Adam McMaster with lone marker for Acadia

In AUS men’s hockey action between Dalhousie and Acadia on Friday night, the Tigers emerged victorious with a narrow 2-1 win.
The scoring began in the second period with Acadia’s Adam McMaster (Beamsville, ON) scoring 9:51 into the second period, where the score stayed until the third period.  

Dalhousie’s Alec Belanger (Quebec, QC) found the back of the net just 21 seconds into the period to even the game 1-1. 

The Tigers stole the game with a late goal from Joseph Serpa (Cambridge, ON), assisted by Jared Cosman (Grand Bay Westfield, NB) with just 1:04 remaining in regulation.

Dalhousie accumulated 14 penalty minutes on 7 infractions, while Acadia had 18 penalty minutes on 5 infractions.

The three stars of the game were awarded to Alexander MacDonald (Truro, NS) and Serpa from Dalhousie, and McMaster from Acadia. MacDonald stood out as the winning goalie for Dalhousie, making 41 saves on 42 shots.  

Thomas Couture (Levis, QC) made 25 saves in the loss for the Axemen. 

Dalhousie improves to a 1-3-0 record while Acadia fell to 2-2-0.

Acadia will now host UNB and Moncton next Friday and Saturday as part of Homecoming weekend, while Dalhousie heads to Antigonish on Wednesday to face STFX before returning home to host UPEI on Saturday.  

Bell with 2 goals, Zazula 3 assists in win

Antigonish, NS – The Acadia Axemnen played to a decisive 8-3 win over the STFX X-Men Friday night, spoiling the home opener for the White and Blue.  

X-Men defenseman Charlie Callaghan (Toronto, ON) opened the scoring 46 seconds into the game, depositing a one-timer off a nice pass from Alex Christopoulos (Richmond Hill, ON) while on a 2-on-1.  

The Axemen then scored three unanswered goals in the first period. Cam MacDonald (Hammonds Plains, NS) took a pass in front of the net and beat X netminder Partrick Leaver (Perth, ON) with a high shot eight minutes in. 

Just over a minute later Brendan Sellan (Bolton, ON) brought the puck in the end zone and pushed it towards the X goal, getting a timely deflection in off an X defender. 

Acadia’s third goal came with 3:27 left off the stick of Corson Hopwo (Duncan, BC) who pounced on a loose puck and beat Leaver with a high shot. 

Shots were fairly even in the opening period – 12-11 for STFX – but it was the Axemen who had the 3-1 lead on the scoreboard. 

The visitors took a 4-1 lead a minute into the second period with a goal from Peyton Hoyt (Fredericton, NB). He took down the puck down the left wing into the X zone and sniped a high shot over the shoulder of Leaver. 

Kian Bell (Fall River, NS) gave the Axemen a four-goal lead at 5:57 of the second, scoring on the power play on a shot through traffic. 

The X-Men found themselves in penalty trouble late in the period and continued to trail 5-1 after 40 minutes.  

Acadia kept with the scoring touch in the third period when Bell tallied his second of the night, this time off a pass from Zack Jones (North Falmouth, MA) in tight. 

Brady Burns (Port Williams, NS) made it a 7-1 Axemen lead when he scored on a wonky bounce off the boards that came back over top and into the X net. 

The X-Men got a pair of goals back to make it a 7-3 game. 

Jacob Maillet (Dundas, ON) scored on the power play, depositing a rebound after Axemen goalie Thomas Couture (Levis, QC) made the initial save off a Callaghan shot. 

Christopoulos scored the third X goal, beating Couture with a high shot over the shoulder in tight. 

Ethan Ernst (Weyburn, SK) rounded out the scoring for the Axemen with a power play goal with 3:45 left in the game. 

Acadia outshot the X-Men by a 34-29 margin as Couture posted 26 saves for the win and garnered first star and player of the game honours. 

Acadia’s Hoyt was second star as he had a goal and assist for the visitors. STFX’s Christopoulos was the third star with a goal and two assists. 

The Axemen will be back in action Saturday night, October 12th when they host the Dalhousie Tigers. Puck drop is 7:00 pm. 

Burns and Slaney with the Axemen goals

HALIFAX, NS – Saint Mary’s forward Ben Allison scored two goals and an assist, leading the Huskies to a 5-2 win over the Acadia Axemen on Saturday night, in front of 388 fans at the Dauphinee Centre in Halifax. 

It was the Axemen who would strike first on the evening, off a powerplay goal from forward Brady Burns (Port Williams, NS), giving the visitors a 1-0 lead 10:01 into the first period. 

