Category: Game Recaps

Corneil nets 3 goals and adds assist in Acadia win

WOLFVILLE, N.S. – It was a cold Saturday night in Wolfville, but the Acadia Axemen (7-13-1) were hot, coming off a close 3-2 overtime shootout loss to the No. 1 ranked UNB last night, as they beat the Moncton Aigles Bleus (5-15-2) by a score of 6-3.

Subway First Star of the Game Johnny Corneil accounted for half of the Axemen’s goals on the night, as he potted a natural hat trick in the second period.

“It was a full team effort tonight. We have been preparing for this weekend and a tough loss last night against UNB, but we were so ready to come in tonight and we didn’t let up. We wanted to win,” said Corneil after the game.

When asked whether he has ever scored a natural hat trick, Corneil replied “I don’t think I have. I think I have only had one hat trick since junior started.”

Nick Deakin-Poot grabbed two assists and third star of the night honours for the Axemen.

It was an even-handed first period, with both teams firing 12 shots on net.

Moncton put up the first goal of the game when the second star of the night Denis Toner threw a shot on net from the face-off circle that fooled the Axemen goaltender Max Paddock.

Acadia came back with a pair of goals in the first from Keegan Stevenson and Merrick Rippon.

Stevenson took a pass from Jack Flaman, deked to his backhand, and slid the puck into the open net.

Rippon gave his team the lead with 6:03 remaining in the frame, jamming the puck in on a mad scramble in front of the Moncton net.

The second period saw an offensive onslaught from the Axemen, as they peppered 16 shots on net with 3 goals to show for their work.

Johnny Corneil netted a natural hat trick for Acadia in the frame with one coming on a backhand in tight, the second coming on a wrist shot in front from a feed by Nick Deakin-Poot who was working behind the Moncton net, and the final coming on a slapshot from the point.

Corneil’s were the only three goals of the period.

Moncton mounted an unsuccessful comeback in the third, scoring two from Olivier-Luc Hache and Vincent Deslauriers.

Hache scored on a soft wrist shot in front, while Deslauriers ripped a wrister into the top right corner of the net before getting dropped by an Axemen defender that led to a minor fight.

Stevenson iced the game for Acadia – his second of the night – after coming in on the left side of the offensive zone before wiring a shot into the top left corner to make it 6-3.

Paddock stopped 32 of 35 shots on the night, while his Aigles Bleus counterpart Etienne Montpetit turned aside 30 of 36 shots.

Acadia returns to play Wednesday, Mar. 2 at Saint Mary’s before coming home to wrap up their regular season against UPEI next Saturday. Moncton will host Dalhousie and StFX next Friday and Saturday night, respectively. Puck drop for both all games at 7 pm.

Provided by Josh Foote, Acadia Athletics Communications

Paddock with 38 saves in OT Shootout Loss

WOLFVILLE, N.S. – It was a David versus Goliath match-up in Wolfville on Friday night, as the sixth-placed Acadia Axemen (6-14-1) fell 3-2 in a shootout loss to the U SPORTS No. 1 ranked UNB Reds (19-2-0) who hold the best win percentage in the country in U SPORTS men’s hockey team.

The Axemen held their own with a 2-0 lead to start the game. However, the Reds mounted a comeback that was capped off by a shootout winner from former Axemen defenceman Ross MacDougall, who netted a nifty backhander to get the win.

Acadia goalie, and second star of the night, Max Paddock put on a clinic as he turned aside 40 of 42 shots on the night, including an incredible sprawling desperation save in his crease in OT that saved a sure goal.

“Everybody came to play again, just like last weekend. We’ve shown the top two teams we can play with them. It’s great to see a group of guys come back the second semester to really gel the team and be able to compete with the best of them,” noted Paddock after the game.

Despite trailing 12-6 in shots, the Axemen held a 2-0 lead by the end of the first period.

Rookie forward Keegan Stevenson opened the scoring thanks to Nick Deakin-Poot’s work in the offensive zone.

Stevenson scored on his own rebound – off a pass from Deakin-Poot – while falling on his stomach.

