By Mark Moffat

In AUS men's hockey action at the Halifax Forum, the UPEI Panthers defeated the Dalhousie Tigers 4-2 in a game that saw things get interesting in the final minutes of regulation. 100 people were in attendance.

As the first period got underway, UPEI got on the board first when Marcus Power (St. Johns, NL) snapped a quick wrist shot from the slot into the net at 7:30 off an even quicker pass from behind the net to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead. UPEI continued to roll when Gabe Guertier (Plantation, FL) converted on a chance that saw a point shot slam off the boards, right onto his stick for the marker at 16:57 to make it 2-0. Dalhousie had a chance late in the first when Myles McGurty (Hoboken, NJ) snapped a wrist shot that missed an open net with some traffic in front with about 90 seconds left in the first to keep the score 2-0 after 20 minutes.

In the second period, the Panthers kept up the momentum when Subway Player of the Game Beau McCue (Pasco, WA) scored on the power play with a wrist shot at 1:25 off some pretty passing to give UPEI a 3-0 lead. Dalhousie had a chance to cut into the lead when Jackson Playfair (Fort St. James, BC) fired a quick wrist shot from the slot from a pass from behind the net that was stopped. UPEI had the chance to extend the lead further when Brent Andrews (Hunter River, PE) got a breakaway, but was stopped to keep the score 3-0 after two periods.

The third period saw Dalhousie make a comeback in the last few minutes to try to force overtime. They started it when Playfair sniped a quick wrist shot from the slot top shelf at 15:06 to make it 3-1. The Tigers got it to within one when Alex Pawelczyk (Sterling Heights, MI) scored off a wrist shot from the slot at 16:25 to make it 3-2. The Tigers pressed for the equalizer, but it was stopped when McCue got his second of the night when he tapped the puck in from the crease to give the Panthers the win.

The Tigers outshot the Panthers 34-27 in the contest. Matt Mahalak (Monrow, MI) made 32 saves for the Panthers, while Corbin Boes (Saskatoon, SK) stopped 23 shots for the Tigers

Both teams are back in action tomorrow at 7, with the Panthers taking on the StFX X-Men in Antigonish and the Tigers playing the UNB Varsity Reds at the Forum.