RECAP: Mercier, man advantage magnificent, men’s hockey sweeps homestand

Two Médric Mercier power play goals were the difference for the Gee-Gees men's hockey team, who won back-to-back games at home over the weekend. Ottawa beat the Concordia Stingers 5-3 on Saturday afternoon and the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks 2-0 in a Sunday matinee.

"Winning those tight games sometimes are as rewarding as winning games by a lot of goals," said head coach Patrick Grandmaître. "It's in tight moments that you see good or bad reactions and I thought both games we kept our composure."

The Gee-Gees never trailed at any point during the weekend and registered three goals on the man advantage. Ottawa struggled on the power play at times this season, but it is now firing at 18.5 percent, good for seventh in the conference. They also own the OUA's best penalty kill (91.5 percent) and didn't concede on the kill over the two games.

"We're just trying to simplify a little bit," said Mercier, who scored his first two goals of the season during the weekend. "We're getting some good shots off and some good screens. Every time you come in, you try to contribute as much as you can. I think I've done that so far on the power play and I'm excited to keep it going." 

"Mercier's shot is booming right now," said Grandmaître, who donned festive sweaters with the rest of his coaching staff behind the bench on Sunday afternoon. "We've tried players in different spots, but I think we've figured it out for now [on special teams]. A huge factor has been our break-ins, we've been very efficient at it lately which is getting us more zone time."

Ottawa and Concordia engaged in a back-and-forth affair Saturday, with the Stingers always seeming to have an answer for the Gee-Gees. Connor Sills and Kevin Domingue found the back of the net in the first, with Domingue notching another marker on the power play in the second period. 

With time winding down in the third, Carl Neill of the Stingers undressed the Gee-Gees defence to tie the game. That would set the stage for a Mercier bomb from the point after Jacob Sweeney slid the puck to him. The goal came exactly five seconds into a power play, with Neill being penalized for high sticking.  

Yvan Mongo would ice the game with a goal moments later. Mongo was one of four Gee-Gees with multi-point performances, along with Domingue, Sweeney and Dominic Cormier. Domenic Graham made 23 saves for his eighth victory of the year. 

Sunday was a milestone day, as it was the 100^th regular season game for the men's hockey program since it was re-established in 2016. Domingue and Mathieu Newcomb were both playing in their 100^th career game as well, as neither of them have missed a game in four seasons.

The Ridgebacks played Ottawa tight throughout the first 40 minutes of the matchup. The Gee-Gees broke through on the man advantage early in the third period, with Mercier potting an eerily similar goal to the one he scored the day before. Brendan Jacome slipped the puck cross-ice and put it on a platter for Mercier.

Anthony Brodeur turned aside all 22 shots he faced for his fourth career shutout, while Cormier added an empty netter to seal the victory.

Kevin Domingue ended the month of November on a nine-game point streak. He had nine goals and 12 points through the team's eight games in the month. 

Cody Drover also enjoyed a successful November, accounting for 12 points, all assists. His 17 assists are two behind Julien Tessier of UQTR for the most in the OUA. 

Ottawa (11-4-1) remains in third place, five points behind the UQTR Patriotes (13-2-2) for second with a game in hand. They are four points clear of fourth-place McGill (9-6-1).

THE WEEK AHEAD

The Gee-Gees hit the road to close out 2019. They will travel to Trois-Rivières to face the Patriotes for the first time this season on Tuesday, December 3 at 7:00 p.m. The game was initially scheduled for Saturday, November 2, but was postponed due to a power outage in Trois-Rivières.

UQTR are enjoying an excellent first half of the season, just behind the Carleton Ravens in the OUA East standings. They are led offensively by rookie Julien Tessier, who leads the Ontario circuit with 19 assists in 17 games. Fellow rookie Jordan Martel is tied for the conference lead in goals with 12, while veteran defenceman Loik Leveille has 18 points.

The Pats are backstopped by a duo of Sebastien Auger and Mathieu Bellemare. Auger has started 12 games, compiling an 8-4 record with a .921 save percentage. Bellemare's numbers are even better, with the first year carrying a spotless 5-0 record, a 1.78 goals-against-average and a .936 save percentage. 

For in-game updates, follow @GeeGeesMHKY on Twitter. The game will be streamed on OUA.tv. Tickets to all Gee-Gees home games are available at tickets.geegees.ca.