McCollum stops 27 of 30 shots for Acadia

WOLFVILLE,  N.S. – It was a rousing comeback victory for the Acadia Axemen (2-1-0) on Homecoming weekend against the Moncton Aigles Bleus (1-2-0) on Saturday night.

Rookie Axemen Liam Kidney (Enfield, N.S.) was a big reason for the Acadia victory, as he potted a hat trick in Acadia’s 6-3 win.  He was awarded the Subway First Star of the Night honours for his efforts.

Moncton opened the scoring on the night when Yann-Felix Lapointe (Granby, Que.) wired a puck off the right post and into the net.

The lead was short-lived for the Aigles Bleus, as Acadia forward Liam Kidney tied the game just under a minute later.

Kidney took a shot from the top of the left circle to make it 1-1.

Moncton came storming back with a power-play marker from Vincent Deslauriers (Blainville, Que.) two minutes later. He ripped a shot from the point on the left side that fooled the Acadia goalie and gave the Aigles Bleus their only lead of the game.

Heading into the second, Moncton held a 2-1 lead despite being outshot by the Axemen.

Kidney answered the call for his team again, scoring the first of three unanswered goals on the night for the Axemen in the second period.

For his second goal, Kidney took a pass from Merrick Rippon (Ottawa, Ont.) and ripped a shot past the Moncton goalie Felix-Anthony Ethier (Deux-Montagnes, Que.) to make it 2-2.

Forward Peyton Hoyt (Fredericton, N.B.) potted another marker for the Axemen on a tap-in goal in front of the net to give Acadia their first lead of the game.

To cap off the period, Cole Nagy (Saskatoon, Sask.) scored the first goal of his USPORTS career less than a minute after Hoyt’s to double their lead 4-2. Nagy was named the third star of the night for his efforts.

At the end of the second period, Acadia held a commanding 32-16 lead in shots.

Kidney capped off his hat trick in the third period with a goal in close of the Moncton goal. In the first three games of the season, Kidney has scored five goals, which is good enough for second in the AUS.

For his final goal of the game, Kidney chipped a pass from Brendan Sellan in front of the net to make it 5-2.

Moncton responded with a goal in the final minutes of the game from the second star of the night, Vincent Lanoune (Repentigny, Que.), on a cross-ice tap-in in front of the net.

Nick Deakin-Poot (Georgetown, Ont.) sealed the victory for the Axemen with an empty-net short-handed goal.

Axemen goalie Conor McCollum (Pickering, Ont.) turned aside 27 of 30 shots on the night, while his Moncton counterpart Ethier stopped 38 of 43 shots on the night.

Acadia returns to the ice on Wednesday, Oct. 20 night against Saint Mary’s before returning home on Saturday, Oct. 22 to take on the UPEI Panthers. The puck drop for both games is 7:00 pm. Moncton travels to Saint Mary’s for a rare Sunday evening game.

Kidney scores in Acadia loss

Wolfville, N.S. – The Acadia Axemen (1-1-0) kicked off their regular season home opener to a raucous home crowd on Saturday night but came up short in a 4-1 loss to the STFX X-Men (1-0-0).

StFX forward Liam Hawel (Arnprior, Ont.) scored two goals and took home Subway First Star of the Night honours.

Despite nabbing a lead early in the first, the Axemen ultimately came up short. The X-Men overwhelmed offensively as the game went on and the Axemen failed to capitalize on their five power-plays on the night.

The Axemen opened the scoring with 13:21 remaining in the first period on a marker from the second star of the game, Liam Kidney (Enfield, N.S.).

Kidney broke into the offensive zone with a 3-on-1 and slipped the puck under the pad of the X-Men goalie Joseph Raaymakers (Chatham, Ont.) to make it 1-0.

Acadia’s goal came shortly after they killed off a potent power play by the X-Men. Conor McCollum (Pickering, Ont.) turned away a fantastic breakaway opportunity by X-Men forward Matthew Struthers (Milton, Ont.) early in the frame to preserve Acadia’s momentum.

At the end of the first period, the teams were tied 9-9 in shots.

StFX jumped out to their first lead of the game early in the second period on a short-handed marker from Brendon Clavell Kapuskasing, Ont.).

Acadia had a number of solid scoring opportunities in the second, but they could not solve the X-Men goalie Raaymakers, who put in a strong performance.

By the end of the period, the X-Men held a 21-18 shot lead.

Liam Hawel sealed the victory for the X-Men with a nifty wrist shot from the high slot on the power play with 12:37 left in the final period.

For insurance, Hawel buried an empty-net goal in the final minute of the game.

