Bill McDonald said Friday night’s win over the Carleton Ravens was a bit of a throwback to his earliest coaching days with the Thunder Bay Twins and Senators.
Late in the second period Carleton’s Owen Werthner cross checked Lakehead’s Brennen Dubchak hard into the ports. Older brother Carson Dubchak came to his rescue, fists-a-flying. While the officials were trying to sort out that melee, the main event broke out.
LU’s Linden Springer and Carleton’s Hayden Hulton went toe-to-toe.
When the dust settled, Springe and Hayden – along with Ravens goalie Patrick Killeen – were tossed. But more importantly for the Thunderwolves, momentum had swung back in their favour.
They would go on to win 3-2 in front of 1.957 fans at Fort William Gardens, just their third win of 2015-16.
“It worked out in our favour,” said Lakehead defenceman Jake Ringuette, at one point just one of two true Thunderwolves blue-liners left on McDonald’s bench.
“It was good momentum for us to get in a couple of fights there. It was good for us, for sure.”
Though fighting is rare at the university level, it does happen from time to time, said McDonald.
“It wasn’t planned,” he said.
“It reminds a little bit of being back here coaching in my Twins and Senators days. It’s a bit different hockey in the CIS and the game today … but a win’s a win. I thought we were really good in the beginning. I thought we took some dumb penalties because it gave them momentum.”
There was no denying the Thunderwolves (3-10-4) dominated the opening period – and took a 2-0 lead as a result. Cody Alcock opened the scoring at 12:06, Ringuette doubling the lead with a minute to go in the period, blasting a slap shot from the right face-off circle that Killeen had no chance to redirect.
But the Ravens turned the tide in the second.
Those penalties didn’t help.
Matt Alexander’s first of two minors in the opening 10 minutes of the period led to the Ravens first goal of the night. Michael McNamee blistered a one-timer off a pass from Brett Weylychka, who threaded the puck from the side of the LU net, catching Devin Green out of position.
Defencemen Luke Maw and Jay Gilbert took concurrent misconducts with 6:40 to go in the second, the blue-line further depleted when Springer was tossed late in the period.
Alexander, who managed to stay out of the box from there on in, shifted back to defense the rest of the night.
A total of 98 minutes in penalties were assessed in the second.
Francis Dupuis took over in nets for Carleton (12-5-0) and stood tall, beaten just once in the third, when Kelin Ainsworth took a feed from Billy Jenkins on a 2-on-1 and lifted it over the goalie’s right shoulder to restore a two-goal lead.
With Dupuis on the bench for the final two minutes, Welychka got one back for the Ravens, but with just five seconds left on the clock, it was too little too late.
Both Springer and Hulton face automatic one-game suspensions for their fight.
The two teams will try it again on Saturday night. Puck drop is 7 p.m.
FIRST PERIOD
Scoring: 1. Lakehead, Alcock (Wright, Butler) 12:06. 2. Lakehead, Ringuette (Jenkins) 19:00 pp. Penalties: Gustavsen CAR (hooking) 5:33, Maw LAK (tripping) 9:02. West CAR (tripping) 14:30, Bench minor CAR (too many men, served by Van Stralen) 17:29.
SECOND PERIOD
SCORING: 3. Carleton, McNamee (Welychka, West) 4:57 pp. Penalties: Alexander LAK (cross checking) 4:05, Ainsworth LAK (cross checking) 5:06, Alexander LAK (roughing) 9:57, Gilbert LAK (check to the head, misconduct, served by Butler), Maw LAK (misconduct) 13:20, Boland CAR (unsportsmanlike conduct) 16:00, Brown (tripping) CAR 17:02, Werthner (cross checking, misconduct) Hulton CAR, Springer LAK, (fighting, game misconduct) C. Dubchak LAK (tripping, misconduct), Killeen CAR (leaving the crease, game misconduct) 18:24.
THIRD PERIOD
Scoring: 4. Lakehead, Ainsworth (Jenkins, Gilbert) 16:25. 5. Carleton, Welychka (Durocher, West) 19:55. Penalties: Stevens CAR (interference) 2:05, Sefton LAK (tripping) 3:01.
GAME DATA – SOG – Carleton 8-15-9-32, Lakehead 15-7-7-29; Power plays (goals-chances) – Carleton (1-5), Lakehead (1-5); Goaltenders – Carleton: Patrick Killeen ( 18: 24 second, 21 shots, 19 saves), Francis Dupuis, Lakehead: Devin Green; A: 1,957.
