The CIS No. 9 Lakehead Thunderwolves mens hockey team head to St. Catharines, Ontario this weekend for a two-game series against the Brock Badgers. The Wolves are battling for points in the ultra-tough OUA West Division so each game is very important and no game is an easy one.
This series has extra meaning for the Wolves as Brock is the team that knocked them out of a Queens Cup and CIS national championships berth last season with a 1-0 OT playoff win at the Fort William Gardens; so the Wolves are looking for a little payback.
Lakehead (7-3-2 OUA; 9-5-2 overall) is coming off a home split with York and is tied for second in the OUA Far West with Waterloo with 16 points; both teams three points behind first place Laurier. Brock has a 6-3-3 OUA mark and is tied for first with Guelph in the OUA Mid West Division; but Brock has three games in hand on the Gryphons.
Lakehead Head Coach Don McKee said his squad still remembers last years playoff loss to the Badgers. This is the first opportunity the Wolves will have to play against the Badgers, who ended their season last year in a thrilling 1-0 game in the Gardens. Our boys have suffered from that defeat for eight months now, and will be looking for a chance to avenge that result in Brock's venue. As the OUA Western Conference is so competitive, every weekend is critical to rising in the standings. The Badgers are hot after a big victory over Laurier and will be an extremely tough opponent. Their defensive team play has carried them into first place in their division.
Brock Head Coach, and Thunder Bay native, Murray Nystrom said it should be an intense series. We look forward to hosting the Thunderwolves in this important weekend series. Both teams are jockeying for position near the top of their respective divisions, so the outcome of each game will have an impact on playoff scenarios. Fans will be rewarded with some great hockey."
The games go Friday and Saturday night at 7:30 pm and can be heard in Thunder Bay on Rock94 FM radio and online at www.rock94.com. Rock 94 FM Sports Director Bryan Wyatt will be calling the play by play live from St. Kitts.
Head To Head:
Lakehead has 11 wins, 3 losses, and 3 ties all time vs. Brock; 10-1-3 in the regular season; and 1-2-0 in the playoffs. Lakehead has outscored Brock 71-44 in those previous 17 meetings.
Lakehead is fifth in the CIS in goals for at 3.9 per game while Brock is tied for 9th at 3.1 per game. Lakehead is tied for 6th in the CIS in goals allowed at 2.8 per game while Brock is third with 2.4 per game. Lakehead has 47 goals for and 33 against in 12 games compared to Brocks 37 goals for and 29 against.
Last season the teams met twice in the regular season in Thunder Bay and split the games; and Brock won 2-1 in the OUA West Finals; winning the deciding game 1-0 in OT in Thunder Bay so this should be another exciting series.
Lakehead Thunderwolves:
The Wolves are playing good hockey and have won four of their last five and look to gain valuable points this weekend against Brock. Lakehead needs the continued strong play of junior Brock McPherson (8 goals, 4 assists) and fifth year senior Tobias Whelan (4 goals, 7 assists).
Sophomore Kris Hogg continues to lead the Wolves in scoring with 8 goals and 7 assists; tied for 6th in OUA scoring. Scott Dobben (5 goals, 7 assists) and Mark Soares (4 goals, 7 assists) are also playing very well and they will need to be big this weekend.
The Wolves will also need offense from senior Dan Speer (4 goals, 3 assists) and freshman Andy Hyvarinen (5 goals, 1 assist). Lakehead is also hoping that captain Andrew Brown will start lighting the lamp as his offensive contributions could also be key.
Defensively sophomore Mitch Maunu and freshman Bryan Wilson looked good against York and will look to continue that this weekend against the Badgers. Sophomore Pierre-Marc Guilbault (1 goal,6 assists) also played very well against York and his growing offensive confidence is needed by the Wolves. The Wolves will also look for steady play from fifth year senior Drew Kivell, junior Andy Zulyniak, and freshman Kalvin Sagert.
Lakehead will look for strong road goaltending from Chris Whitley (4-1-2, GAA 2.80, SV% .900) and Kyle Moir (3-2-1, GAA 2.40, SV% .910).
Lakehead 08-09 Results:
Sat Nov 15 York 7 Lakehead 6 OL
Fri Nov 14 Lakehead 3 York 1
Sat Nov 8 Lakehead 6 UOIT 3
Fri Nov 7 Lakehead 5 UOIT 1
Sat Nov 1 Lakehead 5 Western 2
Fri Nov 31 Western 3 Lakehead 0
Sat Oct 25 Lakehead 6 Laurier 1
Fri Oct 24 Laurier 3 Lakehead 2 OL SO
Sat Oct 18 Lakehead 2 Waterloo 1
Fri Oct 17 Waterloo 7 Lakehead 5
Sat Oct 11 Lakehead 6 Windsor 1
Fri Oct 10 Windsor 3 Lakehead 1
Sun Oct 5 MN-Duluth 6 Lakehead 0 EX
Sat Oct 4 Saint Mary's 2 Lakehead 0 NC
Fri Oct 3 Lakehead 3 Saint Mary's 1 NC
Sat Sep 27 Carleton 3 Lakehead 2 NC
Fri Sep 26 Lakehead 3 Carleton 2 NC PPD Sat SO
BROCK BADGERS:
2007-08 regular season record: 17-8-0-3 2007-08
Regular season standings: 1st OUA Mid West
2007-08 playoff record: 4-3
2007-08 playoff finish: Lost OUA Final to McGill; went 0-2 at CIS National Championships.
The Badgers lost their two offensive stars Ryan Del Monte and Jonathon Labelle to graduation as well as stellar d-man Pat Selin and goalie Matt Harpwood. But, Coach Murray Nystrom has re-tooled and brought in some very talented recruits and the Badgers are playing great hockey so far this season.
Veterans to watch are playmaker Ryan Allen (5 goals, 4assists), Gary Friesen (2 goals, 4 assists), Nathan Hooper (6 goals, 1 assist), and Tyler Leggo (4 goals, 3 assists).
Some of the talented recruits are also playing very well so far this season; led by freshman Isaac Smeltzer (2 goals, 8 assists). Derek Brochu is another freshman who is putting up big numbers; he has tallied 6 goals and 3 assists. Adam Schwark (4 goals, 4 assists) is another freshman to watch.
Freshman netminder Kurt Jory is the new main man between the pipes and has a record of 4-5-2, GAA of 2.47, and SV% of .910. Mark Packwood (1-0, GAA 1.00, SV% .960) is the No. 2 goalie for the Badgers.
Brock 08-09 Results:
Sat Nov 15 Brock 6 Laurier 3
Fri Nov 14 Waterloo 5 Brock 4 OL
Sat Nov 8 Western 3 Brock 2 OL
Fri Nov 7 Laurier 5 Brock 1
Tue Nov 4 Waterloo 3 Brock 2
Thu Oct 30 Brock 4 Guelph 1
Sat Oct 25 Brock 7 UOIT 0
Thu Oct 23 Guelph 4 Brock 3 OL
Sun Oct 19 Brock 2 RMC 1
Sat Oct 18 Brock 2 Queen's 1 OL
Sat Oct 11 Toronto 3 Brock 1
Thu Oct 9 Brock 3 Ryerson 0
Fri Sep 26 Brock 4 Guelph 3 NC
Sat Sep 27 Brock 3 Concordia 2 NC OT