Panther rookies shine in 7-0 win over Aigles Bleus

By Thomas Becker

In sports, sometimes you just have to throw away the analytics and stats and concede that one team, for whatever reason, has another team's number.

That's the case for a UPEI Panthers squad, who have already defeated the 8-5-2 Université de Moncton Aigles Bleus for the third time this season after Tuesday night's 7-0 drubbing. 

It was also the best look Panther fans have had at the program's bright future, as their promising young talent was on full display in the lopsided victory. The team's rookies took centre stage, as five of them found the back net, including Mike Stubbs, Keiran Gallant, Noah Sedore, Cole Larkin, and Elias Cohen, who also added an assist. 

Third-year forward Daylon Groulx netted a pair of power play goals late in the game, while Kurtis Henry and rookie Chase Lammi added two assists each. 

"We played two good games in Moncton and we carried that over to tonight," Groulx said. "There are only six other teams in the league, so we can really key in on how they play and what they're trying to do."

Groulx also touched on the team's balanced attack on offence. 

"We're really buying in to the way Forbie wants to play and that's the biggest thing for us," he said. "With this new group, we're most successful when we're dialed in on thing little things and we're all on the same page."

Another player who was dialed in Tuesday night and had a game to remember was freshman goalie Joe Ranger, who earned his first Atlantic University Sport (AUS) shutout three days after capturing his first win. 

"It feels great," said Ranger after his 28-save performance. "The whole team was outstanding. Everyone got in on the action and we showed fans how we want play." 

Ranger set the tone early for the Panthers (6-9) and made his presence known at the 6:30 mark when Moncton's Jeremy Michel got behind the defence and went in alone, only to be denied by Ranger, who made an acrobatic toe save to keep the game scoreless.

Ranger with the acrobatic save!#GoPanthersGo | #Hockey pic.twitter.com/P1MpR9SepX

— UPEI Men's Hockey (@UPEIMHockey) November 21, 2023

The UPEI offence quickly rallied after that remarkable save, scoring just 43 seconds later. With the defence draped all over him, Stubbs gathered the puck in the slot, turned and fired a shot by Olivier Adam to make it 1-0.

The score would stay that way until the opening minute of the second period when Gallant sprung in alone on a breakaway and beat Adam blocker side with a wrist shot.

The Panthers got the better of Adam again at 12:47 when Cohen took the puck through the neutral and dropped it off for Kaleb Pearson, who passed it back to Cohen for the quick-release shot from the right circle that found the back of the net.

Sedore added a power play goal with just under two minutes to go in the frame, as he fired a wrist shot from the high slot that found its way through traffic to give his team a 4-0 lead.

The scoring barrage continued in the third period, where they added three more goals. At the 7:21 mark, Lammi skated around the net and found Larkin in the right circle where he fired the one-timer in the top corner. 

Moments later, frustration had set in as Alexandre Couture earned a game misconduct for a dangerous check from behind on UPEI's leading scorer, Pearson. In response, the Panthers padded their lead on back-to-back power play goals from Groulx.

The first came at 10:16 on a tremendous individual effort that saw Groulx take the puck from the left circle and stickhandle his way past a defender before tucking a backhand over the goalie's shoulder for the impressive goal.

Then, at 13:13, Groulx tipped Henry's shot from the right circle that went up and over Adam for his second tally of the night to seal the win.

The Panthers will face a tougher test Friday night when they travel to Fredericton to take on the undefeated UNB Reds, while the Aigles Bleus face the Reds the following evening.

Photo Credit: Janessa Vanden Broek