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Resilient Gryphons take ‘Stangs to shootout

The Mustangs men’s hockey team found themselves in an unexpected battle with the Guelph Gryphons at Friday night’s game. Needing the entire game to dispose of the Gryphons, the Mustangs walked away with a 3-2 victory after a shootout.

Coming off of a confidence boosting shutout against the Brock Badgers, the typically slow starting Gryphons fell behind early to the Mustangs squad. The Gryphons’ confidence, paired with the Mustangs’ inability to capitalize on the power play, allowed the Gryphons to stay in the game.

The first period saw the Mustangs draw early blood with a goal from team captain Adam Nemeth, followed by a reply from Guelph’s Justin Gvora. The Mustangs’ refused to let Guelph have the lead as forward Kevin Baker rounded out the first period with a short-handed goal to give the Mustangs the lead going into the second.

“I don’t like giving up goals in the first period. For next time we want to come out in the first couple of minutes and be more prepared,” Josh Unice, Mustangs goalie, said.

The Gryphons were out to prove their season record was not indicative of their skill level as they raised their level of play in the second period. Taking advantage of sloppy play by the Mustangs, the Gryphons were able to produce the equalizer early in the second. Challenging the Mustangs laid back style, Guelph’s Jon-Thomas McDonald found the back of the net to even the score.

“It was a great game back and forth, we moved the puck well and we certainly had our chances to win it before we got to the shootout, and that’s something we’ll just have to work on in practice,” Shawn Camp, Guelph head coach, said.

Western put up a solid performance, stopping the Gryphons from breaking their 5-0-1 record and keeping them atop the Ontario University Athletics West division standings.

“Guelph is a top team in OUA and the win tonight will help us get back to the national championship,” Unice said.

The Mustangs have currently played two games less than their OUA counterparts due to an extended preseason. The Mustangs travelled south of the border for tune-ups against American schools, notably Ivey League Schools Harvard and Dartmouth.

The Mustangs are looking to take back the OUA West lead from the Lakehead Thunder Wolves while catching up in the games played category.

“Any one of the nine teams on our side has the ability to win, you never know what’s going to happen. We need to work on all aspects of our game, keeping the focus on our fore-check, creating more offensive chances and do something with our power play which has been struggling,” Clarke Singer. Mustangs head coach, said.

The Mustangs have a long road ahead, and plenty of time to improve their game. With veteran players making up the majority of the Mustang roster, it’s only a matter of time before experience kicks in and sets apart the top teams from the less experienced on the quest for the OUA West lead.

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