After being pushed to the brink of elimination following a game one loss Feb. 16, the Carleton Ravens men's hockey team responded with a solid performance Feb. 18 at the Ice House. The third-seeded Ravens delivered a 7-3 win over sixth-seeded University of Toronto, forcing game three Feb. 19 at the Ice House.
Ravens coach Marty Johnston decided before the game to reunite his top line of Joey Manley between Ryan Berard and Brandon MacLean. The move certainly paid off, as the line combined for five goals and 11 points in the victory, lead by Manley’s hat trick performance. He also added an assist.
MacLean finished with a highlight-reel goal and four assists, while Berard had a goal and an assist. Goaltender Matthew Dopud stopped 31 of 34 shots he faced to earn his first Ontario University Athletics (OUA) playoff victory.
Special teams were the difference in this very chippy affair. The Ravens went three for eight on the power play, while Toronto capitalized just once out of seven man-advantage opportunities. At the final buzzer, there were 31 infractions for a total of 94 penalty minutes, and scrums breaking out at almost every whistle.
Carleton is now 12-3 as the home team this year, while Toronto fell to 3-9-3 on the road. The winner of Game three Feb. 19 will advance to the second round in the OUA’s eastern conference playoffs.
In other action around the OUA Feb. 18, the first-seeded McGill Redmen completed a sweep of the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees with a 10-5 win, and the fourth-seeded Nipissing Lakers finished off the Queen’s Golden Gaels with a 6-3 victory in North Bay, Ont.
Matt Di Nicolantonio is a fourth-year journalism student from Toronto. He is the play-by-play voice of the Carleton Ravens for SSN and co-host of sports for Charlatan Live on CKCU radio.
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