Every day that the men’s and women’s Varsity Blues hockey teams report to practice, the championship banners of years past act as reminders of the rich history of their sport at the University of Toronto.
Men’s Blues hockey team wants to make this a banner year
For men’s head coach Darren Lowe, those banners serve as frustrating symbols of his inability in his 18 years as coach to add a banner of his own.
“I rationalize it by saying, ‘We’ve been close a lot of times and we’ve had some bad breaks,’” he told The Globe and Mail. “I wouldn’t keep coming back if I didn’t think that it was possible. In our situation, the stars have to line up exactly right.”
Although the Blues have made the playoffs in each season under Lowe’s command, the men have failed to win it all since 1992–1993.
This year could be the year that all changes for the Blues men and women.
The men kicked the year off with a fast start, opening the season with a 5–0–1 record, and even saw themselves in the CIS top ten for the first time since 2004.
“I honestly think this year is one of the best teams I’ve had,” Lowe said.
“We started the season off very strong,” noted Blues forward Tyler Liukkonen. “I think it showed the group of guys we have and that there is potential to do very well this year. When you are winning, the other teams are fired up to play against you and so we have to show up and compete every night.”
The men’s team currently sits third in the OUA behind UQTR and Carleton.
The Blues travelled to Quebec two weeks ago to take on the CIS defending champions, the McGill Redmen, and the OUA-East leading UQTR Patriotes. The team came out of the weekend with a disappointing 0–1–1 record, and now sits four points back of the OUA lead.
“Although we did not got the results we wanted, there were still some positives,” said Liukkonen. “We did provide a strong effort and showed ourselves that we are more then capable of competing with the top teams.”
The loss to McGill came in a 3–2 shootout. “That was a game that could have gone either way and that we definitely could have won,” Liukkonen explained.
The men then took on the Patriotes and gave up two short-handed goals enroute to a 6–2 collapse. “In the game against UQTR, things just kind of fell apart,” said Liukkonen. “But there were many points during that game that we controlled the play. It seemed like in both games we weren’t getting the bounces and if a couple of those bounces went our way the result could have been in our favour.”
The team returned to Toronto hoping to recapture their early season form and regain the second seed in the OUA East with victories against the Ottawa Gee-Gees and Concordia Stingers.
“This weekend is business as usual,” said Lowe. But Liukkonen and the other players clearly recognize the importance of this weekend’s games. “The standings are very tight but we can only control the games we play. We also want to end the first half on a positive note so there is a lot riding on the games this weekend,” said Liukkonen.
The Blues were up to the task against the Gee-Gees, winning 6–4 and securing two of the four points they entered the weekend seeking.
BERNARDA GOSPIC/THE VARSITY
The Blues top forward trio of Jeff Brown, Blake Boddy, and Liukkonen led the way for Toronto. Brown’s goal and two assists sets him up with the team-lead with 18 points, while Boddy and Liukkonen with two assists and a goal, contributed to give the line a combined six points on the night.
The men completed their weekend with another key victory on Saturday night over the visiting Concordia Stingers. The Blues gained all four possible points on the weekend to end 2012 just one point behind the second-place Carleton Ravens.
Michael Markovic lead the Blues with two goals and two assists against the Stingers. Kyle Ventura also scored two goals and continues to led the Blues in scoring with 12 on the year.
Stellar goaltending continued to be the story of the season for the men. Goalie Garrett Sheehan made 46 saves in the win over the Gee-Gees, including holding off Ottawa’s late attack with the extra man advantage to seal the victory. Meanwhile, Brett Willows made 31 saves against the Stingers and also had to battle an extra man advantage in the third.
Both goalies Sheehan and Brett Willows are in the top five save percentages in the OUA with 0.921 and 0.935, respectively.
Head coach Lowe praised his goaltending tandem: “Our goal tending has been very good with both Garrett and Brett playing well. We must also give a lot of credit to our defense and forwards for very good defensive play which helps our goalies.”
Following the winter break, the Blues must continue to ride their strong goal tending and stellar forward trio of Brown, Boddy, and Liukkonen if they hope to contribute to the university’s collection of championship banners.
Women’s Blues Hockey team working hard to get to the top
The women’s hockey team is in a tight race for the division lead. The women currently sit in sixth place, but with only nine points separating them and the first-place Laurier Golden Hawks, the division title remains wide open.
Blues fifth-year forward and team captain Kelly O’Hanlon explained, “The OUA this year is very competitive with only a few points separating the top half of the league. As we look forward to the playoffs it means that every game is important. We cannot underestimate any team, but also need to believe in the talent we have in our dressing room.”
This past week, the women were on opposite sides of two shut out games. They fell 4–0 to the Queen’s Gaels, but were able to regroup and return to Varsity Arena to route the Ryerson Rams 6–0.
“The game against Ryerson was huge in terms of standings,” explained O’Hanlon. “However, that wasn’t what we had in mind. It was an important game for the team to build and move forward. Prior to that game we had a couple losses and the Ryerson game was an important turning point. We focused on keeping it simple and playing as a five-man unit. This paid off well as the chemistry and energy was evident for the team on and off the ice.”
The game against the Rams was a clear display of the Blues offensive power. O’Hanlon had four points in the win, which improved her team-leading tally to 19 points for the season.
“Heading into this season I knew I had an opportunity to help the team in terms of production,” said the forward. “With this in mind I trained hard in the summer and am focusing on keeping the game simple. When it comes down to it, it’s just hockey.”
Rookie Taylor Day also continued her impressive season with the only Blues’ goal in the second period. The goal brought Day’s season total to four goals and 11 points.
This past weekend was crucial to the Blues’ season. The women played the Guelph Gryphons whom they have faced twice already this year, and with whom they have so far split the series. The game this weekend determined the season sweep after a Blues 2–1 shootout victory and a Guelph 3–2 win.
“This weekend we face Guelph for the third time this season with a season series on the line. We took the first game, while the Gryphons took the second game. Both teams are pretty evenly matched. We will be successful if we play our game and execute our strengths. Everyone is mentally focused and that’s the first battle,” said O’Hanlon before the game.
The women were unable to secure the victory they so desired, as they fell 5–2 to the Gryphons to stay sixth in the OUA.
The team must continue to prepare for each game as though winning is their only option to rise in the standings. At the end of the season, Toronto is hosting the 2013 women’s hockey CIS championship. The Blues last won it all in 2001 and, this year, in their eighth championship appearance, nothing would be better than winning the national title at home.
“We are really excited to host CIS this year and with that in mind we understand our season will be longer,” said O’Hanlon. “As you get to the end of a season a team in good physical shape will often succeed. With every game we hope to build so that we peak at the right time.”
