TORONTO – Ryerson Rams Troy Passingham returned to the crease in dramatic fashion Thursday night, stopping all 37 of the shots he faced on route to a 3-0 shutout win over the Brock Badgers.
BOXSCORE
Thursday night's perfect game puts Passingham on a list all by his lonesome, becoming the first men's goalie to record a shutout on Mattamy Home Ice in program history.
Passingham's last two career shutouts have come on the road, with his last one dating as far back as January 19th, 2012 in a 3-0 win over U of T.
The Rams net-minder returned to the blue paint for the first time since pulling his groin on November 28th, and looked to be in fine working condition after perfect results.
“I obviously felt pretty good,” said Passingham. “I've been getting some practice in lately and it feels good to be back. I just felt really good out there.”
A scoreless first period saw Passingham matched save for save from Badgers starting goaltender Clint Windsor, but the Rams would break the seal early in the second.
The top line of Michael Fine, Jamie Lewis and Marcus Hinds looked like their typical selves on Thursday. They all touched the puck before Lewis put it home for the first goal of the game. Lewis's second of the year had the Rams up 2-0 early in the second.
Both goaltenders then dueled it out for the remainder of the period. The Rams rounded out the first forty minutes with the lone goal in the frame.
The Rams then took over in the third. Executed possession and puck movement lead to another early period goal from Kyle Blaney. Blaney's patience showed after he skated in front and waited out his opponent before sending it past Windsor for the marker.
The Rams then sealed the deal late in the third off of Lewis's second of the game. Hinds picked the puck up from behind the net and fed a wide-open Lewis in front, who made no mistake on the doorstep for the third and final Rams goal.
Passingham remained dialed in down the stretch, helping the squad cruise to a 3-0 win over the Badgers.
Although Passingham gets all of the praise after a stellar shutout, he insists that the boys in front of him deserve some credit.
“The guys were great and our penalty kill was awesome,” said Passingham. “Our D played great. They played well.”
A starting goaltender loves nothing more than to hear praise from his coach and Passingham received just that Thursday night.
“He was outstanding,” said head Coach Graham Wise. “He had a terrific game. He was an absolute wall out there and he was a huge factor for us tonight.”
The net-minder wasn't the only thing Wise was impressed with Thursday. The puck movement and possession was executed to a tee.
“We struggled in the first but as the game went on we got better,” said Wise. “Like I just said to them now we have to be better moving forward.”
The win marks the second in a row for the Rams and sets up an important contest against the Windsor Lancers on Saturday.
With the win the Rams now sit just a point back from the Lancers for fifth in the West and could pass them in the standings with two points on Saturday.
Puck drop for Saturday's game is scheduled for 7:30 pm start at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. If you can't experience it first hand the game will be available on OUA.tv.
