TORONTO, ON – With the first week of post-holidays OUA hockey in the books, we’ve gotten a glimpse of what things could look like in the stretch run to the OUA Queen’s Cup title, and the four berths at the U CUP.
While TMU saw the debut of Arizona Coyotes prospect Artem Duda, and several other teams showed well in the return, these two things caught our eye this week.
Western shock UQTR, keeping playoff hopes alive
The Western Mustangs started the 2023-24 OUA men’s hockey season with one of their worst starts in program history, dropping each of their first eight games before finally finding a win on Nov. 4 against the Lakehead Thunderwolves.
Yet, they’ve hit a run of form.
In the latest round of contests, they put up their most significant win to date, a 6-3 win over the UQTR Patriotes, the two-time defending OUA Queen’s Cup champions. Although the Patriotes are a largely different-looking team this year compared to their title-winning squads, they’ve still proven to be among the best — and the Mustangs played them off the ice.
To say they started 2024 on a high note would be an understatement. In the short term, it’s a single win and improved their record to 7-12; in the long term, it’s a warning shot to the rest of the OUA that the Mustangs aren’t easy to take on this season.
Andrew Bruder scored twice in the win, while Christiano Aiello, Shane Bulitka and Jake Gravelle had three points with a goal and two assists each, lofting Western’s offence, which chased UQTR netminder Charles-Antoine Lavallee out of the game, forcing head coach MArc-Ettiene Hubert to send in veteran Alexis Gravel in relief.
The Mustangs scored six goals on 22 shots, while goaltender Dylan Myskiw turned away 27 of the 30 shots he faced.
While the Mustangs still sit outside the OUA West playoff picture, they are just four points behind the Guelph Gryphons for the final playoff spot, with a game in hand. Western is back on the ice on Friday and Saturday, hosting the Nipissing Lakers.
Franky Lapenna leading Ottawa’s charge to OUA East peak
Not often does a rookie goaltender take to the U SPORTS and OUA level so quickly, but it’s a remarkable sight to see when they do, just as Franky Lapenna has done with the Ottawa Gee-Gees this season.
Returning from the holiday break, the Gee-Gees posted to defensively astute victories, 4-1, against their Ottawa rivals, the Carleton Ravens, before a pesky 1-0 shootout win over the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks.
Lapenna made 30 of 31 saves against the Ravens before stopping 26 of 26 shots against the Ridgebacks, marking his first career shutout. Through 17 games this season, he has a .948 save percentage, and is one of, if not the top goalie in the OUA and U SPORTS.
Although Carleton’s 14-4-1, OUA East-topping record isn’t just down to the goaltending, other young players throughout head coach Patrick Grandmaitre’s roster who have stepped up and taken on more prominent roles this season.
Notably, rookie Luka Verreault leads the team, scoring nine goals and 21 points, while Max Grondin and Mathieu Desgagnes have continued to contribute offensively while taking on more two-way responsibility.
The Gee-Gees return to action this weekend, hoping to extend their seven-game winning streak when they face the Concordia Stingers and take on another clash with Ontario Tech.