Men's Hockey (2-1 OUA Playoffs)
The Gee-Gees men's hockey team advances to the second round of OUA playoffs after clinching yet another double-overtime victory against the Varsity Blues Saturday evening at the uOttawa Minto Sports Complex.
This was the third of four match-ups against Toronto in just over a week which went into extra minutes, proof of the evenly matched talent and skill behind both benches. And it proved to be another exhilarating, fast-paced and physical game, with both teams battling it out hard to keep their season alive.
"It was an excellent series for us," said a glowing Gee-Gees head coach Réal Paiement after the win. "This is a series that will help us prepare for our next series because it forced us to play extremely tight, it forced us to play physical, and it forced us to react towards the pressure."
It was third-year forward and team captain Luc Olivier Blain who scored the game-winning and season-saving goal for the Gee-Gees, sending the crowd to their feet with a goal nearly one minute into double overtime. This was not Blain's only surprise attack of the game, as he secured an early lead just 28 seconds into the first period to set an early pace for the Gee-Gees.
"I wanted the first goal, that's for sure," admitted Blain. "I wanted to get it off my back because I hadn't scored yet this series." This did not stop the Varsity Blues from pressing, however, as they evened things up halfway through the second period and scored once again with just under thirteen minutes left in the game to secure a 2-1 lead.
Despite the turn of events, the Gee-Gees continued to generate multiple scoring opportunities as the minutes counted down. Just when it seemed as though their efforts were fruitless, second-year Gee-Gee forward Mathieu Ouellette came through for his squad, tying the game and sending it into overtime.
"Our team has a lot of character, we never give up," Blain explained. "We told ourselves even if we were trailing we just had to keep shooting. We stayed calm and disciplined, and I think that was the big difference today."
"Toronto came out strong, they brought the best out in us I think, and they made us work as long as we possibly could. I think we deserved the win today, we worked hard and it's a team victory. I'm really happy, it's hard to describe. "
The Gee-Gees now must wait for tomorrow's outcome between McGill and Nipissing to see who they will play in round two of OUA playoffs. If Nipissing wins the Gee-Gees will face Carleton; however, if McGill wins they will face UQTR.
1
2
3
OT
2 OT
Final
Gee-Gees
1
0
0
0
1
3
Varsity Blues
0
1
1
0
0
2
Gee-Gee goal scorers- Blain 0:28 1st period; Ouellette (Fournier, Jalbert) 17:48 3rd period; Blain (Blunden) 1:07 2OT
Varsity Blue goal scorers- Brown (Boddy) 11:09 2nd period; Liukkonen 7:08 3rd period
