RECAP: Men’s hockey ends season with playoff loss to McGill

The Gee-Gees men's hockey season came to an end Friday night at the Minto Sports Complex, as Ottawa lost game two of their best-of-three OUA First Round series to the McGill Redbirds by an 8-2 score.

The Redbirds won game one on home ice Wednesday evening and will advance to face the Concordia Stingers in the second round.

"The better team won," said Gee-Gees head coach Patrick Grandmaitre. "I think McGill pressured us to make mistakes and they capitalized on them. They worked well and worked hard. They're structured and have skill." 

McGill never trailed in the series and took game one 4-2 at McConnell Arena. Four Redbirds recorded multi-point evenings, including William Rouleau, who scored and added two assists.

Max Grondin scored in the second period and Anthony Poulin tallied shorthanded, but their efforts were in vain. Jean-Philippe Tourigny made 19 saves, while Ottawa mustered just 16 shots on Emanuel Vella.

McGill were all over the Gee-Gees in game two, chasing starter Christian Sbaraglia after he allowed three goals on six shots. 

The lead ballooned to five goals before Ottawa showed some life with a powerplay marker from Poulin and a goal from Aaron Brown. 

It would be all McGill the rest of the way however, as Rouleau registered a hat trick to see the Redbirds through to the next round.

The 2023-24 OUA men's hockey schedule is slated to be announced in June. Check the Gee-Gees website and the @GeeGeesMHKY Twitter account for updates.