Category: Team Stories

Down but not out; a win & some help needed

The Axemen will need a little help if they want to take home this year’s University Cup, but first they must take care of business themselves.  In a season deciding game for the Acadia Axemen, the Atlantic University Sport representative at the CIS University Cup will face the host team, the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.

Acadia dropped a 4-2 decision to the Windsor Lancers on Thursday night, which now means they need to beat the host team Friday night, and then look for the Huskies to knock off the Lancers on Saturday evening. With all the teams at this tournament being so close competitively, this is by no means a long shot. If the three teams in the Axemen’s pool are tied with 1 and 1 records, the team to advance to Sunday’s University Cup final will be chosen by the tie-breaker of goals for and goals against differential. This is why you may have noticed that the Axemen did not pull their goalie, Evan Mosher, in the final minute of play in the 4-2 loss to Windsor.

The Axemen had two defencemen leave Thursday’s games with injuries; both Colin Archer and Cullen Morin left the game and did not return. There is no update available at this time on their statuses for Friday’s game. With fellow blue liner Geoffrey Schemitsch also out with injury, the Axemen will need to play a tight defensive game as a team.

The host Huskies, meanwhile, look to shake the rust off after a long layoff since losing their quarterfinal playoff round 2 games to 1 to UBC back on February 23^rd. U of S enjoyed a successful regular season under long-time head coach Dave Adolph, going 17-11 on the season, including an impressive 11 win to only 3 loss record on home ice. The Huskies, who also hosted last year’s University Cup, are trying to improve on a 0-2 finish, leaving them third in their pool in 2013. The only National Championship came in 1983 for U of S Men’s Hockey, coach Dave Adolph was co-captain on the team.Read more »

Axemen Quest for the University Cup Starts Thursday Night

The Acadia Axemen will open their quest for the University Cup on Thursday night in Saskatoon as they face the University of Windsor Lancers at 10pm Atlantic time at the Credit Union Centre. You can watch Thursday’s game live online at http://www.cis-sic.tv/

You can also listen to Len Hawley’s call of the game on AVR Radio in the Annapolis Valley, 97.7FM, or online at avrnetwork.com

The AUS Hockey Champion Axemen are in search of their first CIS National Championship since 1996, while Windsor is looking to claim their first National crown for Men’s hockey.

Windsor is coming off a hard fought 3-2 Queen’s Cup win over the OUA East division-winners McGill Redman this past Saturday night; it was a one game, winner take all game, to crown the OUA champion, and was the first time in 16 years that the Lancers took the Queen’s Cup, led by an incredible 50-save performance by their goaltender and player of the game Parker Van Buskirk.

The path for Windsor to the University Cup in Saskatoon began with the Lancers knocking off the Toronto Varsity Blues 2 games to 0, then taking the Western Mustangs 2 games to 1, and in the OUA West Finals, they defeated the Lakehead Thunderwolves 2 games to 0. As mentioned, in the 1 game Queen’s Cup OUA Championship, they defeated McGill 3-2.

The Axemen meanwhile, have had some time to regroup, heal some bumps and bruises, and prepare for the CIS Championship tournament. They defeated the Saint Mary’s Huskies in Game 4 of their best of 5 series last Monday, March 10^th to win the AUS Championship series 3 games to 1.

Acadia had a first round bye in the AUS and defeated the Moncton Aigles Bleus 3 games to 1 in the best of 5 Semi-finals.

Acadia posted a 21-7 record this regular season, and were no strangers to winning on the road with an 11-3 road record. They are led by the power line of Liam Heelis (24 goals, 42 pts), Mike Cazzola (31 assists, 42 pts) and Brett Thompson (33 pts), with AUS First Team All-Stars Chris Owens on defence (31 pts) and Evan Mosher in goal (23 games, 17-5 record 2.21 GAA, .919 Save %).Read more »

Head coach Darren Burns was a player when Acadia won its first national championship in 1993 and was an assistant to Mark Hanneman when the Axemen captured its second Canadian banner three years later.

Assistant coach Mike Alcoe has been a mainstay for a quarter for a century. He was there for the national titles in ’93 and ’96 and was Burns’ assistant when the Axemen last appeared at nationals in 2006.

And they’ll be there this week in Saskatoon as Acadia returns to the CIS University Cup championship.

“After all these years, we’re still here,” Burns, in his 13th season as Acadia head coach, said earlier this week.

“(Alcoe) has put 20-plus years into the program. People like him typify what goes behind the scenes at Acadia, not just with the hockey program but the university in general. To see guys like Mike and the work he puts in year after year, it’s nice for him to get this experience again. His loyalty to the program and his loyalty to me is a special thing.

“We have a big job but we also want to enjoy the moment. It’s a fine line. We have to be prepared. You just can’t be happy to be there.”Read more »

UNIVERSITY CUP: SEEDING, POOLS, SCHEDULE

2014-03-16

With Interviews from Coach Darren Burns and Axemen Captain Liam Heelis

Axemen Heelis named league MVP, Burns AUS Coach of the Year

Story courtesy of hockey.acadiau.ca

HALIFAX, N.S. – Atlantic University Sport is pleased to announce the 2013-14 AUS men’s hockey major award winners and all-stars as selected by the conference’s eight head coaches following regular season play.

Third-year Acadia forward Liam Heelis of Georgetown, Ont. was named the Atlantic University Sport most valuable player.

Other AUS major award winners announced today were UNB’s Philippe Maillet of Terrabone, Que., who was named rookie of the year; UNB’s Chris Culligan of Howie Centre, N.S., who was selected as the most sportsmanlike player; StFX’s Murdock MacLellan of Mabou, N.S. who earned the Godfrey award for student-athlete community service; and Acadia head coach Darren Burns, who was named the AUS coach of the year for the third time in his career.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER (Kelly Trophy): Liam Heelis, Acadia

The Atlantic University Sport men’s hockey most valuable player is Liam Heelis of the Acadia Axemen.

Heelis, a third-year forward from Georgetown, Ont., led the CIS in goals this season with 24. He led the AUS conference in scoring with 42 points in 26 games played. Also named a first team all-star today, he had an AUS-leading four short-handed goals and was second in power-play goals with seven. He also boasted the second most shots with 117.

He becomes the fifth Acadia player to claim the Kelly Trophy since 1979-80 and the second league MVP from the Axemen program in the past three seasons.
Read more »

The 2014 Subway Atlantic University Sport men’s hockey final playoff schedule is as follows (seeding is in brackets):

Final Series (Best 3-of-5): Acadia (2) vs. Saint Mary’s (5)
Game 1: Thursday, March 6 – Saint Mary’s at Acadia, 7 p.m.
Game 2: Friday, March 7 – Saint Mary’s at Acadia, 7 p.m.
Game 3: Sunday, March 9 – Acadia at Saint Mary’s, 7 p.m.
Game 4: Monday, March 10 – Acadia at Saint Mary’s, 7 p.m.*
Game 5: Wednesday, March 12 – Saint Mary’s at Acadia, 7 p.m.* (*if necessary)

The winner of this final series will advance to the CIS 2014 PotashCorp University Cup presented by Co-op being hosted by University of Saskatchewan at the Credit Union Centre in Saskatoon, Sask., March 20-23.

All games of the AUS championship series will be webcast at www.AUStv.ca.

Tickets available at the Acadia Box Office for games #1, #2, #5 at 1-800-542-84251-800-542-8425 or 902-542-5500902-542-5500.

Watch a profile of Acadia Axemen 2013-14 team captain and AUS leading scorer Liam Heelis: