Panthers cruise past Tigers 7-2

HALIFAX, NS—The UPEI Panthers defeated the Dalhousie Tigers 7-2 Friday night at the Halifax Forum.

Heading into the game, the two teams were five points apart in the standings. The Panthers held the fifth seed, and the Tigers had the seventh seed. 

Dalhousie opened the scoring just 1:23 into the game. Nicholas Chenard (Tecumseh, ON) made a pad save, then Derek Gentile (Sydney, NS) hopped off the bench, finding the puck and skating in on a partial breakaway. He skated in on UPEI goalie Joe Ranger (Carp, ON) and fired it blocker side, finding the back of the net. Chenard got an assist on the play.  

Moments after the goal, the Panthers looked to find an equalizer. In a race for the puck in the neutral zone that UPEI's Kurtis Henry (Garden River First Nations, ON) won, Henry found himself on a partial breakaway, but Chenard stood strong, making the save. 

With just under 15 minutes left of the period, Barret Kirwin (Barrie, ON) shot a one-timer on the right side of the ice with the UPEI goalie screened. Ranger made the save on the play, helping UPEI kill the penalty. 

7:46 into the period, UPEI found an equalizer. Elias Cohen (Toronto, ON) received a pass through the neutral zone from Noah Sedore (Sharon, ON). Cohen scored five-hole on the breakaway.  

After the goal, Dal had a chance to score on a 3-on-1. However, the Tigers could not get a clean shot on goal as the puck was rolling. 

14:51 into the game, on the penalty kill, UPEI got the go-ahead goal. Off a neutral zone faceoff, UPEI generated a 2-on-1. Kaleb Pearson (St. Marys, ON) skated the puck towards the Dal goal and passed the puck across the net to Cohen, who scored his second goal of the game on the play.  

About a minute after the goal, the Tigers responded with its own 2-on-1 opportunity, but Ranger made the save.  

With about two minutes left of the period, UPEI had two golden chances to increase the lead to two goals. Chenard made two ridiculous saves; for the first save, he saved the puck with his stick on the goalline. The second, Chenard flashed the leather while down on the ice to rob UPEI. 

The period ended with UPEI leading 2-1, with UPEI outshooting Dal by 11 shots, finishing the period with 20 shots on goal. 

To open the period, Jackson van de Leest (Kelowna, BC) shot the puck from the point, making the save was Ranger, but the puck fluttered off his glove, missing the net. 

Josh Wainman (Peterborough, ON) came down the left wing with a wrist shot. Ranger made the initial save with the Tigers ready to pounce on the rebound, but the puck was cleared.  

8:04 into the second period, Miller came in on a 2-on-2. He skated past the UPEI defender and shot it past Ranger blocker-side to tie the game 2-2 while shorthanded.  

About 40 seconds later, UPEI retook the lead with a goal from Pearson. It was a cross-crease goal with a pass from Sedore.  

13:05 into the second period, UPEI scored again, making the lead 4-2 with a goal from Sedore. 

Josh Currie (Pickering, ON) stole the puck in the neutral zone and skated it into the Dal zone. Currie waited and then shot it top-left, finding the back of the net to give the Panthers a 5-2 lead with just above five minutes left of the period. 

It was a physical and chippy period, with the Panthers taking a 5-2 lead into the third period. 

In the opening moments of the third period, UPEI looked to build on the 5-2 lead. The Panthers had a scoring chance in the slot, but it was shot off the crossbar. 

Moments later, UPEI had a cross-crease opportunity, and Chenard made an excellent save on the play. 

About three minutes into the period, Ranger lost his skate blade and could not get up. The Panthers would catch a break as Dal could not find a shot on goal. 

Then, Gentile came down on a 2-on-1 and tried to go glove side on Ranger. Ranger made a great save, flashing the leather. 

Almost nine minutes into the period, Pearson and Chase Lammi (Sudbury, ON) passed the puck back and forth, setting up the one-timer for Pearson, who beat Chenard down low. The Panthers took a 6-2 lead. 

On the Panthers powerplay, with just under 10 minutes left of the game, the Panthers set up another goal. Pearson made a beautiful pass across the Dal zone to set up Ben McFarlane (Ayr, ON) to give the Panthers a 7-2 lead. 

Despite the seven goals, Chenard was outstanding, making 41 saves in the loss. 

Ranger made 28 saves in the victory, helping the Panthers gain a lead in the second period. 

UPEI's Pearson had a game-high five points.   

The Tigers take on the Acadia Axemen next Friday at the Halifax Forum., which will have significant playoff implications. 

UPEI takes on the StFX X-Men tomorrow night in Antigonish at 7 p.m.

RECAP COURTESY: Dalhousie Tigers Communications / PHOTOS BY: Nick Pearce