The Lakehead Thunderwolves mens hockey team lost a 4-3 thriller to the Laurier Golden Hawks in an OUA Far West divisional battle Sunday afternoon in Waterloo, Ontario. Lakehead now has a 4-2 OUA record (5-5 overall) while Laurier is 3-3 in OUA play and 6-6 overall.
Lakehead was led by Brock McPherson with two goals while Kris Hogg notched the other Wolves tally. Mark Voakes was the hero for the Hawks with a pair of goals with singles coming from Jeff Borrows and Nathan Peacock.
Shots on goal were 32-31 Laurier on the game. Netminders Kyle Moir of Lakehead and Jeff MacDougald of Laurier both made a number of big saves in the exciting game.
The Wolves struck early on the powerplay at 1:32 when Brock McPherson banged the puck home past Laurier goalie Jeff MacDougald. Assists went to Pierre-Marc Guillbaut and Dan Speer. Lakeheads Richard Molenaar then came close but was denied by MacDougald. Laurier then went on the powerplay and Lakehead goalie Kyle Moir had to make good saves off the Hawks Matt Grennier and Luke Girard. Lakehead then took a four-minute minor but the Hawks only had one good chance during that long powerplay and couldnt beat Moir. Immediately after the Wolves went on the powerplay and Brock McPherson got his second of the game at 16:06, set up nicely by Dan Speer again to give the Wolves a 2-0 lead. The other assist went to Jordan C. Smith. The Wolves took a minor near the end of the period and McPherson almost notched a shorthanded tally. Laurier then put on pressure and Lakeheads Moir made a buzzer beating save to end the period.
The Hawks pressured early in the second; keeping Lakehead bottled up in their own end. Lakehead took a minor and Kyle Moir had to come up big against the Hawks Luke Girard. The Hawks kept up a barrage on Moir and the freshman netminder made a series of big saves. The Hawks were finally rewarded at 7:58 when Jeff Borrows beat Moir with a wrist shot; set up by a good pass from Nathan Peacock. Lakehead then went on the powerplay and assaulted the Laurier goal but MacDougald made a series of good stops of his own to keep the Wolves at bay. Laurier then went on the offensive and Peacock pounced on a rebound at 13:18 to tie the game at two apiece. The Hawks kept pressing; keeping the Wolves reeling in their own end. The Wolves then went on the powerplay but the Hawks killed it off well. Lakeheads Moir made a big save off the Hawks Mark Voakes near the end of the period. Shots on goal were 10-6 Laurier in the second.
Lakehead took an penalty early in the third and the Hawks made them pay when Mark Voakes scored at 1:16 to give Laurier the 3-2 lead. Assists went to Nick Vergeer and Chad Kennedy. Lakehead replied quickly when Tobias Whelan flew down the ice and set up Kris Hogg with a beautiful backhand pass and Hogg knocked it in at 2:51. Lakehead went on the powerplay a few minutes later but the Hawks killed it off. Laurier came close to taking the lead at 8:58 when Luke Girard rang the Lakehead iron. The Hawks kept up the pressure and the Wolves Moir had to be sharp on a couple of occasions; including big saves off Lauriers Jeff Borrows and Jean-Michel Rizk. However, the Hawks werent to be denied when Chad Kennedy and Mark Voakes turned in a perfect give and go play to give the Hawks the lead at 15:25; with Voakes finishing the play. Immediately after Lakehead went up and the Wolves McPherson almost knocked in a rebound but was denied by Lauriers MacDougald. Lakehead pulled Moir with a minute left and furiously tried to get the tying goal; but couldnt put the puck past MacDougald and the Hawks held on for the win.
Lakehead sees action next Friday and Saturday at the Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay when they host their rivals from the University of Western Ontario. Both games face off at 7:30 pm EST and will be videowebcast live with ordering information available at