Peyton Hoyt doubled up the score for Acadia on a broken play that led to a 2-on-1. Hoyt took a pass from Jordy Stallard and slid a wrist shot in for a 2-0 lead.

UNB continued their offensive barrage in the second period with a whopping 21 shots on net.

Jason Willms slid the puck across the ice past Paddock on a scramble play to make it 2-1.

UNB forward and Subway First Star of the Night Mark Rassell nabbed a one-timer on the power-play from the edge of the crease to tie the game at 2-2, which is where things stood going into the third period.

Neither team was able to capitalize in the final frame of the game, despite a number of odd-man rushes for both teams.

UNB dominated the overtime period, holding possession of the puck for the first 1:30 of the extra frame. While both teams had numerous chances, they required a shootout to find a winner.

UNB goalie Rylan Parenteau stopped 15 of 17 shots on the night, while Acadia’s Paddock was stellar in the other end.

Acadia takes to the ice again at home Saturday, Feb. 26 to take on the Moncton Aigles Bleus, while the Reds travel to Saint Mary’s to take on the 8-11 Huskies.

Provided by Josh Foote, Acadia Athletics Communications

Corneil and Stevenson with the Acadia tallies

WOLFVILLE, N.S. – AUS hockey was back in Wolfville for the first time since November 26, 2021, and in front of fans no less, on Saturday night. Sadly, the Axemen were unable to capitalize on their early lead in the game and ended up falling 3-2 to the StFX X-Men.

It was a strong night for the goalies, as Max Paddock stopped 25 of 28 shots for Acadia while his StFX counterpart and Subway Third Star of the Game Joseph Raaymakers turned aside 27 of 29 shots.

Despite chances from both sides – including a strong power-play from the Axemen and a partial breakaway from X-Men forward Matthew Phillip – the game remained scoreless heading into the second frame with Acadia holding a 14-8 lead in shots.

It was another strong showing for the goaltenders in the second period, as they turned aside a number of chances. However, both teams managed to get one on the board before the end of the period.

Acadia broke onto the scoreboard first with a marker from the Subway Second Star of the Game Johnny Corneil with 6:46 left in the frame.

Corneil stepped into the slot, took a pass from Keegan Stevenson, and wired a wrist shot into the top right corner of the net to make it 1-0.

“It was a battle for the whole 60 minutes and both teams had about two and a half months to get ready for this game. Lots of time off and both teams were itching to get back on the ice in a game atmosphere,” noted Corneil after the game.

“We’ve been talking a lot about detail and structure for the last two weeks, and attention to detail was a big part of it but also work ethic,” said Corneil. “That was my main focus and kinda relaying that to some of the younger guys as well.”

StFX responded late in the second with a deflection goal in front of the net from William Bower.

Bower notched his goal by nabbing a rebound off the Axemen goalie and then tapping the puck out of the air to tie the game at 1-1.

At the end of the second, Acadia held a 22-17 shot lead.

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Acadia’s McCollum with 1st AUS win

The Acadia Axemen (6-11) squeeked out a 4-3 victory over the Moncton Aigles Bleus (5-10-1) on Saturday night in Moncton. Conor McCollum, the Axemen third string goaltender, got the call for the Axemen with Max Paddock sidelined due to injury, and Logan Flodell having played last night against UNB. McCollum responded with a standout performance for his first AUS win, making a number of stellar saves and turning aside 21 of 24 shots he faced.

The Axemen took a 1-0 lead midway through the opening period on a goal from Jack Flaman. Eric Henderson had the lone assist on the goal. Acadia took that lead to the dressing room after one period.

Early in the second period, just 1:32 in, Mason McCarty made it 2-0 on a beautiful solo effort as he broke in on a breakaway and made no mistake.

Moncton got on the board 2:24 later, as Remy Anglehart scored on the powerplay to cut the lead in half. But before the period ended, Acadia responded with a powerplay goal of their own as Jack Flaman notched his second of the night, at 19:36. Eric Henderson & Mason McCarty both picked up their 2nd points of the night on the goal. That gave the Axemen a 3-1 lead heading into the third period.

