Panthers search for big playoff push with one last Nova Scotia road trip

The team finished the month of January with a 3-2-0-3 record, totaling nine points in eight games. Now, only four games remain in the Atlantic University Sport regular season, and the Panthers will have a major advantage as three of them are on the road, where the team has a 7-5 record and hasn't lost an away game since Nov. 29. UPEI has won its last three away games, with two coming during a road trip to Nova Scotia (7-2 against Dalhousie and 3-2 against StFX).  

This upcoming weekend (Feb. 2 and 3), the team makes one more trip to the Bluenose Province before the playoffs. The Panthers will visit Halifax, N.S. on Friday, Feb. 2 to play the Saint Mary's Huskies (14-12-1-0), and then visit Wolfville, N.S. on Saturday, Feb. 3 to play the Acadia University Axemen (8-14-2-3).

Heading into the road trip, UPEI seeks a resurgence after two unfortunate losses at the MacLauchlan Arena the previous weekend, including a 6-3 loss against the St. Francis Xavier University X-Men (13-12-1-0), where StFX scored five goals in the first period. Both games saw different players emerge with good performances.

Against StFX, top AUS goal scorer Kaleb Pearson recorded two assists within the first eight minutes but had to leave the game after getting hurt. Pearson is expected to play against SMU and Acadia this weekend. Rookie forward Cade Kowalski scored a highlight-reel goal, giving him his third point within a four-game span. Rookie defenseman David D'Agostino played his first game since Oct. 13, which was around the time he suffered a long-term injury. He recorded a +1 and one shot.

In the shootout loss against Dalhousie, rookie forwards Josh Currie (one goal), Noah Sedore (one goal), and Keiran Gallant (two assists) contributed the most in UPEI's failed comeback attempt. Veteran goaltender Jonah Capriotti had a brilliant game with 28 saves on 30 shots. Combining both games, rookie defenseman Cole Larkin quietly scored two assists and rookie forward Patrick LeBlanc maintained his elite faceoff skills, winning 24 of 33 faceoffs. 

As for who UPEI faces on the upcoming road trip, it's a battle against the team right above them and right below them in the standings. 

SMU is currently third in the standings, five points above UPEI, and recently beat Acadia 4-3 in overtime this past Wednesday, Jan. 31. 

Coming into the game, veteran forwards Declan McConnell and Nathan Dunkley will be the ones to watch after combining for five points in SMU's win against Acadia. McConnell is the team's leading scorer with 26 points in 24 games, but he's struggled with only eight points in nine second-half games so far. Dunkley has 17 points in 25 games and has been fighting consistency issues, but he has four points in the last three games. 

In the goaltender's net, veterans Jeremy Helvig and Matthew Welsh have been flipped back-and-forth between games. Helvig is 7-6 with a 2.78 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage, while Welsh is 7-6 with a 2.88 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. 

UPEI is 0-2-2 against Saint Mary's, with the last two games both ending past regulation. The Panthers came close on Jan. 5 at home with a 4-1 lead early in the third period, but SMU came back to win in a shootout. 

Acadia is currently sixth in the standings with 21 points, three behind UPEI and five ahead of Dalhousie for the final playoff spot. The Axemen have experienced a decent second half of the season with four wins, three losses, and two overtime losses, recently losing 4-3 to SMU in overtime. 

Acadia is another team where the leading scorers are currently struggling, including Brady Burns and Bailey Peach. However, the roster is filled with defense-heavy and physical-minded players, and the team has been heavily reliant on rookie goaltender Thomas Couture to steal multiple games. Couture is 6-13 with a 2.67 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage; the latter stat is the second-best in the AUS behind UNB goaltender Griffen Outhouse. Watch out for forward Brendan Sellan, who scored two goals against SMU this past Wednesday, including a late third-period goal that helped Acadia come out of the game with one instead of zero points. 

UPEI is 2-1-1 against Acadia, with the last game being a 4-3 shootout loss at home on Jan. 6, which was another come-from-behind rally by the opponent. It's been an inconsistent series between the two teams, as Acadia won 9-2 on Oct. 13 and UPEI won 4-0 on Nov. 10 and Dec. 2. 

Friday's game time against SMU is at 7 p.m. and Saturday's game time against Acadia is at 7 p.m. Catch the action at austv.ca and follow the men's hockey Instagram and X accounts for live updates.