The “curse” is over.
On Feb. 24, the Carleton Ravens men’s hockey team beat the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees 6-0 to move on to the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) East division final for the first time in the program’s history.
“The program looks to move forward every year . . . this will be the organization’s first time moving past the second round,” Ravens head coach Marty Johnston said.
The Ravens’ play on Feb. 22 was “a wake-up call in preparation for tonight’s [Feb. 24] game,” Ravens co-captain Ryan Berard said before the final game against the Gee-Gees.
“We skated better than we have all series . . . [Mitch] Porowski was our better forward up front,” he said.
Porowski had a goal on the night and continues to lead the team in points thus far in the playoffs with six.
In addition to Carleton’s top lines striking a surge of offence, the club’s third and fourth line skaters contributed as well.
“[Connor] Barrett bears the chain tonight,” Berard said.
The chain is a three-quarters inch thick chain worn around the neck of the Raven who, by decision of his teammates, played the hardest in the night’s contest.
“Really it could have gone to any guy on the roster tonight, we had everyone contributing,” Berard said.
Tyler Taylor and Barrett, forwards who are listed as the third and fourth line skaters, posted a goal and an assist, respectively.
And of course as the cliché remains prevalent, the playoffs are the most important time for players to heighten their level of play. Joe Pleckaitis, a powerful forward for the Ravens who was previously sidelined for five weeks with a broken wrist, stamped two goals on his first two games after returning.
“I’m really happy for him . . . having to skate on your own, having to [work out] on your own, it’s tough . . . he’s a huge team player,” Johnston said.
The Ravens have now made history for moving past the second round of the OUA playoffs. Moving forward, the team’s leaders plan to reset quickly for the next round where they face their rivals, the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR) Patriotes.
“Already you can tell guys are thinking about next series,” co-captain Joey Manley said. “We have a few days to prepare and we know what we have to come out with against a team as strong as UQTR.”
The OUA East final will commence Feb. 27 at UQTR. With UQTR finishing first in the regular season standings and Carleton finishing behind them in second place, a competitive series can be expected.
Aside from the technical aspects of the game, some Ravens have their own superstitions for the playoffs. Manley has been adamant on retrieving the game puck at the end of each playoff game.
“It’s a bit of bad luck to let the other team keep the game puck,” Manley said.
In addition, coach Johnston’s father has sworn to never sit down in a seat while watching his son coach the Ravens. However, Johnston himself didn’t inherit the same superstitions.
“I don’t have any of my own,” Johnston said.
