RECAP: Gee-Gees sweep northern roadtrip

Good teams find way to win. The University of Ottawa Gee-Gees men's hockey team did just that over the weekend, as they clawed back and collected another four points with a 4-3 win over the Nipissing Lakers and a 6-5 win over the Laurentian Voyageurs.

Now boasting a record of 9-0-1, the Gee-Gees are currently the top team in the OUA heading into a marquee match-up with the Carleton Ravens on November 16.

While there's plenty to rave about through the early weeks of the season, Head Coach Patrick Grandmaître continues to take a measured approach, and sees room for improvement.

"Points are points, but we didn't play complete games in both games," Grandmaître said. "I thought our offensive output was pretty good with the shot totals and scoring chances." 

"Our penalty kill has to be better, but that's part of the learning process and during the season you encounter this type of adversity."

Against Nipissing, the Gee-Gees came flying out of the gate. Yvan Mongo scored on the first shot of the night, and a power play goal from Kevin Domingue seven minutes in drained all energy from the crowd in North Bay.

Nipissing used every power play opportunity to get themselves back in the game. Ottawa's penalty killers, which was among the best heading into the game, faltered and gave up three goals on the man advantage to relinquish the lead.

The Gee-Gees directed shots on goal from all over the ice in hopes of tying the game — outshooting the Lakers by a margin of 27-5 in the final 40 minutes. The resiliency was finally rewarded late in the contest, with Jean-François Plante tying the game with five minutes on the clock, and Antoine Pouliot notching the game winning goal on the following shot 15 seconds later.

The following night in Sudbury, a similar storyline played out with the Voyageurs. Ottawa dominated for long stretches of play, while Laurentian found ways to score with minimal time on attack.

"Every bounce they had was in the back of our net, it seemed," Grandmaître said. "But again, the resiliency was really good and our pushback was tremendous."

Laurentian found themselves up 4-2 midway through the second. A power play goal from Michael Poirier pulled Ottawa within one, while a buzzer beating goal from Médric Mercier tied the game heading into the final frame.

The Voyageurs gained the lead once more midway through the third, but the tenacious Gee-Gees continued to pour on the attack and were rewarded once more. Cody Drover capitalized on a goaltending gaffe just three minutes later. And a rare power play late in regulation allowed Ottawa to set up a play, with Kevin Domingue finishing it off with roughly 90 seconds on the clock.

Despite leading for only 2:48, the Garnet and Grey were able to skate away with the win.

Up next, the Gee-Gees host the Ravens at The Arena at TD Place on November 16.

With a week to prepare, Grandmaître hopes to ensure his team hits the ice with a consistent effort across the entire game.

"I think our effort is pretty much always there," he said. "We could probably say we've played two full games so far. The Queen's game was a full effort and maybe 50 minutes of the McGill game." 

"We're looking for the perfect game, all coaches strive for that and hopefully we get that perfect game on Friday against Carleton."

Tickets are in limited supply, and can be purchased on campus at the Minto Sports Complex and Montpetit Hall Client Services desks.

—Cameron Penney