“Sometimes you do [win], sometimes you don’t, but we will be in the fight every single time,” said Head Coach Brett Gibson in an interview with The Journal.
Over the week of March 16, the Queens Men’s hockey team travelled to Halifax, Nova Scotia, for the 2026 USports National Championship. The team got to the city early in the week to not only do some sightseeing but also get a couple of practices before the quarterfinal game against the second seed University of New Brunswick Reds on March 20. The Gaels were slotted in the seventh seed, coming off an overtime victory in the OUA bronze medal game over the Toronto Metropolitan University Bold.
READ MORE: Men’s Hockey takes down TMU in overtime for OUA Bronze
The Gaels, in their golden jerseys, were gifted a power play early in the first period after the Reds took a too many men penalty. Unfortunately for the Gaels, the penalty kill would fuel the Reds, who would score three minutes after killing off the penalty, taking the early 1-0 lead. The Reds would continue to push, with Gaels goaltender Tanner Wickware, MIR ’26, making some huge stops like he has all playoff long. Despite the great play from Wickware, the Reds would capitalize on a power play of their own, making it 2-0 going into the second period.
The second frame looked more like the Gaels team we’ve become accustomed to seeing: hardworking and straightforward. Controlling most of the play in the offensive zone for the first five minutes of the period but the Gaels would ultimately have nothing to show for it. Just when you thought the momentum switched, the Reds would score off a heavy shot off the rush, energizing the pro-UNB crowd and taking a commanding 3-0 lead. The Gaels would answer just under two minutes after the Reds’ goal with a great two-on-one passing play with Gaels forwards Dharan Cap, Sci ’26, and Aidan Castle, ArtSci ’29, who put it home, cutting the deficit to just two.
In the final period, with a semi-finals berth on the line, the Gaels trailed by two, continuing attempts to chip away at the lead. The Gaels would do just that, forcing a turnover and Gaels forward Sebbie Johnson, ArtSci ’29, puts away a rebound to get within one with just over 12 minutes left in the period. The gritty group continued to force the UNB team into turnovers, waiting for their opportunity. Immediately when the Gaels were about to make a push, the Reds scored with just under five minutes left, putting a dagger into the Gaels’ hopes. The Reds would add another one to make it 5-2, and that’s how the Gaels’ season would end.
The Journal sat down with Head Coach Brett Gibson to reflect on the USports national experience and the season as a whole. Gibson, a player for the Saint Mary’s Huskies in his playing career, joked that it felt like “a little bit of fate,” but continued to say that he’s “forever grateful for the guys bringing me back to Halifax.”
Talking about the game, Gibson described his team as “shell-shocked,” particularly in the first period. As an honest coach, he understands that his team has played a lot of high-intensity hockey over the past two months. Gibson emphasized, however, his team “didn’t quit, and that’s the difference between this group; we could’ve rolled over, but we didn’t.”
The season as a whole wasn’t an ideal season for the Gaels; however, they found a way to make it happen, and Gibson was more than appreciative of his veterans who stepped up at the right time. “You can never doubt Men’s Hockey, and hopefully our first years learned a lot from Jack [Duff], Nolan [Hutcheson], and Wicks moving forward.”
Not the storybook ending the Gaels were looking for as they move into the offseason with back-to-back USports National Berths.
Tags
Gaels, Men's hockey, quarter-finals
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