With the winter term finally coming to an end, it is always worth looking into some of the outstanding accomplishments of our student athletes here at the UW.
This year, two UW hockey athletes were recognized at the national level for their success on the ice. On the women’s team, Carly Orth was named as a First Team All-Canadian and deemed the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) player of the year. On the men’s side, Matt Onuska was named the Goaltender of the Year and a First Team All-Canadian.
We chatted with Orth and Onuska to discuss their past season and learn more about them.
Matt Onuska
This past season was nothing short of truly special for the man between the pipes on the Warriors. In 19 games played, Onuska was ranked first in the country with a .941 save percentage, third in the nation for total saves with 664, and third in the OUA for goals against average at 2.18. On top of this, Onuska was able to post four shutouts on the season, two of which he stopped 40 or more shots. To cap off a superb season, Onuska was selected as an OUA first team all-star, first team All-Canadian, OUA goalie of the year and U Sports goalie of the year.
Onuska returned to the Waterloo region after playing four years in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Drafted in the seventh round with the 133rd pick, Onuska bounced around between a few different teams but made his largest impact with the Windsor Spitfires. Across 26 games, Onsuka was able to lead the team to victory in 19 of them, posting a save percentage of .88, stopping 619 pucks.
Upon finishing his time playing junior hockey, Onuska had a big decision to make regarding his future and where he wanted to study. “When I finished up my time in the OHL, I knew I wanted to continue playing hockey, but getting a great education and being able to be a student first was very important to me,” Onuska shared. Instead of taking the NCAA path, Onuska decided to bring it home and attend UW.
When posed with why UW, Onuska shared: “Education is a huge priority of mine. When I was playing in the OHL, it felt like I was only a hockey player, and that was it… Waterloo was a great overall fit for multiple reasons but largely because it was close to home, and the hockey team and athletics department as a whole have a great balance of taking hockey seriously but also put a large priority on education — developing people, not just athletes.”
Discussing his professional ambitions, Onuska shared that he already had an experience playing hockey at the highest possible level, the National Hockey League (NHL). “In 2023, it was a wild circumstance, but I was actually called up to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs. They were having some issues with their goalie’s health and out of the blue, my agent gave me a call and said they wanted me to travel with them to Florida.”
This experience was enough as far as professional goals go for Onuska as he has his eyes set on bigger things off the ice. He shared that after he wraps up his undergraduate studies, he wants to attend dental school and become a certified dentist.
With Onuska wrapping up his second season with the Warriors, the Warriors will be secured between the pipes for at least the next two years. With only three graduating seniors, the future is looking bright for men’s hockey.
Carly Orth
Carly Orth played an essential role in the women’s hockey team’s national runner-up finish. Across 24 regular season games, Orth led the OUA in total points, tallying 31. She was second in the league with 20 total assists and seventh with 11 total goals, including an OUA lead with four short-handed.
With a stat line like this, it’s quite evident to see how she was selected as an OUA First Team All-Star and named OUA player of the year. The accolades did not stop on the provincial stage. Orth was also recognized nationally, being named a U Sports First Team All-Canadian.
Orth shared that playing and being around the world of hockey is something that she has known for as long as she could remember. “My family is a huge hockey family. My dad played goalie, and my older brother was also really big into it. I started skating at three years old, and I think around five was when I first started organized hockey.” Orth’s hockey journey started with her playing on male teams and making the transition to female only in the ninth grade.
After posting some impressive statistics in her time playing junior with the Toronto Leaside Wildcats, Orth had to make the decision on where she wanted to continue her hockey and academic journey. “When I finished up my time playing junior, I was confident that I wanted to go to an NCAA school, but after further consideration and the guidance of my coach, I felt that the NCAA was not the path I wanted to take.” Orth shared that as soon as she stepped foot on Waterloo’s campus and gained an understanding of the team vibe and the support systems of academic and athletics, UW was the place she wanted to be.
In discussing her success as a Warrior, specifically this past season, Orth shared that her goals coming in were not so much about individual success: “Coming into this season, I wanted to do whatever I had to do to ensure that I was helping the team be successful. If that meant being a top player in the OUA, or just a role player on the team, then so be it.” She remarked that throughout the season she was not regularly checking her own stats, rather her family and friends kept her updated on where she stood in the league.
With this past season making Orth’s penultimate year with the team as far as eligibility goes, her time as a Warrior is nearing an end. When asked about her next steps, she shared: “I have one more year of eligibility, so I will be coming back and hopefully be able to take it to the next level and finally earn that U Sports gold.” Looking past UW, she is interested in playing hockey as long as she can and has her eyes set on playing in the SDHL (Swedish Women’s Hockey League), a premiere professional women’s hockey league in Europe.
