OUA Playoffs – The Concordian

Concordia faces elimination in game three for second year in a row

Queen’s Gaels goalie Kevin Bailie secured a 3-0 win against the Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team on Friday night at the Ed Meagher Arena. He stopped all 45 shots he faced, forcing a game three in the best-of-three series in the second round of the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) playoffs.

Stingers captain Philippe Hudon said he liked his team’s level of competitiveness throughout the game and fully understands they were up against a hot goaltender.

“He was outstanding,” Hudon said. “We aren’t going to cut corners on that one.” After winning game one on the road, he knew the Stingers would be facing a better Queen’s team this time around. “We certainly wanted to finish it tonight. They came out very strong and as hungry as we expected.”

The Stingers came out flying to start the game, outshooting the Gaels 14-3 in the first period. The Gaels did not get a shot in the first 15 minutes of the game. The Stingers’s aggressive play in the first caused a number of turnovers for the Gaels, but Concordia still couldn’t find a way to beat Bailie. Stingers goaltender Marc-Antoine Turcotte kept his team in it with a big save in the dying moments of the period.

The start of the second period saw a rejuvenated Gaels team.

“They collectively played as a five-man unit,” said Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement. Gaels forward Duncan Campbell opened up the scoring two minutes into the second period off an odd-man rush. The period had quality scoring chances on both ends.

The Gaels doubled their lead late in the period with a goal by Ryan Bloom off a nice passing play. The Stingers had two power plays in the period but failed to execute due to Queen’s aggressive penalty kill.

“I guess we got a little comfortable with the game, and that didn’t help us,” said Stingers defenceman Matthieu Desautels.

After a four-goal game one, the Stingers were shutout in game two. Photo by Mackenzie Lad.

The Stingers were in for a scare late in the second period when Turcotte was forced to leave the game with an apparent injury after a scrum in front of his net.

“It’s never fun to see somebody go down, but he’s going to be alright,” Élement said. His status remains day-to-day. Stingers rookie back-up goalie Antoine Dagenais made his playoff debut replacing the injured Turcotte. “He gave us a chance to come back in the game,” Élement added.

Despite several chances, the Stingers just couldn’t find the back of the net. Queen’s defensive game was strong, as they limited their opposition’s scoring chances by blocking a number of shots throughout the game.

Gaels forward Darcy Greenaway scored a late power-play goal in the third to finish off a commanding victory for Queen’s.

“We’re going to have to get back to basics,” said Hudon about game three. “Nothing more complicated than that.” The Stingers played two games on the road against the Gaels this season and won both.

Élement said he is nothing but confident going into the final game of the series. “They finished above us,” he said. “They have the pressure.”

The Stingers find themselves facing elimination against the Gaels for a second-straight year. “If we don’t have fire going into Sunday, something’s wrong,” Hudon said.

The Stingers will play game three against the Queen’s Gaels on Feb. 25 at 2:30 p.m. in Kingston, Ont.

Main photo by Mackenzie Lad.

Captain Philippe Hudon’s overtime goal sends team to second round for the second year in a row

The Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team eliminated the University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks from the first round of the playoffs for a second year in a row. After winning game one, 4-1, on Wednesday night in Oshawa, the Stingers swept the Ridgebacks with a 3-2 overtime win in front of a near-sold-out home crowd at the Ed Meagher Arena.

At the end of the first period, the Stingers were up 1-0 after forward Raphaël Lafontaine buried a rebound off defenceman Philippe Charbonneau’s shot from the point.

A little bit more than four minutes into the second period, Stingers rookie defenceman Carl Neill scored his first goal of the playoffs on a pass from defenceman Matthieu Desautels to put the Stingers up 2-0.

“I saw it developing a bit,” Neill said about the play that led to his goal. “I saw a hole, and I know [Desautels] has got really good hockey sense. I figured I may as well try it out.”

As time passed in the period, the game became more and more physical. With the Ridgebacks facing elimination, tensions began to rise.

Just a few minutes after Neill scored, Stingers forward and U Sports leader in points Anthony Beauregard was taken down in the corner by Ridgebacks defenceman Kyle Locke. Locke threw a few punches at the Stingers star player.

Since Locke never dropped his gloves, he remained in the game, and both he and Beauregard received roughing penalties. This drew some negative reactions from the crowd, but as head coach Marc-André Élement put it, it’s all part of the game.

“It’s hockey,” Élement said. “It’s playoffs, and he’s the top scorer in the league so for sure they’re going to have an eye on him, but it’s part of the game.”

As the second period was winding down, it seemed like the Stingers would be heading into the third with a 2-0 lead. With a little over a minute remaining in the period, Ridgebacks forward Mike Robinson scored a power-play goal to cut the lead in half.

The Stingers started the third period down a man for four minutes after Beauregard got called for spearing at the end of the second period. Concordia’s penalty kill gave UOIT few chances and helped maintain the team’s lead.

The period continued with a lot of back and forth, fast-paced and physical hockey. As the clock was winding down, the Stingers played conservatively to keep their lead. With a little under three minutes left in the game, Ridgebacks forward Jack Patterson scored to tie 2-2, sending it into overtime.

As the overtime period began, the Stingers came out with a new energy after the Ridgebacks dominated the third period. Just a few minutes into the period, Stingers forward Francis Brunelle managed to draw a hooking penalty to give his team a one-man advantage.

Stingers forward Francis Brunelle drew a penalty in overtime that led to the winning goal. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

With this power-play opportunity five minutes into the overtime period, Stingers captain Philippe Hudon scored on a backhand shot for the unassisted overtime game-winner, causing the Ed Meagher Arena to erupt into a thunderous applause.

“Honestly, I couldn’t hear anything,” Hudon joked following the game, “I was just so happy. I think I had more energy at the end when I scored than I did at the beginning of the game.”

The Stingers have won their last five games and are heading into the second round of the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) playoffs against the Queen’s Gaels next week. The Stingers lost to the Gaels in the second round of the playoffs last year.

Main photo by Alex Hutchins. Video by Kenneth Gibson, reported by Nicholas Di Giovanni.