M-HOCKEY PLAYOFF ROUNDUP: Gryphons win Game 3 against Blues, advance to West finals

Sunday, Februar 22

Guelph 5 @ Toronto 2 (Guelph wins series 2-1)

Sunday night at Varsity Arena the Gryphons men's hockey team won 5-2 over the University of Toronto Varsity Blues in Game 3 of their OUA West semi-final series.  With the result, the Varsity Blues are eliminated from the OUA playoffs while the Gryphons advance to the OUA West finals. 
 
Before the OUA playoffs even started, the Gryphons were already a trendy "dark horse" pick to make a run in the postseason.  Their slow start to the season, followed by their turn around in the second half of the season was well documented and made them the proverbial "team nobody wants to play."  It ends up the trendy pick was the right one to make. 
 
Usually, in a win-or-go-home game, it is common for both teams to play it safe, not wanting to make a big mistake.  This was not the case Sunday night as the opening period was played at a furious pace.  Varsity Blues forward Russell Turner would take a pair penalties in the early going, one for slashing the other for boarding, both of which would prove to be costly for U of T.  Gryphons rookie Scott Simmonds (Uxbridge, ON) would outwait Toronto goalie Brett Willows for the first goal of the game.  Turner would be watching from the penalty box once again as Teal Burns would set up Nicholas Trecapelli for Guelph's second power play goal of the night, giving the Gryphons a 2-0 lead just over seven minutes into the game.  With under two minutes remaining in the opening period, the Gryphons would cap off a dominant opening period and extend their lead to 3-0 on a goal from Michael Hasson (Ariss, ON).  Guelph outshot Toronto 16-6 in the first period and took a commanding three goal lead to the second.
 
The Varsity Blues, who made a goalie change to start the second period, needed a spark in a big way and seemed to get it when a point shot from Cameron Bernier got Toronto on the board and cut the deficit to 3-1.  However, any momentum the Varsity Blues may have gained would soon be gone as just over two minutes later, Guelph's three goal lead would be restored on a goal from Kyle Neuber (Sarnia, ON).  The Gryphons took a 4-1 lead to the third period.
 
Carlos Amestoy's goal 7:41 into the third period extended the Guelph lead to 5-1.  Toronto would score once more before the final horn, but Gryphons goalie Andrew D'Agostini (Scarborough, ON) was once again impressive in between the pipes for Guelph on the night, turning away 29 of the 31 shots sent his way.  Scott Simmonds and Kyle Neuber both finished with three point nights, as the Gryphons improve to 4-0 this postseason when facing elimination.
 
Up next for the Gryphons, the defending OUA champion Windsor Lancers. 

Source: Guelph Gryphons

Saturday, February 21

Toronto 1 @ Guelph 3 (Series tied 1-1)

Guelph, ON - Saturday afternoon at the Gryphon Centre, the University of Guelph men's hockey team won 3-1 over the Toronto Varsity Blues.  With the win, the Gryphons tie the OUA West semi-final series 1-1.  Gryphon goalie Andrew D'Agostini made 41 saves.  Game 3 is scheduled for 7:30pm on Sunday night at Varsity Arena in Toronto.
 
Game 2 in the OUA West semi-final did not start the way the Gryphons had hoped. The first period started off with both teams throwing the weight anywhere they could. About five minutes into the period, Mackenzie Nichol (Listowel, ON) would take a high sticking penalty. The Gryphons strong penalty kill would thwart off the Varsity Blues, not allowing them any real chance. After the penalty, it was all Toronto, as they continued to apply the pressure. Gryphon goalie Andrew D'Agostini would make save after save, robbing the Blues of multiple great scoring opportunities. With under a minute to go in the opening period, D'Agostini absolutely stoned a Blues player left alone in front of the net. This save would fire up the Gryphons, and with four seconds left in the period Seth Swenson (Parker, CO) would slot the puck into the Varsity Blues net, giving the Gryphons the lead and the momentum going into the second period. The Blues out-shot the Gryphons 16-6 in the first.
 
Period number two was very similar to the first. Both teams came out looking to apply more hits, as the tempo of the game raised. Just like the first, the Gryphons would get into penalty trouble when Nicklas Huard (North Bay, ON) took a goalie interference penalty. Guelph would step up, as they killed off the penalty and were buzzing around the Blues zone when Carlos Amestoy (Toronto, ON) took a four-minute high sticking penalty. Luckily the hockey Gods were on Guelph's side when a too many men penalty was called on the Blues that lasted the majority of the high sticking penalty. Killing both penalties gave the Gryphons the momentum they needed, and with just over a minute left, Nick Huard found a puck that bounced off the end boards on his stick. With Varsity Blues goalie Brett Willows (Rivers, MB) out of position, Huard shot high into the back of the net to give the Gryphons a 2-0 lead with one period remaining.

The Varsity Blues were finally able to solve D'Agostini seven minutes into the third when Tyler Luikkonen (Sault Ste Marie, ON) finished off a nice passing play, taking his shot high top corner on D'Agostini, cutting the Gryphons lead in half. After killing off another power play, the Gryphons would regain their two-goal lead, when Jordan Mock (Dartmouth, NS) and Scott Simmonds (Uxbridge, ON) went in on a two-on-one. Simmonds would shoot, grab his rebound and out-wait Willows to pot home the third goal for the Gryphons. Toronto pulled the goalie with two left looking to get a couple back to tie the game and send it to overtime. This would not be the case. D'Agonstini continued to keep up the amazing play, making a few saves before the final buzzer, as the game would end 3-1.  In all, the former Peterborough Petes standout made 41 saves on 42 shots.  For a second straight series, the Gryphons are off to a third game.  Game 3 is scheduled for Sunday, February 22nd at Varsity Arena in Toronto.  Puck drop is set for 7:30pm and can be seen live on OUA.tv.

