Tigers fall to Axemen in 2025 opener

The Acadia Axemen beat the Dalhousie Tigers 8-3 to open the second half of their season at the Halifax Forum on Monday night.

The Axemen opened the scoring six minutes into the first period when Brady Burns found the back of the net. Tyler Deline extended the Axemen's lead at 7:38 during a power play.

Dalhousie had several opportunities, including three shots by Brody Fournier, one of which hit the pipe at 15:38, but could not capitalize. The period concluded with multiple penalties, including an unsportsmanlike conduct against Zak Smith, leaving the score 2-0 in favor of the visitors.

The second period saw a strong performance from Acadia, with three consecutive goals scored by Cam MacDonald, Marc Boudreau, and Brendan Tomilson in the first four minutes, setting the score at 5-0.

Dalhousie responded with a goal at 12:23 by Liam Peyton, assisted by Jack Harper and Colin MacDougall, marking the team's first goal of the period. Despite Dalhousie's efforts, Acadia added another goal with two second left in the period by Bailey Peach, concluding the period with a score of 6-1 in favor of Acadia.

In the third period, Dalhousie showed resilience with Paul Hughes scoring at 15:10, assisted by Ryan Del Monte and Colin MacDougall, marking his first goal of his AUS career. Shortly after, at 17:57, Liam Peyton added another goal for Dalhousie with assists from Jared Cosman and Joseph Serpa.

Despite these efforts, Acadia maintained their lead, winning the game 8-3, with seven different Axemen finding the back of the net.

Dalhousie's Nicholas Chenard made 31 saves in the loss. Acadia's Thomas Couture turned away 24 shots to earn the win.

Burns was named player of the game with three points on the night.

The win evens up Acadia's record who now sit at 10-10 on the season. Dalhousie slips to 3-17 this season.

Next game for Dalhousie is Friday when they travel across town to face the Saint Mary's Huskies. Acadia returns home on Friday, hosting STFX at 7pm.