Despite finishing 2023 with a 14-4 record, the Badgers also closed their final games before the winter break with three straight losses. As a result, with games on Jan. 4 and 6, the Badgers looked to start the new year on a high note and keep their fantastic season rolling.
The Badgers’ first match was against the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold on Jan. 4. Though the Badgers beat the Bold 6-3 in November, TMU has since won seven of their last ten, propelling them into third in the OUA West.
Period one was very much a goaltending battle. Brock gave up two early powerplays but between strong penalty killing and collected goaltending from Connor Ungar, the Badgers kept the match even.
The Badgers were awarded a powerplay of their own in the dwindling minutes of the first, but ran into the same luck as the Bold, leading 13 to eight in shots, but still tied 0-0.
Again, the second period was a penalty-filled affair, though the game’s first goal would come for TMU on the penalty kill when Kyle Bollers corralled a Badgers’ giveaway to score his 13th of the season, shorthanded.
Luckily, the Badgers wouldn’t stay down for long as less than three minutes later a roller from Riley Gannon would slip through the TMU goaltender, tying the match with under a minute to go in the second.
The Badgers found themselves behind again just over eight minutes into the third when Connor Bowie tipped an Elijah Roberts point shot past Ungar. Under two minutes later, the Bold stretched their lead to two when Daniil Grigorev was able to find the puck in the chaos around the Badgers’ net and put it home.
Though Jared Marino would score a powerplay goal with three minutes left, the Badgers’ effort would come up short, losing 3-2.
Given a day to stretch their legs in between, the Badgers suited up again on Jan. 6 against the Guelph Gryphons.
The Gryphons entered the match on the exact opposite trajectory as the Bold. Guelph has lost seven of their past ten, dropping them to a middle-of-the-pack standing in the OUA West.
This seemed evident in period one where the Badgers left the Gryphons floundering. Brock scored the game’s opening marker six-and-a-half minutes in from Justin Brack, assists courtesy of Jacob Roach and Zach Taylor. Brock finished the period leading 14-4 in shots.
Period two was a very different story. While Brock again led by a healthy margin in shots, Ungar struggled with some of Guelph’s opportunities.
Guelph scored on the power play less than a minute into the second period, but Roach was able to tie the game soon after. Not looking to be counted out, Guelph threw two more behind Ungar to take a 3-2 lead in a game they seemed destined to lose handily in the first period.
Tyler Burnie started the third with a pair of goals five minutes apart as Roach picked up assists on both goals.
This pretty much did it for Guelph. Though the Gryphons had most of their shots in the third, Ungar dialed in, Cole Tymkin scored an insurance marker, and Brock won 5-3, marking their 10th consecutive win on home ice.
Thanks to his three-point performance, Roach now sits in second in the OUA in every major statistical category with 14 goals, 18 assists and 32 points in 20 games. The Badgers again play twice next week with a game on Jan. 10 at York University and then on Jan. 13 at home against Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières. For their full schedule and results, consult gobadgers.ca.