VANCOUVER – Spencer Copp got behind the UBC Thunderbirds defence to notch the game-winning goal 35 seconds into the third period, lifting the Calgary Dinos to a 3-1 road victory on Friday night at Doug Mitchell Arena.
BOX SCORE
The Dinos' Taylor Stefishen had an empty net goal and an assist in the victory, while Colton Grant opened the scoring by tipping a shot top shelf past UBC goalie
Jordan White.
Calgary netminder Dustin Butler had his shutout bid ruined by
Michael Wilgosh, whose blue collar goal from in close with just nine seconds left showed the 'Birds weren't going down silently.
The two teams battled neck-and-neck through the first 40 minutes, but after Copp's goal early in the third, the T-Birds never bounced back. Head coach Milan Dragicevic's team fought the puck for the next 20 minutes, unable to establish a rhythm.
“First shift of the third period, they come out and score,” said Dragicevic. “We're carrying the puck up the ice, we turn it over, and it's in the net. Then we're down by two goals and in the last five minutes we can't get the puck out of our end. They won all the battles. That's the story.”
In a tight Canada West conference race, a home ice loss is tough to bear. Coming into the night, UBC had gotten had least a point in five of their six games, posting a winning percentage of .667, but still sitting in fifth place and out of a playoff spot.
“I just finished telling the guys that every game is a four-point game. Every game is a playoff game for us,” said Dragicevic. “We don't play four games a week like they do in junior. We have to get points out of every weekend and it's games like this that come back and bite you in February. These games are just as important. Our guys have to understand that.”
The Thunderbirds have a habit of getting their weekends off to a slow start. So far this season, they are winless on Friday night. On the other hand, they have won all of their Saturday games.
“This is the fourth Friday in a row where we've lost. And we're undefeated on Saturdays,” said Dragicevic. “So the good thing is that our guys get a chance to regroup, think about the mistakes that we made, show them on video, and not let that stuff happen again. We've been a Saturday team all year and we need to continue that trend and salvage the weekend with a win tomorrow.”
The 'Birds also felt the absence of team captain and offensive leader
Justin McCrae, who is out indefinitely with an injury.
“It's pretty evident that we miss Justin out there,” said Dragicevic. “He plays 25 minutes a night and he drives the machine. We're waiting for other guys to step up. They have the opportunity and they have to step up. There's no excuse.”
The loss leaves UBC in fifth place, two points behind both Alberta and Manitoba. For Calgary, the win leaves them one point out of first place. The Dinos and the T-Birds meet again Saturday night at Doug Mitchell Arena.
