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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

RICHMOND HILL, ON (U SPORTS) – A total of 102 student-athletes will represent Canada at the 30th FISU Winter Universiade, held from December 11-21 in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Axemen hockey standouts Logan Flodell and Garrett McFadden are included in the FISU Games Team Canada Roster. Flodell was named the AUS Most Valuable Hockey Player in 2019-20, while McFadden was on the 2018-19 AUS All-Rookie team and was named to the 2019-20 second-team AUS All-Star squad.

“This is a very well-deserved opportunity for both Logan and Garrett. They have been outstanding players in our program and we are very excited they have earned the opportunity to take part in this prestigious international event. They both have bright professional futures and this will be a great chance to showcase themselves while representing Canada,” said Acadia head coach Darren Burns.

U SPORTS announced on Tuesday that nine teams from seven sports will travel to Switzerland to take part in the event, originally scheduled for January 2021. Canada will compete in ice hockey (W & M), curling (W & M), alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, biathlon, snowboarding and short track speed skating. This is the first FISU Universiade since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Overall, some 144 people will be exhibiting the Maple Leaf in and around Lucerne, including coaches and mission staff. The complete list is available below.

“We are thrilled to have this exceptional group of student-athletes, coaches, and staff heading to Switzerland for what is sure to be an outstanding experience”, said Ben Matchett, Team Canada’s Chef de Mission. “It is always an honour to wear your nation’s colours, and we know that Team Canada will represent our country with pride at Lucerne 2021.”

“While we’re all excited to get back to sport and experience all that the Winter Universiade has to offer in a beautiful part of the world, our first priority will always be the health and safety of the Canadian delegation,” added Matchett. “FISU and the Lucerne organizing committee have put in place stringent protocols to ensure the safety of participants including mandatory vaccination and testing, and we know we all have a responsibility to keep ourselves and each other safe and healthy.”

This is the first time in nearly 50 years that the FISU Winter Universiade will be held in Switzerland, as the 1962 competition took place in Villars. In 2019, Canada won five medals in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, including one gold, two silver and two bronze. The best Canadian medal count was in Belluno, Italy in 1985 (18 medals; 5 gold, 5 silver, 8 bronze).

The Lucerne 2021 Opening Ceremony will take place on December 11 at 7:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. EST, 10:30 a.m. PST). However, curling and ice hockey matches will occur in the days leading up to the official opening.

“We are very proud of every student-athlete and staff member representing Team Canada at the 2021 FISU Winter Universiade,” said Lisette Johnson-Stapley, Chief Sport Officer at U SPORTS. “I applaud them all for their diligence and patience as we waited for these games to arrive after an 11-month delay. The entire Mission team and coaching staff are working very hard to provide the student-athletes the best possible and safest experience in Switzerland. I wish them all good luck in their final preparation.”

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

McFadden with 3 points in Acadia loss

Antigonish, NS – The StFX X Men hockey team earned their third win in a row with a 5-3 victory over the visiting Acadia Axemen at the Charles V Keating Centre on Friday night.  

The game started off quick with both teams pressing for an early lead. X-Men blueliner Adam Holwell (St. John’s, NL) got the ball rolling at the 7:03 mark on the powerplay. Jacob Hudson (Antigonish, NS) fired the puck deep into the Acadia zone, where Patrick Kyte (Pembroke, ON) stopped it at the hash marks. Holwell jumped on the loose puck, skated to the frot of the net, beat a defender, and slid the puck home. 

Just over four minutes later, X doubled their lead with Josh Nelson (Lockport, IL) taking a back pass from Zach Trott (Mulmur, ON) in close and burying it. Acadia pressed hard but the teams went into the locker room after 20 minutes with the score still 2-0. Shots at the end of the first were 8-6 in favour of StFX. 

Acadia’s first goal of the game came on the power play. Working the puck in the X zone, Adam MacMaster (Beamsville, ON) passed the puck over to Luke Zazula (Langley, BC) who put it on the tape of Acadia captain Garrett McFadden (Kincardine, ON) for a one-timer with 7:20 played in the second stanza. 

StFX didn’t back down and replied just over three minutes later. The play started on the stick of Hudson, who made a quick pass to Matthew Struthers (MIlton, ON), who put it in front of the net for Philip, who banged in his first of two goals on the night. 

Shots at the end of the second period were 19-12 in favour of X as they held a 3-1 lead.

In the third period, Acadia cut the lead to one on the powerplay at the 3:32 marker. A McFadden shot from the slot hit some traffic in front and Johnny Cornell (Lindsay, ON) slid  the puck into the net. Peyton Hoyt (Fredericton, NB) had the other assist.   

Just over a minute later, Hoyt evened the score, knocking in another loose puck after a point shot. McFadden and Nicholas Deakin-Poot (Georgetown, ON) had the assists. 

X pulled ahead for good on the powerplay with 13:47 played in the third period. Liam Hawel (Arnprior, ON) hit Struthers with a pass at the Acadia blueline. Struthers skated in and passed to an open Philip, who backhanded in what proved to be the game winner, his second of the night. 

Acadia called a time out with 1:54 left to play and the puck in the X zone. They pulled their goalie and came back to the fold with 6 skaters. It didn’t pay off though with X clearing the zone and Howel putting home the empty netter. Struthers and Trott had the assists. 

McFadden, with a goal and 2 assists, was third star of the game. Struthers, also with three assists, was second star, and Philip was first star and Subway player of the game for his two goal performance. 

At the end of the game, shots ended 25-21 in favour of the X-Men. Max Paddock (Brandon, MB) had 22 saves on the night for Acadia, while STFX netminder Joseph Raaymakers (Chatham, ON) had 18. 

It’s a quick turnaround for the X Men, who take on St. Mary’s Huskies on Saturday at the Keating Centre. Acadia’s next game is against UNB on November 12.  

Courtesy Matt Draper, STFX Athletics 

Axemen add Enfield, NS forward to program

The Acadia Axemen hockey program are proud to announce the commitment of Liam Kidney to the program starting in the 2022-23 season.

We asked Liam why Acadia was his University of choice and what Axemen fans can expect from his game in the Fall, he said, “Acadia is an amazing school with a second to none reputation for being one of the best post secondary schools in Canada. And second the great development and reputation Acadia sports has in developing players and the amazing community support your receive playing for Acadia. It was a really simple choice.”

I would say I am a hard hitting forward, who can be relied on in any situation. Both in the offensive zone and defensive zone, on the power play and penalty kill. A player that works hard in any situation and does what it takes to win.”

Kidney, from Enfield, NS, is a 6’0” forward who is currently in his fifth season in the QMJHL. He had 28 points in 38 games last year with the Cape Breton Eagles, his third full season in the QMJHL, as his first season he was called up for 5 games with Cape Breton. Coming into the current season he had career totals of 24 goals and 38 assists in 139 major junior games. Liam is currently playing with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan and at the time of the article he has notched 3 goals in 8 games. He is playing in Bathurst alongside his younger brother Riley, who was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2nd round of this past year’s NHL entry draft.

Acadia Head Coach Darren Burns is excited to add Kidney to next year’s lineup saying, “Liam is going to be a tailor made AUS hockey player. We are extremely familiar with this player as he has played with our spring program at various ages. His grit, speed, and relentless work ethic will be an excellent addition for us. He is a natural born leader who doesn’t know the word quit. We believe he will be a player that will surprise many in this league because of commitment. He is a 200-foot player, who will lead and do whatever it takes to make his team successful.”

The Axemen also announced this week the committment of Bailey Peach to the program for the Fall of 2022, as the team gets an early jump on recruiting.

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