For many teams, it could be said they’re reaching their final stretch of the season.
The Journal‘s Final Stretch segment coverage continues this week, featuring the Queen’s Men’s Hockey team who are the epitome of how important the end of a season can be—where every game inches you closer or further away from playoffs. The Gaels amongst a tight OUA East division are narrowly hanging on to a playoff spot after a big win 6-2 win against Carleton on Jan. 24.
In an interview with The Journal, Head Coach Brett Gibson acknowledged that his team could compete with anybody in OUA East. “We’ve navigated some growing pains, but that comes with bringing in nine first years, it takes time,” Gibson said. The Gaels having a veteran team last year and being as successful as they were, led to significant roster movement.
READ MORE: Season preview: Men’s and Women’s hockey
Another challenge presented this year, was the OUA’s new scheduling alignment that allows teams to only play teams from their respective division. We’ve seen this cause great parody in both divisions and making every game that much more meaningful. “There’s no easy game, you’re playing the best of the best every single weekend,” Gibson said.
When teams go through tough stretches, it’s important to have leadership in the dressing room that a coach can rely on. Gibson emphasized how the leaders command the room specifically captain Jack Duff, ArtSci ’26, saying “they epitomize what I believe in, and they do it every single day,” and “they’ll be the ones that lead us into playoffs.”
Gibson’s positives to the season included the emergence of OUA veteran goaltender Tanner Wickware, MIR ’26, who has “solidified the number one goaltender position.” Another positive has been the second-year forwards that have evolved into solidified depth and “stepped up in a major way.”
Intangibles in order to be successful in the final stretch according to Gibson is executing on the powerplay that sits at just 16.5 per cent, being fifth worst in the OUA. Secondly, the team is averaging too little shots a game to be productive, “if those two things go up, I think you’ll see a trend in our play as well,” Gibson said.
Looking ahead, the Gaels begin a rare stretch of games at home. Beginning on Jan. 30 against the U Sports number one ranked Concordia Stingers which Gibson calls a “benchmark game.” Then, a Jan. 31 matinee against the Nipissing Lakers, followed by a Feb. 6 game against the McGill Redbirds. Ending the homestand is the prestigious Carr-Harris Cup on Feb. 7 which Gibson calls “an opportunity to celebrate how good USports hockey is to Kingston.”
An emotional and charged schedule for the Gaels coming down the final stretch makes their zero-panic mentality all the more important as they control their own chance at the 114th Queen’s Cup.
Tags
Final Stretch, Head Coach Brett Gibson, Men's hockey, OUA
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