The Carleton Ravens men’s hockey team split their first two games of the season this weekend coming away with one overtime win against the University of Ottawa (U of O) Gee-Gees on Oct. 12 and one overtime loss at the hands of the McGill Redmen on Oct. 14.
Carleton, who plays in the fearsome Ontario University Athletics (OUA) East Division, were expected to have a difficult start as the season opened against the young Gee-Gees and the always contending Redmen. The Ravens are coming off a disappointing 2016-17 season with a first-round playoff exit and the departure of many veteran players.
This year marks the U of O’s second season back after the suspension of the men’s hockey program in 2014 after allegations of sexual assault during a team road trip to Thunder Bay, Ont., that same year.
By the time the Gee-Gees came into the Ice House, they had already had a lengthy pre-season, including a trip down to Penn State to face a top 10 National Collegiate Athletic Association hockey team.
Thanks to an explosive first line and the great play of assistant captain, Ryan Van Stralen, the Ravens took an early lead in the game. A well executed break out by Van Stralen and captain Brett Welychka led to a two-on-one that Van Stralen promptly buried in the back of the net, giving the Ravens a 1-0 lead only 30 seconds into the game.
The Ravens’ puck control was the largest factor in being able to keep the momentum in the first period, with an emphasis on clean zone entries and not playing a dump and chase style.
The second period began quickly for the Ravens, as Brett Gustavsen was able to put in his own rebound, only 90 seconds into the period.
Later, the Ravens found themselves on the power play which had been a weak point for the team last year. This would not be the case this game, as Ravens forward Fabian Walsh picked up a pass from Dalen Hedges and put a wrist-shot past the U of O goaltender.
The Gee-Gees quickly responded to the Ravens goals, netting two of their own before the period would end with a score of 3-2.
Carleton, true to form, struck quickly again in the third period, with another power-play goal by Walsh, his second of the game. Three minutes later, Van Stralen was able to net his second goal of the game as Hedges found him open in the slot putting the Ravens up 5-2 with 15 minutes left.
The big lead seemed to lull the Ravens into a false sense of security, and their play suffered for it. Lazy zone exits and softer defensive coverage led to the Ravens blowing their lead, allowing the Gee-Gees to score three unanswered goals late in the third period, tying the game at 5-5.
With only five minutes left in regulation, the two teams battled hard, looking for a final goal to give them the win, but both teams held strong and the game entered overtime.
In overtime, the Ravens found their second wind, with the forward pairing of Van Stralen and Welychka dominating puck possession like they had been all game.
Hedges was able to force a turnover which he then passed to Welychka who put it over the glove of Gee-Gees goaltender Anthony Brodeur for the game-winning goal.
The top line of Van Stralen, Hedges and Welychka set the tone of the game offensively, combining for a total of nine points on the night.
Despite the win, Van Allen said he was focusing on the teams next game against McGill.
McGill Redmen
The Ravens faced-off against the McGill Redmen hoping to follow up the success of their previous game. McGill was looking to rebound after a tough loss the night before to the Concordia Stingers.
While the clash between the Ravens and the Gee-Gees was wide open and fast with lots of space being found in all three zones, the McGill game was a slowed down, tight, and hard-hitting game. The first period would have the Ravens and the Redmen trade chances back-and-forth, but with no goals, as both goaltenders were solid in front of their nets.
The second period saw the Redmen break the deadlock, scoring on the power play to bring the score to 1-0. As frustration began to set in for Carleton, who were leading the shot totals but were not able to put anything past McGill goaltender Louis-Philip Guindon, the Carleton strategy shifted to start fighting fire with fire, by taking more runs towards the net and crowding the crease in order to make him as uncomfortable as possible.
The strategy got into Guindon’s head as he joined one of the many scrums in the third period following a shower of snow from Van Stralen’s skates.
With two penalties being called on that play for roughing, one for Van Stralen and one for McGill forward Alex Renaud, play opened up enough for Jared Steege to skate into the McGill zone and fire a shot into the right-hand corner tying up the game.
The Ravens, with new life, immediately began to hound McGill for the go-ahead goal, taking more runs towards the net and crashing hard on the forecheck to force more mistakes.
Despite the effort, the third period would end, bringing in three-on-three overtime. Before Carleton could get settled, they would see the game end as a bad change led to a McGill two-on-one and the winning goal.
“I’m actually more happy with this game [against McGill] than Thursday’s game [against the U of O]. We played our system a lot better and played a lot tighter and better,” Van Allen said.
There was high praise for many of the players following the McGill game, including the Carleton top line and defensemen Josh Burnside and David Weckworth, who both showed a calming presence from the back and no hesitation to jump and join the rush when given the opportunity.
“It’s early to say, but we had the talk the very first day of training camp, let’s recognize we’re a very good team, a lot of guys want to go to nationals but I said we have to do some studying and some tests before we can do the final exam,” Van Allen said, when asked about the newly reshaped East Division and the expectation that one of the teams from the east would be the favourite to win the OUA.
The opening two games present a good building block for which Carleton can move forward from, starting when they take on the Western Mustangs on Oct. 20.
Photo by Dan Robertson