Source: Guelph Gryphons

Carleton 3 @ UQTR 4 (OT) (UQTR wins series 2-0)

There really was not a whole lot separating the Carleton Ravens and UQTR Patriotes.  Both games in their OUA East semi-final series went to overtime, and while the Patriotes completed their sweep of the Ravens with a 4-3 victory on Saturday night, it came down to the wire.

Three consecutive Carleton penalties just after the midway point of period three proved to be game-changers, as UQTR scored on a pair of 5-on-3 powerplays to negate the 3-1 lead Carleton held with under ten minutes remaining.

"Trying to kill two separate 5 on 3's in the last 7 minutes of the 3rd was just too big a task," admitted Ravens head coach Marty Johnston.

Not only did the 5-on-3's pull the Patriotes back into a game Carleton was in full control of, they also tired out the Ravens' key penalty killers, as UQTR outshot CU 12-1 in overtime.

The game started well for the Ravens, who jumped out to a 1-0 lead courtesy of a Mike Lomas.  The veteran forward raced to a loose puck before wiring it past UQTR goaltender Francis Desrosiers, and just over four minutes into Saturday night's game, Carleton led 1-0.

Carleton was the better team by far in the opening frame, outshooting their hosts 11-7, and coach Johnston lamented the fact his team was only able to come up with one goal for their efforts.

"We started with great jump, and really should have capitalized on more of our first period chances."

Anthony Verret would draw the Patriotes level at 5:40 of the second period on a fluky goal.  UQTR forward Mathieu Thériault fanned on his initial point-blank shot, leaving Ravens goaltender Patrick Killeen down and out, and Verret merely had to tap in the loose puck.

Three minutes later, Mike Lomas bagged his second goal of the evening, with Joey West and Joe Pleckaitis grabbing the assists on a goal which gave Carleton a 2-1 lead that they would hold into the second intermission.

Tim Billingsley then doubled the Ravens' lead at 7:15 of the third period off a sweet feed from Damian Cross.  At 3-1 and playing sound, responsible defensive hockey, it appeared as though Carleton was well on its way to forcing a Game 3.

However, a slew of three penalties in the span of 2:26 changed all of that.  UQTR would take full advantage of the opportunity granted to them, scoring a pair of 5-on-3 goals just 1:03 apart to tie the game.

The game headed into overtime, with the Ravens understandably sluggish after killing twice as many penalties as the Patriotes.  UQTR outshot Carleton 12-1 in the extra period, and the almost inevitable happened at the 6:02 mark.

Catching Carleton on a break, UQTR forward Marc-Olivier Mimar raced in alone on Killeen before wiring a shot past him to seal the series victory for the Patriotes.

"It's a tough pill to swallow, given the way circumstances panned out," said coach Johnston.  "At the end of the day, everybody battled hard – UQTR played very well in overtime."

UQTR benefited from their plentiful opportunities on the man advantage, going 2-for-6, while Carleton was unable to create much on their three powerplay chances.

Francis Desrosiers was steady for the second straight game in the Patriotes net, stopping 29 of 32 shots in the victory.  Patrick Killeen was even better in the Ravens net, turning aside 44 of 48 shots – many of them difficult from close-range – while taking the loss.

The Ravens outshot UQTR 72-62 in regulation time during a series that was incredibly tight.

Source: Carleton Ravens

Lakehead 3 @ Windsor 6 (Windsor wins series 2-0)

Windsor, ON – With a two game sweep of the Lakehead Thunderwolves, the No. 8 Lancer men's hockey team has advanced to the OUA West division finals for the fourth consecutive year.
 
The Lancers secured their spot in the division final with a 6-3 win over the Thunderwolves in game two of the best of three series on Saturday night at South Windsor Arena. Windsor defeated Lakehead 4-3 in game one on Wednesday in Thunder Bay.
 
Lakehead drew first blood when Jake Carrick flipped the puck over Windsor goalie Parker Van Buskirk's shoulder at 13:07 of the opening period, but the Lancers responded with two goals less than a minute apart shortly after.
 
Ryan Green evened the score by beating Wolves' netminder Justin McDonald low on the glove side at 16:59, and then Windsor took a 2-1 lead on a goal that deflected in off the skate of Eric Noel with just over two minutes remaining in the opening period.
 
Windsor extended its lead to 3-1 at the seven-minute mark of the second when Drew Palmer shoveled his own rebound past McDonald while the Lancers had the man-advantage.
 
The Wolves would not go away quietly however, when Carrick beat Van Buskirk top-shelf at 17:08 of the middle stanza, the Lancers' margin was cut to 3-2 heading into the third.
 
Noel broke in alone on McDonald and beat him on the far side at 6:27 of the final frame to put the Lancers up by two goals, but Jay Gilbert quickly replied for Lakehead with a shot that got by Van Buskirk through the five-hole a minute later to bring the Thunderwolves back to within one.
 
With the Wolves on the verge of elimination, they pulled McDonald from the net for an extra attacker with just under two minutes remaining, but empty netters by Spencer Pommells and Sebastian Beauregard iced the game for the Lancers.
 
Lakehead narrowly outshot Windsor 32-31 in the contest.
 
The west division finals best of three series will be played out between Wednesday-Sunday this week and the Lancers will face the winner of the Guelph-Toronto series. Stay tuned to goLancers.ca for playoff information as it becomes available.

Source: Windsor Lancers