On February 17, the Varsity Blues men’s hockey team travelled to Waterloo to take on the Wilfred Laurier Golden Hawks for their second playoff game against each other this season. Ultimately, the Blues lost 5–3, ending their season and their championship aspirations for the season. 

What happened

The Blues began the game with a tough start, when Golden Hawks centre Thomas Lenart scored within six minutes of the first period. Though they tried to tie the game within the first period, the Blues were unfortunately unsuccessful in their attempts. Nevertheless, only down one goal, the Blues remained hopeful of a comeback. 

Yet, just under a minute into the second period, Golden Hawks defenseman Conor Ali scored, doubling their lead against the Blues. Shortly after, Hawks forward Nick Giunta scored, making the game 3–0. The second period became very tense, as the Blues were trying to get some much-needed motivation to gain a goal. 

Shortly after, Blues forward Jacob King received a penalty, putting the Hawks on the power-play. While the Blues successfully killed the penalty, the Hawks would still score their third goal in the second period soon after, taking a 4–0 lead against the Blues. Yet, three minutes after the Golden Hawks goal, the Blues were able to gain some confidence; forward Nicholas Wong, assisted by forward Owen Robinson, scored their first goal, making the second period end at 4–1.

As the third period began, the Blues had many opportunities to score a goal after being given two power-plays. Blues forward Billy Moskal was able to score a power-play goal, making the game 4–2 and a comeback suddenly very possible. 

After the Blues power-play ended, the Hawks were given another penalty, giving the Blues yet another opportunity to score. However, a few minutes later, Lenart was able to score an empty net goal, making the score 5–2 within the last few minutes of the third period. 

Within the last few minutes of the game, fans were tense as the Blues had little time remaining to hopefully tie the game up, send it into overtime, and potentially bring the playoff series back to the Varsity Arena. Unfortunately, the Blues and the Hawks were both handed cross-checking penalties, and Robinson, assisted by captain Cole Purboo, scored only one last-minute goal to end the game off 5–3 for the Blues. 

What’s next

Having lost their playoff series against the Golden Hawks, despite an impressive regular season, the Blues men’s hockey team’s season has now come to an end. With several members graduating, the Blues will continue to look to improve in the off-season and prepare for their next season, beginning in the fall.