At CIF, the crowd fell silent at the Men’s Hockey home opener on October 9 against the York Lions, as the visitors took a commanding lead halfway through the second period. What had seemed like a competitive match, as the Lions’ 1-0 advantage faced an onslaught of Warrior offence, was now 3-0 in the visiting team’s favour. But at 12:59 of the second period, that all changed. Warriors forward Jaden Goldie put one in the back of the net, starting a five-goal run to reclaim the match.
The first period saw an intense back-and-forth between the two teams, with neither able to capitalize on the opportunities being created. Eventually, at 17:37, Lions forwards Thomas Johnston and Rydor Ringor barreled down the ice to create a scoring chance for Olivier Lamothe, who slotted it in to put the Lions up 1 -0. A power play at the end of the period wasn’t enough for the Warriors to equalize.
Another Lions penalty three minutes into the second period gave the Warriors a chance for the equaliser, but again York’s defence held firm. With five players back on the ice, it was their turn to put the pressure on. York forward Rydor Ringor, assisted by David Mabey and Ethan Stirk, slammed a puck through the air to put the lead at 2-0. The goal coming at 8:42 of the second period. A penalty against the Warriors created a power play that the Lions were all too eager for; defenceman Brandon McCartney hit the shot that seemed to put the game out of reach.
Down 3-0 with 30 minutes left, the Warriors were determined not to let their supporters go home disappointed. After Jaden Goldie’s opening goal, Kitchener native and Warriors winger Evan Klein made it clear the game wasn’t over, scoring at the 16:45 mark to make it 3-2.
Still down by one, the Warriors went on a power play when York’s player Stirk was called for high-sticking at 9:08 of the third period. The home team wasted no time, getting the puck to Jesse Fishman to tie the game at 9:32.
The Warriors then made sure there wouldn’t be a need for overtime in this one. Forward Max Monette scored at 13:19 to put the Warriors in the lead, then the game was put away with an empty net goal from Fishman at 19:51.
The men’s hockey team is now 1-1 on the season after a loss to the Western Mustangs on Saturday. They’ll be back on the ice against the Laurier Golden Hawks on October 15th at 7:00 pm.