But the Huskies equalized several minutes later, as forward Charlie Da Fonseca (Thornhill, ON) skated behind the net and threw the puck in front, where it took a fortuitous bounce onto the stick of Ben Allison (Halifax, NS) who wired it past Axemen netminder Thomas Couture (Levis, QC) to tie the game at 1-1 with just under two minutes remaining in the period.  

Despite the goals, Couture and Huskies goaltender Justin Sumarah (Halifax, NS) were both sharp over the opening 20 minutes, denying 11 and 10 shots respectively, and the Axemen took a 12-11 advantage in shots on goal into the first intermission. 

It took just 40 seconds into the second period for the Huskies to take the lead, as forward Bradey Johnson (Lindsay, ON) won the faceoff to Cedric Ralph (Peterborough, ON) who dished a pass to Reid Valade (Caledon, ON) who wired a shot past Couture to put the Huskies ahead 2-1. 

Allison’s second goal of the night would add to the Huskies lead, as the second year forward played a perfect give-and-go with linemate Derek Gentile (Sydney, NS), extending the lead to 3-1, 6:22 into the second period. 

Acadia cut it back to a one-goal lead midway through the period, as first year defenceman Keagan Slaney (Airdrie, AB) won the puck away from a Husky and fired a high shot over the shoulder of a screened Justin Sumarah for Slaney’s first career AUS goal, cutting the lead to 3-2. 

The Huskies outshot the Axemen 11-10 in the second period, with the Huskies taking a 3-2 into second intermission. 

Saint Mary’s would add to the lead in the third period, with Dennis Busby scoring a powerplay goal off of a set-up from Ben Allison. 

In the final seconds of regulation, defenceman Jaxon Bellamy (Hampton, NB) scored an empty netter from the other end, icing the 5-2 victory. 

Huskies forward Ben Allison was named Player of the Game with two goals and an assist. Allison’s linemates Charlie Da Fonseca and Derek Gentile both recorded two assists.  

Saint Mary’s goaltender Justin Sumarah made 26 saves for the win, while Axemen goaltender Thomas Couture turned away 27 shots in defeat. 

The Huskies win improves their record to 2-0-0 on the season. They’ll be back on home ice next Thursday, Oct. 10, hosting the STFX X-Men at 7 p.m. at the Dauphinee Centre.  

The Axemen loss drops their record to 1-1-0 on the campaign. They will also face the X-Men next, Friday, Oct. 11 at 7 p.m. in Antigonish, NS. 

Recap by Allan April / Saint Mary’s Huskies Athletics
Photos by Eduardo Ibarra / Saint Mary’s Huskies Athletics 

Nagy with 3 points in win for Acadia

By UPEI’s Thomas Becker 

It’s not the way the UPEI Panthers wanted to start their season. 

The Panthers’ season-opening struggles continued Friday night as they fell 5-1 to the Acadia Axemen, marking their second consecutive home loss. The Panthers (0-2) were overwhelmed by Acadia’s fast start, surrendering four goals in the first 13 minutes—a deficit they were could not overcome. 

The Axemen (1-0) wasted no time establishing their dominance, opening the scoring just 2:09 into the game. After winning the puck battle in the corner, Acadia forward Corson Hopwo managed to fire a shot from a tough angle that beat goaltender Jakob Robillard, giving the visitors a quick 1-0 lead. 

The early onslaught continued at 7:57 when Marc Boudreau retrieved the puck along the sideboards and directed a shot on goal. Brendan Sellan, stationed in front of Robillard, attempted a backhander before poking the puck past the netminder, doubling the lead to 2-0. 

Barely over a minute later, Brendan Mairs found teammate Cole Nagy on the opposite wing, where he fired a well-placed shot past Robillard. With the Panthers trailing 3-0 and Robillard facing just five shots, head coach Forbes MacPherson saw enough and pulled Robillard for Joe Ranger. 

However, the Axemen weren’t done. At 13:08, Brady Burns took a loose puck into the slot and found Cam MacDonald near the far post where he beat Ranger with a quick release shot, putting his team ahead 4-0 before the first intermission. 

Despite the lopsided first period, the Panthers regrouped and came out fighting in the second. Their efforts were rewarded at 2:41 when defenceman Derek Pys walked into a shot that was deflected in front by Marc Richard which cut the deficit to 4-1. 

However, the Axemen quickly squashed any momentum UPEI was building. Just under two minutes later, Luke Zazula fired a shot off a faceoff win that was deflected in front by Mairs for Acadia’s fifth goal, effectively sealing the Panthers’ fate. 

The third period saw high emotions boil over as both teams racked up penalties and engaged in some heated exchanges. Multiple power play opportunities were squandered as neither team was able to capitalize on the man advantage.