OTTAWA, Ont. – The Ontario Tech University men's hockey team's Queen's Cup quest came to an end Sunday afternoon after getting shutout 5-0 by the Ottawa Gee-Gees.
The Ridgebacks came into the series as the sixth seed and after dropping game one on home ice, proved they belonged with a big game two victory. Ultimately the Gee-Gees were too much, taking the best-of-three series 2-1.
It was a nervous start for both teams, with each having an early power play opportunity, but neither cashing in. The home Gee-Gees were able to grab the lead with just seven minutes left in the opening frame, as the Ridgebacks struggled to maintain consistent offensive pressure.
A pair of tough bounces early in the second period set the Ridgeback in an even deeper hole. The visitors never gave up as they fought hard until the final buzzer but ultimately could not solve the Ottawa goalie.
Although it was not the ending that the Ridgebacks wanted, this was the eighth straight year that the program qualified for the Queen's Cup playoffs.
• Kyle Ward opened the scoring after finding some open ice in the slot.
• Michael Poirier scored just 4:00 into the middle period, with Medric Mercier potting the Gee-Gees third goal just 58 seconds later.
• Kevin Domingue made it 4-0 11:38 into the second period and scored his second of the game 5:40 into the third to round out the games scoring.
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Leif Hertz (Kingston, Ont.) allowed three goals on 17 shots in the start, while
Michael Bullion (Anchorage, Alaska) had 22 save in a relief appearance.
• Domenic Graham stopped all 23 shots he faced.
Overall Record: 17-16-3
Conference Record: 13-12-3
