Brock’s men’s hockey team continued their excellent run this season, tacking on two more wins this past week. Brock has now won five straight since their four-game losing streak spanning from November to January.
The Badgers first locked horns with the Western Mustangs on Jan. 18th at home.
Brock found themselves behind the eight-ball early with team scoring leader Jacob Roach incurring a tripping penalty 1:54 into the match. However, Roach redeemed himself in prime fashion, slamming the go-ahead goal behind the Western goalie off a Tyler Burnie pass for Roach’s 16th of the year.
Brock fired 13 shots on goal in the first period and, now holding the upper hand, they brought that same energy into a frenetic second period.
Brock again scored early in the second period, this time on a net-front scrum that landed on the stick of AJ Cook. Jared Marino dangled around the Western defenders to create the initial chance, netting him his 15th assist of the season.
Following the goal, both squads began a parade to the penalty box, taking eight penalties in the period, including a ten-minute game misconduct given to Ryan Thompson. Despite the wealth of powerplay opportunities, neither side found the back of the net again in the second.
The third continued in much the same way. Both sides took a number of penalties (Brock finished with 10 and Western with seven), but neither ended up with much to write home about. With three minutes left in the game, the Badgers finally broke through for the game’s first powerplay goal, a one-timer courtesy of Marino, assisted by Roach and Zach Taylor.
Marino’s goal stood as the final one in the contest, delivering the Badgers a 3-0 victory. Two days later on Jan. 20th, the Badgers stayed home to play the Waterloo Warriors. Brock’s Ryan Stepien opened the scoring just over eight minutes in, but Waterloo wouldn’t be counted out, scoring a goal of their own a minute later, setting up what would be a frantic first period.
Three minutes after the Warriors’ goal, forward Justin Kyle secured his first goal of the season, assisted by Jordan Stock and Ethan Sims. Four minutes later, Waterloo again tied the game at two.
Brock poured on the offence in the second period, generating a ton of shots on net. Rewarded for their dedication, the Badgers added two goals in the second, first from Burnie eight minutes in, and a second from Cole Tymkin four minutes after that. Just one minute after that though, Waterloo trimmed Brock’s lead to one, setting the score at 4-3.
For all the scoring in the first two periods, both teams’ offences dried up in the third. With Brock unable to extend their lead and Waterloo failing to close the gap, the Warriors were forced to pull their goalie late in the game. Despite having the goalie pulled for a full two minutes, neither team could capitalize. Thanks to a scoreless second period, Brock walked away with a 4-3 victory, their 19th of the year.
Thanks to the win against the Warriors, the Badgers remain undefeated at home, boasting a 13-0 record at Canada Games Park. Nationally, Brock remains ranked ninth in Canada, though they are likely to rise in the next update. Despite their ranking, there are only three teams in U Sports with a better record, University of British Columbia (20-4-0), Calgary University (19-4-1) and University of New Brunswick (24-0-0).
With two assists against Waterloo and a goal and an assist against Western, Jacob Roach is also climbing national rankings, in this case, in points; Roach’s 38 points are tied for third in U Sports while in goals he’s tied for seventh.
Tyler Burnie is also continuing an impressive season with a goal and three points over the past week. Burnie is 12th in U Sports in points and goals. With two more under his belt, Badger goalie Connor Ungar also now leads U Sports with 18 wins, in addition to being fifth in save percentage and 11th in goals against average. The Badgers have only one game next week: a Saturday game against University of Windsor on Jan. 27th. For more information, visit gobadgers.ca.