Solid team effort pushes varsity men’s hockey to 5-3-0
Coming off an exciting 4-3 overtime win hosted by the Brock Badgers on Oct. 30, the Guelph Gryphons kept the momentum going strong for a 5-3 win on Halloween night. While most were zipping up their costumes, the Guelph Gryphons and the Toronto Varsity Blues pulled on their jerseys for a game that featured physical play, back and forth action, and great offense.
The visiting Varsity Blues began the first period trying to make an early impact with Jeff Brown taking a penalty for a hit to the head, paired with a 10-minute misconduct just 14 seconds into the game. The powerplay proved to be powerless for the Gryphons, as the period continued on with no score. Chances were there for both teams, however it was the Varsity Blues who would capitalize first on the powerplay, as Robert De Fulviis sat in the penalty box for two minutes on a slashing call. Michael Markovic slid one past Gryphons goaltender Christopher McDougall with 46 seconds left in the first, making the score 1-0 Varsity Blues heading into the second period.
Once again coming out with too much intensity, too soon, Varsity Blues Lane Werbowski was called for interference just 21 seconds into the period. Unlike the first period, the Gryphons capitalized on this powerplay, with Andrew Merrett scoring from inside the crease to bring the game even at one-a-piece. The momentum shift was short lived for the home team, as Toronto’s Tyler Liukkonen took a hold of the lead once more only a minute later. The back-and-forth play continued as Merrett found Brett Appio for a set-up pass tying the game up at two.
The Gryphons took their first lead of the game in the 13th minute of second after a Toronto turnover was snatched up by Kyle Neuber, setting up De Fulviis for a five hole, 3-2 goal. The Varsity Blues continued to push as Markovic beat McDougall with a tip-in rfor his second of the game.
Unable to stay out of penalty trouble, Toronto’s Tyler von Engelbrechten was sent to the penalty for crosschecking with 1:32 left to play in the period. The Gryphons took full advantage once again as Neuber made it a two-point night, scoring from just inside the crease allowing Guelph to head into the second intermission with a 4-3 lead.
The Varsity Blues fought back with a valiant effort in the third, forcing the Gryphons to match their intensity. They did exactly that, maintaining pressure right up until Appio scored an empty netter, putting the game out of reach for the Varsity Blues with 43 seconds left. That would be the final score, as the Gryphons walked away with a hard earned 5-3 victory.
Gryphons McDougall was an obvious star in net, stopping 28 of 31 shots.
The Gryphons look to make it three wins in a row on Nov. 8 as they travel to Montreal to take on the McGill Martlets.