and get the win."
Marantz now leads the team with nine points through five games while Ouellette is close behind with three goals and eight points. It's been a strong start to the year for a pair of guys who were asked to step up and have come through for the purple and white.
"Obviously a little bit, you want to score goals and get assists," Marantz responded when asked whether he was planning on a bit more offence this year. "But the important thing is that we're 5-0 and we've got to get two wins on the road next weekend."
Those games see the Mustangs travel north to face off against Laurentian and Nipissing. The next time they're back at home is November 6 and 7, when they face Concordia and UQTR, respectively, at Thompson Arena.
NOTES: Gaskin is tied for third on Western's scoring leaderboard at six points with Huether and Karaim, but isn't focused on his own stats: "Obviously I like to contribute offensively and it's nice that it's paying off, but as a group we try to get the [defence] more involved and I think you can see that right through the lineup, not just me but the young guys that have stepped up," he said… Singer was guarded when asked about the return of some his injured players in the coming weeks but his answer boiled down to no. "I don't think so," he said. "I mean we'll be lucky if we have maybe one guy back for next weekend but my guess is probably not."
Source: Western Mustangs
Brock skates to 8-1 victory over Laurentian
ST. CATHARINES, Ont. - The Brock University men's hockey team skated to an 8-1 victory over the Laurentian Voyageurs Saturday afternoon at the Seymour-Hannah Centre.
The Badgers opened the scoring midway through the first period on a power play goal from Josh Timpano (Orillia, Ont.). Andrew Coupland (Cambridge, Ont.) and Sammy Banga (Windsor, Ont.) added the assists.
Brock would add two more goals with the man advantage in the opening period. At 15:28, Banga setup Mitch Nardi (Hamiton, Ont.) for his third goal of the year. Less than two minutes later, Nardi and Jamie Kendra (Markham, Ont.) found Jake Cardwell (Niagara Fall, Ont.) who beat Laurentian's Alain Valiquette for his second of the campaign.
The Badgers offense continued to roll, adding four more goals in the second period to take a commanding 7-0 lead. Scoring for Brock in the second were Brody Silk (Iroquois Fall, Ont.), Chris Maniccia (St. Catharines, Ont.), Banga and Coupland.
Timpano rounded out the Brock scoring in the third period, adding his second goal of the game.
Banga had a strong game finishing with a four points, adding a goal and three assists. Timpano (2G), Cardwell (1G, 1A), Coupland (1G, 1A), Nardi (1G, 1A), Jeffrey Corbett (2A) and Skylar Pacheco (2A) all chipped in with two points each.
In goal, Brock starter Clint Windsor (Hamilton, Ont.) recorded 40 saves for his second straight victory.
The Badger went 5-for-8 on the power play, while Laurentian was 1-for-7.
Source: Brock Badgers
Morrison leads Golden Hawks to Homecoming victory
BRANTFORD, Ont. (October 24, 2015) - Third year left wing Kyle Morrison lead the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks men's hockey team to a 5-1 victory over the RMC Paladins at the Brantford Civic Centre on Saturday.
After a scoreless first period, Morrison (Mississauga, Ont.) launched the Golden Hawks ahead with a natural hat trick in the second with goals scored in the first, seventh and sixteenth minute of play to give the purple and gold a 3-0 lead in front of a cheering Brantford Homecoming crowd.
Will Cook (Port Stanley, Ont.) assisted on all three of the goals scored by Morrison for the period, and Ryan Lopes (Brampton, Ont.) recorded two assists.
In the final period, the Paladins were finally able to respond with a goal coming from first year forward Bruce Hornbrook (Bathurst, N.B) at the midway point of the period, but it wouldn't be enough to change the momentum in favour of the Paladins.
The Hawks took back control and Derek Schoenmakers (Kitchener, Ont.) notched a goal in the two minutes later, which was followed quickly by the Hawks' fifth and final goal from Lopes, who finished with one goal and three assists on the night.
Vinny Merante (Niagara Falls, N.Y.) picked up the win for Laurier, his second of the season, as he stopped 35 of the 36 shots he faced. Matthew Beirns (Barrie, Ont.) took the loss in goal for RMC, who suffered their fifth loss in a row.
The Hawks, who won for the first time in four Laurier Brantford Homecoming games, are now at an even 2-2-0 for the year. They will next face the Carleton Ravens on October 25th at the Waterloo Rec Complex. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Source: Laurier Golden Hawks
The Waterloo Warriors had a night to forget on Saturday night against the Carleton Ravens.
Brett Welychca had a goal and three assists, and the Ravens exploded for five goals in a span of 4:52 in the second period as the Ravens beat the Warriors 9-2 at the Columbia Icefield Arena in Waterloo.
In addition to Welychca, nine other Ravens had multi-point games, as Carleton won their first road contest of the season. Meanwhile, the Warriors got a pair of goals from Andrew Smith (Kitchener), while goaltender Chris Hurry (Summerland) turned aside 32 shots in defeat.
The Warriors jumped on the board quickly, as Smith took a Colin Behenna (Waterloo) feed and scored just 49 seconds into the first. However, the Warriors found penalty trouble and the Ravens rattled off three goals before the first period concluded, taking a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes.
Before the midway point in the second period, the game was out of reach – the Ravens potted five markers in succession early in the middle frame, making the score 8-1. Smith scored his second of the game before the period was over, but the Ravens added one more in the third to round out the scoring.
As is often the case in lopsided games, tensions boiled over at a number of points throughout the night. By the end of the game, a whopping 200 penalty minutes had been doled out between the two clubs.
