RECAP: Late comeback bid falls short, Gee-Gees edged by McGill on home ice

For the first time in 11 games at the Minto Sports Complex this season, the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees lost in regulation. Two goals late in the third period were not enough, as the Garnet and Grey fell 3-2 to McGill.

 "I thought we weren't ready from the hop, and our bad start turned into poor execution in our power play. We had a lot of special teams opportunities in the first," said head coach Patrick Grandmaître following the game. "We lost a lot of battles one-on-one, they were executing better. 

 "3-2 was the score, but I don't think it was fully indicative of the game. McGill deserved to win and it was a good learning experience — with these quality of teams we need to be better right from puck drop."

 Ottawa had a trio of power play opportunities in the first period, including a five-on-three, but were unable to generate significant momentum. 

 McGill controlled the pace in the second frame, notching three goals in six minutes to gain a commanding lead. 

With time winding down in the third period, GRandmaître pulled goaltender Anthony Brodeur while on the man advantage to create a six-on-four opportunity. The play paid off, with Cody Drover finishing off the sequence to pull Ottawa within two goals with only a handful of minutes remaining on the clock. 

 The Gee-Gees continued to pressure while defending the open caged, and generated a flurry of chances. Kevin Domingue notched his 18th of the season to cut the deficit to a single goal with just seven seconds remaining on the clock.

 With a timeout to draw-up a play, Ottawa looked to pull off the comeback and force overtime, but with McGill winning the draw and maintaining possession — it ultimately sunk the Gee-Gees.

 "It's good to see we didn't give up, kept pushing, and gave ourselves the chance to tie the game," Grandmaître said. "We'd also prefer not to be in those situations though."

 With just four games remaining in the regular season, the Gee-Gees haven't found themselves chasing late very often. 

The loss to McGill was just the second regulation loss of the regular season, with the team now holding a 18-2-4 record. First place Ottawa holds a six-point lead over Queen's and McGill for the OUA East lead, while four points separates Ottawa at the top of the entire OUA, with Brock and Ryerson tied for second.

 Up next, Ottawa will travel to Montreal for another rivalry game against the Concordia Stingers on Friday, February 1st. They'll close out the regular season with a trio of home games against UOIT, Laurentian, and Nipissing. Grab tickets ahead of the game at tickets.geegees.ca

 —Cameron Penney