Vincent Deslauriers brought his team within one at 3:28, but Eric Henderson responded for the Axemen to restore the two goal lead for Acadia at 10:25 of the third period. His 3rd point of the night, with the assists on the goal going to Garrett McFadden and Peyton Hoyt.

It looked like that may put the Axemen in the driver’s seat, however Deslauriers had other ideas as he scored his second of the night to once again make it a one goal game at 13:57.

The final minutes were tense as Acadia had to kill off two penalties in the last 5 minutes including while Moncton pulled their goalie to give them a 6 on 4 advantage, but McCollum was up to the challenge turning the Aigles Bleus away. Final shots on goal were 34 for Acadia and 24 for Moncton.

With the win, Acadia moves ahead of Moncton in the AUS standings, and moves within 3 points of a three-way log jam for third place in the conference. The Axemen finish up their 1st half of play on Wednesday night as they travel to Halifax to face the Dalhousie Tigers.

Henderson with lone goal for Acadia

Wolfville, N.S. – It wasn’t much of a holiday send-off for the Acadia Axemen (5-11-0) on Friday night, as the UNB Reds (14-1-0) handed them up a lump of coal with a 5-1 loss in their last home game of 2021.

The score didn’t reflect a hard-fought game and Acadia put in a solid effort against the U SPORTS No. 1 ranked Reds. The Axemen could not capitalize on their opportunities.

“I thought we played really hard.  We came out strong. We have been practicing a lot and doing everything right and it was just one of those games where you couldn’t catch a good bounce and those games happen sometimes,” noted Second Star of the Game Peyton Hoyt.

UNB got a pair of goals from Subway First Star of the Game James Phelan to help them on the way to their victory.

Both teams had ample chances in the opening period, but it was only UNB who capitalized on their chances, taking a 2-0 lead.

For their first, James Phelan notched a goal off a rebound he picked up from the Axemen goalie Logan Flodell’s left pad. Phelan lifted the puck over the sprawling Flodell for the 1-0 lead.

UNB doubled their lead in the final minutes of the frame, as Samuel Dove-McFalls potted a short-handed goal on a cross-crease rebound in front of the Acadia net.

The closest Acadia came to a goal in the first period came from Nick Deakin-Poot who got free in front of the net and fired two point-blank shots into UNB’s goaltender Rylan Parenteau.

By the end of the first period, UNB held a 16-14 shot advantage.

An energetic second period saw a power-play goal on both sides and a two-goal lead for UNB heading into the final period.

It took only 31 seconds for the Reds to add to their lead in the third, as Nicholas Guay scored a power-play marker on a scramble in front of the net.

Likewise, Acadia netted their first of the game on a power-play with a scrambled play in front of the UNB net.

Eric Henderson got a stick on the puck in the crease, amid an array of bodies, to close the UNB lead to 3-1.

At the end of the second frame, UNB posted a 27-23 lead in shots.

Acadia had opportunities in the final frame, including an extended 5-on-3, but they could not solve Parenteau.

UNB added two goals late in the game, including an empty-netter from Phelan and a marker from Jason Willms with 0.2 seconds left in the game, to make it 5-1.

Axemen goalie Logan Flodell stopped 30 of 33 shots, while his UNB counterpart and third star of the night Rylan Parenteau turned aside 33 of 34 shots.

The second star of the night honours went to Axemen forward Peyton Hoyt.

Acadia heads to Moncton tomorrow and then concludes the first half of the regular season on Wednesday, Dec. 1 against the Dalhousie Tigers. The Axemen return in 2022 on Friday, Jan. 7 against the Tigers.

UNB faces off against the Saint Mary’s Huskies Saturday, Nov. 27. The puck drop for all games is 7 pm.

Josh Foote, Acadia Athletics Communications

5 different goal scorers for Acadia in win

By Thomas Becker

Mason McCarty scored the overtime winner, as the Acadia Axemen snapped a four-game losing streak after defeating the UPEI Panthers 5-4 Wednesday night.