Combined, the teams had 54 penalty minutes on the night, with both teams getting five power-play opportunities.

Axemen goalie Conor McCollum stopped 37 of 41 shots, while his X-Men counterpart Joseph Raaymakers turned aside 28 of 29 shots on the night.

StFX forward Adam Holwell (St. John’s, Nfld.) was named the third star of the night.

The Axemen return to play on Friday, Oct. 14 at home against the UNB Varsity Reds on the first of two Homecoming weekend games, while the X-Men host Dalhousie next Wednesday night.

Contributed by Joshua Foote, Acadia Athletics Communications

Peach scores 2 in Axemen victory

By Ryan Hyndman 

The Dalhousie Tigers men’s hockey team were defeated on Wednesday evening surrendering a 5-2 loss to the Acadia Axemen in their home opener at the Halifax Forum. 

The game began fast paced with both teams getting a few shots on net within the first few minutes of the game. As the first period progressed, the Axemen began putting on pressure, drawing the game’s first penalty six minutes in. Wasting no time, the Axemen generated a few good chances before Adam McMaster (Beamsville, Ont.) found the back of the net on the powerplay to make it 1-0. 

Not long after, the Tigers found themselves with a 5-on-3 powerplay for their first man advantage of the evening. Thanks to some quick puck movement, a perfectly placed pass saw Cameron Thompson (Victoria, B.C.) score his first of the season, tying the game at 1-1. The penalties continued as the game progressed, including a 10-minute misconduct and a game ejection given to Tigers Jackson van de Leest (Kelowna, B.C.) for checking from behind. On the ensuing 4-4 play in the offensive zone, the Axemen were able to capitalize for their second goal of the game from Bailey Peach (Falmouth, N.S.) to regain the lead at 2-1.  

Just 23 seconds later, Acadia added another goal off of a nifty play from Liam Kidney (Enfield, N.S.), making it 3-1 Axemen. As an eventful first period came to a close with yet another powerplay for the Axemen, Tigers goaltender Connor Hicks (Kanata, Ont.) stood tall stopping a flurry of scoring chances.  

The second period began with the Tigers pressuring in the offensive zone, trying to cut the lead to one, but Acadia goaltender Connor McCollum (Pickering, Ont.) was able to stop the attack, retaining the two-goal lead. With both teams settled into the game, the physicality subsided a bit, and time ran down to the midpoint of the period with both sides trading chances and the officials blowing very few whistles.  

With the period winding down, the Tigers were able to find some momentum as Brett Crossley (Dartmouth, N.S.) broke in alone and finished the play with a skilled backhand-shot in the back of the net to make it 3-2. However, just two minutes later Acadia responded with a goal of their own from Orlando Mainolfi (Richmond Hill, Ont.) to restore the two-goal lead at 4-2. The Tigers were able to gather some chances on a powerplay near the end of the period, but the Axemen penalty killers were able to keep it to a two-goal lead headed into the third period. 

The third period began with both teams playing a tight defensive game, and minimal chances at each side. The Axemen then started to control the possession battle, keeping the Tigers in their own zone for several minutes, but Dalhousie was able to stay within two with half a period left to play. The Tigers would generate a few more chances, but a costly penalty would send the Axemen back to the powerplay where Peach would score his second of the game, sealing the 5-2 win for Acadia. 

Bailey Peach took home the Subway Player of the Game award for the Axemen. 

The Axemen will look to build on a season-opening win when they face off against STFX at 7:00pm on Saturday. 

The Tigers next game comes at 7:00pm on Friday against St. Mary’s where they will try to get in the win column for the first time this season. 

Zazula scores in Acadia loss

WOLFVILLE, N.S. (U SPORTS) – Vincent Deslauirers and Jeremy Michel scored during the Moncton Aigles Bleus tight 2-1 victory over the Acadia Axemen in the pre-season home opener for the Axemen.

Acadia attempted to tie the game late in the third by pulling their goalie, but they were unable to solve the Moncton goalie.

Moncton’s goals were scored in the 9^th and 31^st minute by Vincent Deslauirers and Jeremy Michel respectively, while Luke Zazula replied in a losing cause for Acadia in the 49^th minute.

Despite coming up short on the scoreboard, Acadia outshot the Aigles Bleus 29-24 on the night.

Acadia failed to capitalize on their many power-plays, going 1-for-6 on the night, while also giving up a shorthanded goal to start the game.

The Axemen split their exhibition season with a 3-1 win over Saint Mary’s this past Thursday evening and tonight’s loss to Moncton.

Subway Stars of the Game

First Star: Vincent Lanoue

Second Star: Liam Kidney

Third Star: Yann-Felix Lapointe