On November 14, U of T’s men’s hockey team faced the Guelph Gryphons at Varsity Stadium. Despite breezing through an early 2–0 lead in the first frame, the Gryphons eventually edged out the home team in a dramatic finish to take a 6–5 win.
What happened?
The Blues’ offence came out hot. Defence Aiden Reeves opened the scoring with his first goal of the season off assists from forwards Dylan Wightman and Brandon Santa Juana. Forward Rylee Hylusiak drilled the second goal of the game after taking possession of the puck off a forecheck, extending the Blues’ lead 8:13 minutes into the game.
The Blues controlled the offensive zone for an ample amount of time, firing shots from all cylinders. However, the Gryphon’s defence thwarted U of T’s attempts, and the score remained at 2–0 going into the first intermission.
The second period started with both offences taking turns at the net. Forward Nicholas Athanasakos took a roughing penalty, awarding the Gryphons with their first opportunity with the man advantage. They capitalized on their power play, as forward Anthony Tabak scored, cutting the deficit to one and bringing the score to 2–1.
The two teams shared the neutral zone for a few minutes before Gryphons forward Nolan Dann broke the stagnation, rushing to deliver the equalizer, 2–2. Offensive tradeoffs ensued, as forward Cooper Way dumped a goal from Ranvir Gill-Shane’s shot to give back the lead to the Blues, ending the second period with a 3–2 score.
The third period opened with Gryphons forward Jack Wismer going on a breakaway, weaving the puck from a seemingly forehand shot before switching to a backhand, and backtapping a goal to even the score at 3–3. Defence Ryan O’Dell soon went to the penalty box after the referees deemed an interference call.
This penalty started a trend, with players from both teams going to the box almost every minute. Forward Mark Cooper found the puck after Ciarlio denied Hylusiak’s one-timer, sniping a goal from the middle of the slot to give the Blues a 4–3 lead. The Gryphons retaliated after forward Ethan Doyle snuck a goal to tie the game, 4–4.
Then, Cooper slid the puck to forward Zack Smith, rifling a one-timer from the right faceoff circle to put the Blues ahead, 5–4. The Gryphons gained another power-play opportunity after forward Ryan Watt got charged for checking from behind. The Blues successfully killed the penalty, with goalie Rayce Ramsey standing his ground between the pipes and the blue line coming up with a block and clearing the puck twice.
The Gryphons did not waste their chance on the power play this time, with Santa Juana’s high-sticking penalty, nailing a goal from the high slot and setting the game for an exciting regulation finish in a 5–5 deuce. The two teams went back and forth as they sought the go-ahead goal, but time expired, and the game went into overtime.
Overtime saw the teams trading their best shots. Yet, both teams’ goalies stepped up to deny each other’s attempts, and the game went to a shootout. Forward Griffin Wilson knocked the lone goal of the shootout as goalie Olivier Cairlo saved all three of U of T’s shots, sealing the win for the Gryphons, 6–5.
What’s next?
The Blues dropped their second straight game, both in extra time, and currently sit at sixth in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) West standings. On the other hand, the Gryphons’ win put them in third in the same division.
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