Concordia falls in emotional affair

The Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team faced off against the Ottawa Gee-Gees on Friday night, falling 4-2 in a rough-and-tumble game that left some unfinished business to be continued this week.
The Stingers lost their battles and let emotions control them in a game where they were hardly ever at even strength. The Gee-Gees continuously beat them to the loose pucks, and dominated the boards.
“We played 35 to 40 minutes of the game with no flow whatsoever,” head coach Kevin Figsby said. “That fits well into Ottawa’s game, but that’s not our style.”
“We were trying to battle back, but it was one of those games where we got a 5-on-3, and next thing I know, we’re down a man.”
Gee-Gees forward Matthieu Methot opened up the scoring, potting a goal halfway through the first period.
The Stingers were quick to answer, when a scuffle in front of the net tossed the puck to the blade of Nicolas Lafontaine, who didn’t hesitate before whacking it five-hole.
Just 30 seconds later, Gee-Gees Martin Herard let go a weak wrist-shot that snuck between Stingers goalie Maxime Joyal’s pads, giving Ottawa a 2-1 lead.
Throughout the second and third periods, the game relied on special teams, as both benches took numerous penalties.
With Gee-Gees forward Lucas Bini in the box for roughing, Stingers veteran Mike Baslyk hopped off the bench and cut to centre, leading a fantastic rush into the offensive zone. He cut to the corner and fired the puck across the paint in front of Gee-Gees goalie Riley Whitlock, but nobody was there to capitalize on the play.
Baslyk took a hooking penalty a minute later, which allowed the Gee-Gees to up the score to 3-1.
The Stingers called a timeout after Ottawa capitalized.
“We weren’t playing tough enough hockey,” Figsby said. “We can’t play that way on the road.”
The Stingers got the message when Lafontaine scored his second goal of the night on a power play, less than a minute after the timeout was called.
The Stingers successfully killed a 5-on-3 and ended the second period with momentum, when Lafontaine flew down the right wing, toe-dragged a defenceman who ended up body checking the glass instead of the agile Stingers forward, and took a wicked shot on net before being drilled to the ice.
The third period saw a penalty being called every 30 seconds. Eight minutes into the period, Ottawa sealed the deal when they roofed the puck top shelf and made the score 4-2.
With 12 seconds left to go, three different skirmishes broke out onto the ice, ensuring there will be no love lost when the Stingers face the Gee-Gees in Ottawa on Friday and back at home on Sunday.
“It was just frustration boiling over,” Baslyk said. “There were too many missed opportunities, too many missed chances. We know we’re better than that.”
Other than the two games against Ottawa next week, the Stingers face off against the UQTR Patriotes on Tuesday night in Trois-Rivi

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