WOLFVILLE, N.S. – The Acadia Axemen (2-3-0) were unable to mount a comeback against the undefeated UNB Reds (5-0-0) on Friday night, as they lost 2-1. Although the teams were evenly matched for most the game, UNB dominated the third period to take the win.
Despite chances on both sides, the first period was a scoreless affair. UNB dominated the play early in the period, but Acadia eventually found their footing before the midway point of the first.
By the end of the first period, the shots were 12-9 for the Axemen.
UNB broke the scoreless tie with a shorthanded marker in the second period from Reds forward Samuel Dove-McFalls.
Dove-McFalls buried the puck into the empty net after the Axemen goalie fell over and let go of the loose puck, making it 1-0 for UNB.
The Axemen responded just under six minutes later when they tied the game off a goal from Acadia forward, Rodney Southam.
Southam scored off a weird bounce like McFalls’ goal, as the puck ricocheted off the glass behind the net and bounced in front where Southam potted it to make it 1-1.
By the end of the second period, the shots were 22-19 for the Axemen.
UNB came out firing on all cylinders in the third, with a power-play goal 17 seconds into the final frame.
Reds forward Kris Bennett broke into the offensive zone, cut to the left and ripped a shot into the bottom right corner of the net, past the Axemen goalie to make it 2-1.
The Axemen were mere inches away from tying the game when forward Kyle Farrell flew in on a breakaway. Farrell slid the puck under the goalie’s pads, but the UNB defense were able to clear the puck off the line before it went in.
That was the closest the Axemen would come to tying the game in the third, despite pulling their goalie late in regulation time.
“A lot of flow to the game, especially playing against UNB, a top team in the nation for many years. I think we actually did a very good job considering we have 12 new guys who are seeing them for the first time. We did a good job keeping them to the outside and skating with them,” noted Axeman Rodney Southam following the game.
Axemen goaltender Logan Flodell turned aside 25 of 27 shots, while his UNB counterpart – and Subway First Star of the Night – Rylan Parenteau stopped 29 of 30 shots.
Southam pointed out he’s not surprised by Parenteau’s performance.
“I have been playing against him all my life and he is a pretty acrobatic goalie. Seeing him in there, I said to ‘good job’ to him, but definitely not the way I wanted it to end,” said Southam.
The second and third stars of the night were Axemen forward Rodney Southam and UNB forward Kris Bennett, respectively
The Axemen take to the ice again at home tomorrow night against the UPEI Panthers. Puck drop is at 7:00pm.
Joshua Foote works at the Acadia Athletics Communications Office