The loss drops Waterloo to 3-3-0 on the season, as they suffered their first home loss of the season. The Warriors are back in action next weekend with a pair of games In Quebec, starting with the QUTR Patriotes on Friday, October 30.
Source: Waterloo Warriors
Lions explode for seven goals in big win over Lakers
The York University Lions men's hockey team came away with a 7-1 victory on home ice against the Nipissing Lakers on Saturday night (Oct. 24) at Canlan Ice Sports.
The Lions began the first period on the power play but couldn't muster up any scoring chances, this in part to the Lakers penalty kill unit plugging up the passing lanes. After the power play concluded for the Lions, Lakers starting goaltender Kirk Rafuse turned away several potential scoring opportunities, keeping the game scoreless. This was until Reid Jackman (Etobicoke, Ont.) wired a shot from the hash marks that beat Rafuse high glove side, giving the Lions a one goal lead. The assist went to Derek Sheppard (Ajax, Ont.).
In the second period the Lions came out roaring, and peppered Rafuse with an array of shots from all directions. But it was the Lakers who broke the scoreboard first in the second. Lions starting goalie Chris Perugini (King City, Ont.) made the initial save on a shot but lost the puck in the crease and a pack of Lakers crashed the net and potted the loose puck in the back of the net, tying the game up 1-1.
After the Lions gave up the equalizer, York came firing back. Colton Vannucci (High River, Alt.) gave a no-look pass from the corner to set up Trevor Petersen (Thornhill, Ont.) streaking down the middle of the ice which he redirected upstairs on Rafuse giving the Lions a 2-1 advantage.
Nipissing had another great chance to tie the game a short time later when Brock Morrison took a penalty that was killed, and the moment he exited the box he was sprung on a breakaway. But Perugini squared up and made an acrobatic save that saw him twist in the crease and bat the puck out of mid-air, while losing his mask, and holding on for a faceoff.
At the 14:12 mark of the second period the Lions added their third tally as Derek Sheppard (Ajax, Ont.) weaved through the entire Lakers team, made an inside outside move that tripped up the defenceman, and went five-hole on Rafuse, putting York up 3-1.
Sheppard wasn't quite finished yet, as he snapped his second goal of the game less than three minutes later to give the Lions a 4-1 lead heading into the third period.
The third period for the Lions was nothing short of an offensive explosion. York scored two goals in under 1:20 at the start of the final frame. The first of the two goals was scored by Justin Larson (Buckhorn, Ont.) 54 seconds in, which was assisted by Greg Milner (Watford, Ont.) and Petersen, followed by Jackman scoring his second of the game at the 1:18 mark assisted by Mark Cross (Strasbourg, Sask.) and Shayne Rover (New Market, Ont.).
The Lions continued to apply the pressure as they added another two minutes after the Jackman goal by Tyler McGee (Timmons, Ont.), which was assisted by Larson and Tyler Mort (Keswick, Ont.).
Perugini was once again solid between the pipes for the Lions, turning aside 32 of 33 shots in the win. He has started every game so far this season.
The Lions are now 4-0-1 on the season, and they will look to add to their win total on Friday (Oct. 30) when they travel downtown to face the Ryerson Rams at 7:30pm.
Source: York Lions
Lakehead fell 4-1 to Queen's as the Gaels completed the weekend sweep of the Thunderwolves before a crowd of 2050 at the Fort William Gardens Saturday night.
Patrick McGillis put Queen's up 1-0 early when he scored on Lakehead goalie Jeff Bosch just 2:17 into the game.
The Wolves' only goal of the night came four minutes later when Carson Dubchak tipped Cody Alcock's shot past Gaels' netminder Kevin Bailie to even the game at 1-1.
A short-handed goal by McGillis at 8:54, followed by an even-strength marker from Braden Mercier at 15:18 gave Queen's a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes of play.
The Gael's padded their lead when Shawn Boudreau converted on the power play with 7:25 left in the middle frame.
Freshman Devin Green replaced Bosch in the Wolves' goal for the third period, one in which neither team scored as Queen's held on for the win.
Shots on goal for the game were 38-28 in favor of the Gaels.
Source: Lakehead Thunderwolves
Bounce back win for the Ridgebacks over No. 7 Lancers
WINDSOR, Ont. – The UOIT men's hockey team showed a lot of heart on Saturday night as they upset the No. 7 ranked Windsor Lancers 3-1 on the road.
Things looked bleak for UOIT heading into the game after suffering a lopsided 8-3 loss to the top-ranked Lancers the night prior. Things also did not get off to a good start once the puck hit the ice as Windsor took a 1-0 lead on a power play marker by Julian Luciani.
With their back against the wall, UOIT managed to respond scoring the next three goals while shutting down the league's top offence for the remainder of the game.
Jason Shaw (Belleville, Ont.) got things started for UOIT with an unassisted power play goal in the first period.
Ben Blasko (Kingston, Ont.) would get the go-ahead goal 1:57 into the third period, which was his team leading seventh point of the year. Mark Petaccio (Sicklerville, N.J) recorded the assist on the play.
With Windsor on the power play looking for the equalizer, it was UOIT assistant captain Jesse Stoughton (Bobcaygeon, Ont.) who found the back of the net as he scored his seventh career shorthanded goal. Jake Logan (Napanee, Ont.) picked up an assist on the insurance marker.
Brendan O'Neill (Ilderton, Ont.) made 33 saves in his third win of the year. O'Neill has a .907 save percentage in six games this season.
The Ridgebacks (3-3-0) will remain on the road as they head to the other end of the province to take on the Carleton Ravens on Oct. 30 in a playoff rematch. The Ravens beat UOIT 2-0 in their opening round series.
Source: UOIT Ridgebacks