Twenty-nine seconds into the extra frame, Garrett McFadden found the sophomore forward in the left circle, where he fired a one-timer under Jonah Capriotti’s pads.

“Those are the moments you want to be on the ice for,” McCarty said. “You always want to be looked at as one of the guys and I’m glad it went in tonight.”

Acadia (5-9-0) boasted a balanced attack with Eric Henson, Johnny Corneil, Loch Morrison and Peyton Hoyt each scoring goals in the team’s first road win of the season. While McFadden and Adam McMaster added two helpers.

“We’ve faced a lot of adversity and I don’t think our record is indicative of how we’ve played,” he said. “It’s been tough, but adversity only makes you stronger. You just have to persevere and keep playing hard.”

The last time the Axemen played the Panthers (5-5-3) on the road, they came out flat and lost the game in the first eight minutes after surrendering three goals. Wednesday night’s affair was a much-improved effort.

Still, it was the Panthers who struck first. At 11:29, Kyle Maksimovich sent a pass to Andrew Picco whose shot ricocheted off the end boards back to Maksimovich in front where he tucked it in.

In the final minute of the period, Hudson Wilson stole the puck from Jordan Maher and got to Henderson, who skated up the left side and beat Capriotti five-hole to tie the game at 1-1.

After a scoreless second, both offences erupted in the third. Penalties haunted UPEI in the period, as their penalty kill struggled to contain Acadia. The first power play goal came at 1:44 when Corneil tipped in McFadden’s shot from the point.

However, the Panthers responded with a goal of their own less than three minutes later when Pilon buried the rebound following Carson MacKinnon’s shot in front of the net.

The Axemen regained the lead at 7:07, as Henson pushed the puck to Morrison, who skated through the neutral zone, used Troy Lajeunesse as a shield and wired a shot past Capriotti glove side. Acadia capitalized on another power play just 1:08 later when McMaster crossed a pass in front to Hoyt, who redirected past the goaltender to make it 4-2.

With more than half a period left to play, the Panthers still had plenty to say. Jordan Maher got his team to within one at 9:35 after he buried the rebound in the open cage following MacKinnon’s shot attempt from a tough angle. Then at 12:19, Matt Brassard took the puck off the faceoff draw and wired a shot through traffic past Logan Flodell for the equalizer.

“Hockey is a game of rollercoasters with lots of emotions,” McCarty said. “We took a lead and then they pushed back late. It’s important, no matter if you’re up, down, or tied, you have to be even-keeled and just play with intensity and passion at all times.”

After surrendering the two-goal lead, their even-keeled approach worked, as they made the Panthers pay for another penalty that came with 59 seconds remaining in regulation resulting in McCarty’s eventual overtime heroics.

The Panthers look to get back in the win column Friday night when they host the Saint Mary’s Huskies.

Photo Credit: Janessa Hogan

Flaman with the Acadia goal in the loss

(FREDERICTON, NB) After three consecutive weekends on the road, the UNB REDS men’s returned home Friday and scored three times in the second period on route to a 6-1 win over the Acadia Axemen.

The REDS made a winner of third string goaltender Tanner Somers (Miramichi, NB), who made his UNB debut.

The REDS opened the scoring just 8:04 in, when Jason Willms (Kitchener, ON) converted a Noah Carroll (Strathroy, ON) pass, beating Acadia netminder Logan Flodell (Regina, SK). UNB made it 2-0 just 67 seconds later when Nicolas Guay (Chateauguay, QC) fired a rebound past Flodell at the 9:11 mark.

The REDS blew the game open in the second period with goals from Benjamin Gagne (St- Augustin, QC), Brady Gilmour (Grafton, ON) and Macauley Carson (Midhurst, ON). Tyler Boland (St. John’s, NL) completed the UNB scoring with a power-play goal at 7:42 of the third period, chasing Flodell from the Acadia net. Conor McCollum (Pickering, ON) took over.

The Axemen, working on the power-play, got a late goal from Jack Flaman (Vibank, SK) to make the final score 6-1.

