AROUND OUA: Paladins avenge Carr-Harris Cup loss to Queen's
KINGSTON, Ont.. (February 10, 2016) - Ryan Bloom's two goals weren't enough, as Queen's (16-7-3) fell to RMC (4-20-3) in double overtime Wednesday night 4-3.
SCOREBOARD
UQTR 6 @ Concordia 5
Paladins avenge Carr-Harris Cup loss to Queen's
KINGSTON, Ont.. (February 10, 2016) - Ryan Bloom's two goals weren't enough, as Queen's (16-7-3) fell to RMC (4-20-3) in double overtime Wednesday night 4-3.
It was a much tighter affair in Kingston this time around. When the two teams met last week for the Carr-Harris Challenge Cup, the Gaels skated to a convincing 6-2 win for their 19th Cup. On Wednesday, it took double overtime before things were decided and the Paladins kept the powerful Gaels offence at bay for most of the night.
Game Flow
It only took 2:29 for the Gaels to open the scoring at the Carr-Harris Cup, but this time around it was the home team Paladins who came out firing in the opening frame. Just over eight minutes in, Deric Bouchard scored his first of the year. It was an important first goal, helping give RMC some early-game momentum against a stronger Queen's team. Before closing out the period, Ryan Bloom (Calgary. Alta.) tied things up with his 8th goal of the year.
Looking to build on the late-period push, the Gaels were able to score again and earn a 2-1 lead in the middle frame. Just after killing off a Steve Trojanovic (Burlington, Ont.) penalty, Queen's went on the offensive as Darcy Greenaway (Wilton, Ont.) put one past the RMC goaltender Matt Murphy. The Paladins held the visitors to just nine shots in the period and managed to tie things up five minutes later. They weren't done there though, looking to play their underdog card, they'd score once again and take a 3-2 lead heading into the third.
RMC players shut down for most of the final 20 minutes of regulation. It wasn't until the 14 minutes mark of the period that Queen's capitalized on their limited chances. Each team was unsuccessful on with the man advantage on Wednesday, but it was Bloom's second even strength goal of the game that tied things up at 3-3 with five minutes to go in the final frame.
Regulation would solve nothing as the Kingston rivals would head to overtime. Both Kevin Bailie (Belleville, Ont.) and Matt Murphy turned away the few chances thrown at them in the first OT. The game would need even more time, as teams went to 3-on-3 for the next five minutes of extra play. Playing spoiler and home team hero, Mathieu Lavallee would snap one past Bailie to give the RMC Paladins their 4th win of the OUA season.
For the Gaels, it's the first OUA regular season loss to the Paladins since the 2014 Carr-Harris Cup, when RMC won by a tight 2-1 score.
By the Numbers
30 - shots each team registered in regulation
9 - goals on the year for Ryan Bloom, tied for third on the team
2 - assists by Slater Doggett (Oakville, Ont.), totalling 16 on the season
35 - points for the Gaels on the year, one more than their rivals UOIT in the standings
24 - the Gaels were without #24 Spencer Abraham their leading scorer
Up Next
The Gaels will be at home for the final two games of the regular season, hosting the Nipissing Lakers (11-12-3) and the Laurentian Voyageurs (7-14-5). Both will be at the INVISTA Centre at 7:30pm. Be sure to head over to the last couple of games as Queen's looks to cement itself in the top four of the OUA's East Conference going into the playoffs.
Source: Queen's Gaels
