In the midst of the approaching holiday season, downtown Toronto was buzzing all around, especially at Varsity Arena last Saturday night where the U of T Blues men’s hockey team took to the ice against the Western Mustangs.
Among the spectators at the night’s game were kids from a variety of minor hockey teams, who were treated to an exciting game. They did not see a Blues victory like they had hoped, but still enjoyed the experience of seeing good hockey at a low price.
The Blues had come off a well-deserved win against the Waterloo Warriors the night before Saturday’s game, were aiming to improve their 1-3-1 record over their past 5 games. They needed a win to keep themselves atop of the standings in the Mid East division
The Mustangs were also trying to continue their winning ways. They had achieved a 4-1 victory against the Ryerson Rams on Friday night, and hoped to repeat the performance when they travelled to Bloor Street West to take on U of T on Saturday.
Western set the tempo of the game early in the first period by firing a total of 14 shots on Blues goalie Ryan Grinnell. Grinnell, who was rock steady in net, only allowed a tip-in by Western’s defenceman Chris Eade near the midpoint of the frame. Wingers Mike Rice and Sean Scully assisted.
the Blues, lacking the passion exhibited by their opponents, managed to only get a total of six shots on Western’s goalie Mike D’Alessandro by the end of the first period.
A penalty late in the period to Western’s Mike Sellan gave fans hope that the Blues could tie the game before the first intermission, but unfortunately Western’s strict defense and taunting game of ‘keep away’ kept the Blues at bay in their own zone for the majority of the period and the power play.
A special appearance by the Toronto Maple Leafs mascot Carleton the Bear during the first break briefly lighted the heavy hearts of the devout Blues fans, who were anxious to see their team rebound after a slow start.
Early in the second period both teams came out fiercely, but Western had the edge when right-winger Craig Kennedy revealed a pore in the Blues’ defense, creating for himself a partial breakaway. Fortunately, Grinnell was there to shut the door on Kennedy. The stop tallied as one of his 45 saves on the night, earning him Player of the Game recognition at the end of the game.
Western continued to showcase its endurance in the second period. A quick goal by center Kyle Piwowarczyk off a face-off just to the left of Grinnell gave Western a 2-0 lead halfway through the period. The Western celebration was cut short early when less than five minutes later Blues center Scott Malcolm scored a goal to cut the Mustangs’ lead to one.
Fire and ice were in both teams’ eyes coming out of the gates for the third period. Each team, aware that making one mistake could cost them crucial points in the standings, decided to play it strong but safe.
Western turned up the heat as the clock ticked down to the final minutes. Centre Ryan Hare managed to score a goal on Grinnell off a pass from Rice. This increased to their lead to two goals, making it a 3-1 game.
Less than three minutes later, the Blues’ leading scorer Mike Nason answered back and scored a goal to make it a one goal game, but unfortunately it was too little too late. Western managed to hold their lead and win the game 3-2.
After the game, Nason commented on the differences in play between the two clubs, of which ultimately resulted in Western’s victory.
“They were getting the puck at the net a little better. We didn’t get quite enough shots on net as we needed to. That was one of the bigger differences. They were throwing it at the net from everywhere. If we do that, we get a couple more chances. That can be the difference in the game.”
The Blues had a total of 17 shots on goal through three periods of play compared to Western’s 45.
Nason also commented on what the Blues have to do differently when they play the Windsor Lancers back-to-back this Friday night at the University of Windsor.
“We play the same game, passes go our way, we get the win, so if we keep playing that hard-fought game, we’ll get the win.
“I thought that we played with a lot of heart and desire and fought back from 2-0 and 3-1 to create a very exciting finish in which we had several chances to tie the game,” said Blues coach Darren Lowe. “As far as our record goes over the past six games, on paper it may not appear to be great but if you look more closely at the results, we have played exceptional hockey. Only our game against Concordia, in which we allowed six power play goals, did we play poorly.”
The Blues are currently 4-5-1 in the Mid East division in the Ontario University Athletics standings, 1 point ahead of Queen’s for second place.
The women’s team had more success on Minor Hockey Night. They were able to defeat the Brock Badgers 3-2 just before the men took the ice.
Mary Modeste scored in overtime to give her team the victory. Jill Savin and Lynda Sturino had the other goals for the Blues in the win.
The next home game for the ladies is Saturday, when they will face off against the Waterloo Warriors. The Warriors are last in the OUA West division, with a dismal record of 2-6-1-0.
