Season Preview: Men’s hockey looks to continue writing history after U CUP championship season

The Gee-Gees men's hockey team is back on the ice following a historic and unforgettable 2024-25 season. After winning the coveted University Cup in Ottawa, the Gee-Gees still have more history to write.

A Cinderella run in the U SPORTS 2024-25 national championship delivered the Ottawa Gee-Gees their first U CUP gold, but the team entered the tournament with the host bid, having lost in the second round of conference playoffs.

The team looks to not only make their way back to the U SPORTS national championship tournament, but to earn the program's first OUA title, the Queen's Cup.

The hunt for the cup starts on Oct. 3 as the Gee-Gees hit the road for a pair of games in Kingston. Starting with a battle against RMC before heading to Queen's on Saturday night. They spend another weekend on the road before opening up the Minto Sports Complex on Oct. 17 when they host the Nipissing Lakers.

Ottawa return a long list of veterans from their championship squad including newly named captain, Peter Stratis and alternate captains, Anson McMaster, Johnny Howie, Tommy Bouchard and Mitch Martin.

Gee-Gees points leader, Andrew Belchamber, also returns after a breakout first season in the Garnet and Grey. With 30 points from 10 goals and 20 assists, eyes will be on him to generate offence alongside the likes of Zach Giroux and Martin.

The goaltending duo of Franky Lapenna and Zach Dietz are back for another season between the posts. Lapenna continues to be a standout in U SPORTS hockey, finishing the season as the championship game's MVP.

The team did say goodbye to former captain, Anthony Poulin, and notable pillars to program in Mathieu Desgagnes, Brad Chenier and Vincent Labelle. But, they also welcome exciting rookies and a new assistant coach, Mathew Thompson.

All Gee-Gees games will be streamed on OUA.tv for 39.99 and tickets for all home games are available at tickets.geegees.ca