The University of Toronto Varsity Blues men’s hockey team hosted the Queen’s University Gaels Saturday night at Varsity Arena, losing 2-1.
The Blues got off to a good start, with grinding forward Patrick Marsh giving U of T the lead just three minutes into the opening period. Marsh walked in on a 2-on-2, flipped the puck to himself, and then fired a shot top-shelf past Gaels goaltender Kevin Bailie.
The Blues continued to press the Gaels offensively following Marsh, with third-year forward Christian Finch leading the charge with several excellent scoring chances. The Gaels responded in the second half of the opening frame, out-chancing the Blues in the closing minutes of the period, but sophomore goaltender Michael Nishi rose to the challenge and the Blues escaped the period with a one goal lead.
The Gaels kept up the pressure early in the second period, and tied the game on a power play four minutes into the frame. An excellent Queen’s power play picked apart U of T’s usually solid penalty play, and Gaels veteran Andrew Wiebe put home a rebound in the slot to tie the game. The teams traded chances for the rest of the period, but both goaltenders were excellent and the game remained tied after 40 minutes.
The Blues started the third period with a four-minute power play thanks to a Queen’s high-sticking penalty, but the power play unit struggled to maintain possession in the offensive zone and then gave up a shorthanded goal. Wiebe came into the Blues zone on a seemingly harmless 1-on-2 and blasted a shot far side past Nishi’s blocker for the winner. The Blues came close to sending the game to overtime late in the period, but Bailie made several key saves to secure his team’s victory.
With the loss, the Blues are now 4-7-1 in the season and in danger of falling out of the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) playoff picture.
It was a difficult end to a weekend in which the Blues had a golden opportunity to turn their season around with games against two of OUA East’s weaker teams.
Christian Finch echoed this frustration, but stressed the importance of a positive mentality: “It’s tough not to get frustrated, but you’ve just got to look at the positives. We’re playing a little better defensively and we’re getting offensive opportunities. It’s just a matter of bearing down.”
Finch is right to stress the positives from Saturday night’s loss, as he was a revelation for the Blues, generating plenty of chances and consistently outworking his opponents. Michael Nishi’s performance was another positive. With U of T’s veteran goalie tandem of Garrett Sheehan and Brett Willows both injured, Nishi has started eight straight games and performed admirably in their stead, with Saturday night’s performance being his best yet. He certainly can’t be blamed for the team’s current woes.