“We knew it was going to be a tough battle tonight, we’ve been preparing for it all week, so it’s not a surprise,” said Axemen head coach Darren Burns. “We got smoked, but I don’t think our guys quit, they competed. At the end of the day, I’m the coach and we lost 6-1 and that falls on me.”

The Axemen came into the game short-handed, dressing just 14 skaters, eight forwards and six defencemen.

“It was a complete team effort,” said REDS head coach Gardiner MacDougall. “It was a pretty good 60 minutes overall, all four lines contributing and the D moved the puck well. We had good opportunities, any time you get a chance to score six is a highlight.”

“That’s a great team there. They’re down in numbers as well, which is unfortunate,” he added. Gilmour, one of five REDS to record two points in the game, was satisfied with the win and pleased for Somers.

With the win, the REDS are now 10-1, while the Axemen fall to 4-8.

Up next for Acadia, a Saturday evening visit to Moncton, while the REDS get set to host the Saint Mary’s Huskies. Both games are scheduled for 7:00pm starts.

RECAP BY: Andy Campbell/UNB Athletics
PHOTOS BY: Fran Harris/for UNB Athletics

Corneil nets two in Acadia loss

WOLFVILLE, N.S. – It was the end of a two-game winning streak for the Axemen on Wednesday night, as the Dalhousie Tigers (4-4-1) snapped a three-game losing skid in a 6-3 win over the host Acadia Axemen (4-6-0).

Despite falling 3-1 early in the game, Dalhousie scored five unanswered goals, including two from Subway First Star of the Game Derek Gentile, who netted the eventual game-winner with 0.9 seconds to play in the second and added an insurance marker at the start of the third.

Dalhousie opened the scoring exactly 1:30 into the first period on a rebound goal from Darien Kielb.

After a scramble in front of the Acadia net, Kielb picked up the puck in the slot and threw it past Axemen goaltender Logan Flodell to make it 1-0.

The second star of the night Johnny Corneil was the difference-maker in the first frame, notching a pair of goals, with the first tying the game and the second giving Acadia their first lead of the game.

Corneil’s first goal came on a frantic play in front of the net, as he scooped up the puck by the goal-line and spun around to fire it past the scrambling Dalhousie goalie.

As for his second goal, Corneil picked up his own rebound in the slot and fired a wrist shot over the reaching glove of the Tigers netminder.

To cap off the scoring for the period, Mason McCarty finished off a passing play for his fourth in the last three games.

Shots were even at 15-15 in the first period.

It was a big comeback period for the Tigers, as they put up three unanswered goals in the second frame.

The first goal was started by a point shot off the back boards, which came to the other side of the net for the third star of the night Barret Kirwin to chip In.

Josh Wainman evened the score with 2:30 left in the second period on a shot through a screen from the left face-off circle that fooled Flodell.

Derek Gentile recaptured the lead for the Tigers with 0.9 seconds left in the second period with a power-play marker.

Gentile nabbed the puck away from the Acadia defender holding it in the corner and came out in front of the net where he squeaked a backhander under the arm of Flodell to take a 4-3 lead into the third.

Dalhousie held a 34-27 lead in shots by the end of the second period.

Acadia had chances in the third – including Peyton Hoyt sneaking into the Dalhousie zone completely alone – but the Axemen could not capitalize on any opportunities.

Dalhousie meanwhile added two goals, a clean finish from Gentile on a cross-crease pass in front of the Acadia net and an empty-netter from Chandler Yakimowicz, to cement their victory.

It was a busy night for both goalies, as Flodell turned aside 36 of 41 shots, while his Dalhousie counterpart Connor Hicks stopped 44 of 47 on the night.

The Axemen return to the ice on Friday, Nov. 5 where they will start a five-game road trip in Antigonish to take on the StFX X-Men.

Acadia will return to home ice on Friday, Nov. 26 to play the UNB Varsity Reds.

Dalhousie takes on the Saint Mary’s Huskies this Friday as well. The puck drop for all games is 7:00 pm.

Contributed by Josh Foote, Acadia Athletics Communications