Men’s hockey defenceman Spencer Abraham had mixed thoughts on his team’s performance this past weekend.
“The Western game and the Guelph game were complete polar opposites,” he said, referring to the team’s 4-3 win over the Western Mustangs on Thursday followed by a 4-2 loss on Friday night to the Guelph Gryphons.
Entering their first game against the Mustangs, the Gaels were confident, even though Western was sitting in first place in the West Division.
“We walked in with our heads held high from the last few wins and we were ready to play,” Abraham said.
Queen’s third-year starting goalie Kevin Bailie gave the Mustangs a front row seat to his superb play. One of the top goalies in the CIS this season, Bailie entered the game with two shutouts in his last three games, and he continued his hot streak as he stopped 43 shots on the night.
Darcy Greenaway scored the game winner for the Gaels halfway into the third period, after the Mustangs tied the game at 3-3. The Mustangs had a hard-fought battle, but Bailie stopped Western in their tracks, making 18 saves in the period.
“We went in communicating on the ice, skating hard and playing aggressively. That allowed us to secure the win over Western,” Abraham said.
Ryan Bloom scored for the first time this season on Thursday, with goals also coming from Peter Angelopoulos and forward Patrick McGillis late in the second to lift the Gaels to a 4-3 win over the Mustangs.
On Friday night, Jacob Brennan stopped 25 shots for Queen’s, but it wasn’t enough with the Gryphons coming out superior.
“They outskated us, our communication wasn’t there, and we just didn’t go out playing our game,” Abraham said.
Guelph set the tone early in the first period with a goal from Carlos Amestoy. With five minutes left in the first, Patrick McGillis took advantage of a power play for the Gaels, and scored to equalized the game.
“When we went to Guelph, we knew we were going up against last year’s national champions, which immediately set a tone,” Abraham said.
Although the power play goal lifted the Gaels to a tie, it didn’t help their momentum in the second. They suffered two goals to the Gryphons, one of which came off of a power play break for Guelph.
Abraham scored his fifth of the season — assisted by Eric Ming and Slater Doggett — bringing the game to 3-2 with seven minutes left in the third. However it wasn’t enough, as the Gryphons scored an empty netter to secure the game at 4-2.
The Gaels are now 8-3-0, and will be at home on Saturday to play the McGill Redmen, who sit first in the East Division.
“McGill is the best offensive team in the country, and we’re one of the best defensive teams,” Abraham said. “We’re going to need to hold McGill back … and make them play our game.”
Tags
Darcy Greenaway, Men's hockey, Peter Angelopoulos, Ryan Bloom, Spencer Abraham
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