The Ryerson Rams hosted the Carleton Ravens men’s hockey team on Nov. 20 at the Mattamy Athletic Centre in Toronto. The Ravens (7-3) went into the game with a three-game win streak and looking for a fourth consecutive win. The Rams (6-5) were looking to improve their record after three losses.
A very close game ended in the Ravens’ favour, finishing 4-3.
“Away games are never easy, especially when there is good distance between the two teams,” said first-year Raven Brett Welychka. “Home advantage can only go so far though—it’s anyone’s game.”
The Ravens dominated the first period. Although they had a few penalties, the Rams were unable to do a whole lot with the power play advantages.
The Rams suffered a dangerous penalty as well, seeing as they went into the game with a 71.4 penalty kill percentage. The Ravens’ power play proved to be no different and resulted in a 1-0 lead for Carleton. It was a backdoor goal by Welychka from veterans Michael McNamee and Brent Norris.
Carleton continued to win face-offs, giving them more shots on net. Ryan Van Stralen got the second goal of the night for the Ravens. The first period ended with a penalty against Van Stralen, which would carry over into the start of the second period.
Carleton’s starting goalie, Francis Dupuis, is currently second in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) for save percentage, saving 93.5 per cent of shots on net. At the end of the first period, he had saved all 10 shots on net.
The Rams used the power play to their advantage, as Jason Kelly scored on Dupuis, putting Ryerson on the board just 1:38 into the second period.
The Ravens regained their two-goal lead with Van Stralen’s second goal of the night. First-year Raven Jeremie Fraser got the assist.
The time ran out in the second period, and the Ravens led 3-1 over the Rams.
Ryerson stepped up their game in the third period, scoring two more goals against the Ravens.
“Ryerson did a good job competing to get back into the game by scoring those goals,” Welychka said. “But our guys stayed composed and found another way to win against a good, skilled team.”
Performing under pressure, the Ravens were able to take the lead once again with a goal by fifth-year Mitch Zion.
With under a minute remaining, the Ryerson Rams pulled their goalie, in hopes of putting one past Dupuis, and the Carleton defence. Most of the final minute was spent in Carleton’s end, but the Rams were unable to score.
“To be successful as a team you always need to adapt to your components,” Welychka said, crediting his coaches for always preparing the team for the task at hand. “To get that win was huge for our group.”
