CALGARY – The UBC Thunderbirds (15-10-1) saw their seven-game win streak snapped with a 3-0 loss to the Mount Royal Cougars (12-12-2) Saturday afternoon at Calgary's Flames Community Arenas.
It's UBC's first loss since January 6, and just the second time they've been shutout this season while the Cougars ended a four-game losing skid.
Graduating Cougar goaltender Cam Lanigan stopped 17 pucks on route to his first shutout of the season in his final home game.
Rylan Toth made 19 saves for the 'Birds in the loss.
Special teams were a key difference for the Cougars Saturday as MRU scored twice on the man advantage out of six chances and killed off all three UBC power play opportunities.
"It's good proof that we're not good enough to turn it on and off and pick your spots and wait for somebody to make an unbelievable play," said UBC head coach
Sven Butenschon. "It's going to take a team effort every night, it's going to take everybody pulling the rope together and then you give yourselves a chance and tonight we didn't have that."
Prior to puck drop, Mount Royal clinched a playoff berth on the merits of Lethbridge getting swept by Manitoba earlier in the day, but the Cougars didn't let up as a result.
After an uneventful first period, the Cougars took their first lead of the weekend 5:55 into the second on Jesse Lees' 11th goal of the season. The second-year defenceman danced his way from the corner of the blue line, cutting his way into the top of the slot and slipped a shot past the crowd of bodies and Toth.
As the period progressed the action started to slowly pick up for MRU as the Cougars capitalized on their fourth power play of the game and doubled their lead at 14:49 on Josh Bly's fourth goal of the season. Breaking into the zone three-on-two, Jamal Watson rifled a pass to Bly who chipped the puck in, giving MRU a 2-0 lead heading into the final break.
Shots heading into the third period were a mere 14-7 for the Cougars who played far more defensively sound than the night previous.
Defenceman Grant Baker blasted the puck on a one-timed shot past Toth to give MRU a 3-0 lead 8:31 inside the third to seal the game for his side.
MRU adjusted accordingly and kept shutting down the T-Birds' potent offence to hold on for the win.
The loss drops the T-Birds three points back of third place Manitoba but UBC enters the final weekend of the regular season five points clear of Mount Royal having already clinched a home ice playoff berth for the Canada West quarterfinals with Friday night's win.
UBC returns home for a meeting with the first place Alberta Golden Bears next Friday and Saturday at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.
"We're going to play the best team in Canada, in my opinion, and if you take a shift off they'll burn you," said Butenschon who sees the matchup as an excellent playoff tune-up opportunity. "They're an incredible team that's had an incredible season and it's going to take a huge effort from us, but at the same time we can't be too worried about the results. We're going to be focussed on the process and playing a good team game that gave us success so when we get to playoffs we're feeling good."
