BURNABY, BC - The Saskatchewan Huskies (11-7-3) solidified their spot in the Canada West post season with a playoff-like performance in the third period of their 6-3 victory over the UBC Thunderbirds (7-15-1) on Saturday night at Burnaby 8 Rinks.
After a lose first two periods, through which the T-Birds had out shot the Huskies 26-20, Saskatchewan ratcheted up their offensive and defensive efforts in the third, scoring a pair of insurance goals while out shooting UBC 16-6.
The win moves Saskatchewan six points ahead of fifth-place Lethbridge and two points in front of fourth-place Calgary. The T-Birds have been eliminated from post season contention.
Steven Dasilva and Brennan Bosch each had a pair for the Huskies while Kyle Ross and Kyle Bortis each had three assists on the night.
Linemates
Max Grassi and
Brandon Campos each had a goal and an assist for the T-Birds but UBC was not match for the visitors in a decisive third period.
Bosch gave the Huskies a 5-3 lead with a power play goal midway through the third, finishing off a nice bit of passing down low with a shot that beat UBC netminder
Jordan White. DaSilva then notched his second of the game just under four minutes later, streaking in over the UBC blueline and beating White with a low wrist shot at 13:02 of the period.
White made at least 30 saves for the second straight night in a losing effort while his counterpart, David Reekie, stopped 29 of 32 shots in the win.
The opening two periods were a wide open, back and forth battle. The Huskies took a 4-3 lead heading into the third with a pair of late second period goals.
After Campos put the T-Birds ahead 3-2 with a power play marker eight and a half minutes into the second, slotting home a cross crease pass at the far post, the visitors responded with a pair of goals in the second half of the frame.
A turnover in the T-Bird zone allowed Andrew Bailey to collect the puck just to the left of the UBC net and he deftly sent a between the legs backhand pass to a wide open DaSilva who deposited it into the open net at the 11:26 mark of the period.
The Huskies took the lead exactly six minutes later after a bad bounce off the end boards behind the UBC net went right to Steven Gillen in the slot who beat White with a low wrist shot.
The first period was much like the second, with multiple chances at both ends of the ice.
Saskatchewan opened the scoring 3:51 into the game with Michael Kaye scoring on the visitors first shot. Kaye got behind the UBC defence as the Huskies broke into the T-Bird zone and beat White with a forehand-backhand deke.
The T-Birds responded 13 seconds later with
Dalton Pajak scoring a near identical goal, beating Reekie with a similar deke after getting around the outside of a Huskie defenceman down the right wing.
Saskatchewan regained a one goal cushion on a deflection by Bosch at the 8:14 mark of the first but Grassi knotted the score at 2-2 just over three minutes later, finishing a cross crease pass from Campos into the open net.
The T-Birds are off next weekend with their first action back on the ice against Team Norway at the Abbotsford Events Centre on Wednesday, February 10 in an exhibition tilt. They close their regular season with a pair of road trips to Alberta and Calgary.
The Huskies host back-to-back weekends at home against Calgary and Manitoba over the next two weekends before closing their regular season on the road in Lethbridge.
-30-
