Timely offense and great goaltending propelled Concordia to a win against the Ravens
After losing a tough game to the McGill Redmen on Friday, Oct. 14, the Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team was able to bounce back with a 3-2 victory over the Carleton Ravens during the team’s home-opener on Oct. 15.
“It was a really important game. We’re a young team, but we competed hard tonight. It was like a playoff game,” Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement said. “This was what we didn’t do last night against McGill, and [we competed] today and I’m very happy about the game tonight.”
The Stingers took a 1-0 lead halfway through the first period while on a power play. Stingers forward Scott Oke found the back of the net after sliding the puck past the Ravens goaltender. The Stingers kept pressing in the first period, as they scored again, this time on a five-on-three power play. The goal was scored by Stingers forward Anthony Deluca and brought the Stingers lead to 2-0.
Stingers forward Dominic Beauchemin briefly left the game in the first period after taking a big hit from behind into the boards by Ravens defender Jeremie Fraser. The hit resulted in a five minute boarding penalty. Beauchemin returned to the game in the second period and participated in the final 40 minutes of action.
There wasn’t a single point in the game when the Stingers trailed the Ravens, which was a good learning experience for the young players and veterans alike.
“It’s important in a season to learn how to play with a lead, and I think we did good—we didn’t make any major mistakes,” Élement said. “The guys, they competed a lot, and it was important that game.”
Carleton was able to find a goal early in the second period, cutting the Stinger’s lead down to one.
Playing in the final season-opener of his Stingers career, captain Olivier Hinse played a large part in the team’s win. In the second period, the Stinger’s captain scored a goal on a breakaway to give his team a 3-1 lead. Carleton added a goal with two minutes left in the period to make the score 3-2.
“[My last opening game felt good], and we love when we have a lot of people in the stands. That brings out a lot of emotion on the bench and on the ice,” Hinse said. “We gave them a good game, I think.”
Making his home debut with the Stingers, Philippe Sanche looked right at home on the ice. Sanche fit in alongside Hinse all night. Chemistry is an important part of any team sport, and Sanche said he clicked with the Stingers captain immediately.
“It’s fun when you have good chemistry off the ice and also on the ice—we have a good team and it helps on the ice,” Sanche said. “I think just to play with [Hinse], it’s a big boost for me and it just helps my game to get on the same level as him.”
Concordia’s power play and penalty kill units were a big part of the win Saturday. Maybe even more important was the play from the team’s penalty kill and goaltending. Stingers goaltender Philippe Cadorette held strong in the final period to keep the score at 3-2 and give his team win.
“The guys played super well in front of me,” Cadorette said. “We blocked a lot of shots today, especially at the end, and that’s a good team effort.”
The victory gives the Stingers a record of 3-1. They will now host the Université de Québec à Trois-Rivières Patriotes on Friday, Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m.
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