WINDSOR, Ont. - All good things come to an end. The same is true for winning streaks, as the Windsor Lancers did something no other team has this season: shut out the Laurier Golden Hawks. In this instance, it was by a 3-0 score.
In the first of a back-to-back on the road in Windsor, Laurier maintained a conservative and ultra-defensive formation of two defence, two support players and one forechecker. This strategy worked for the first two periods as the Golden Hawks kept Windsor within one. After that, however, the offence never came for Laurier, and Windsor put it away in the third.
The first period was a high-tempo one from both teams, but the Golden Hawks had the advantage in chances and possession with an 8-7 lead in shots after 20 minutes. Including a goal-line chance in the opening minutes of the game.
Goaltender
Christian Propp had his best save of the game in the opening frame with a backdoor stop that left even the broadcast crew in disbelief.
Both teams exchanged powerplay opportunities in the first, but neither team was successful as the penalty kill shut it down. Laurier went 0-for-4 on the powerplay in the game, and Windsor was 0 for 3.
Special teams are a tale of two stories over the past five games, with the penalty kill achieving an astonishing 95.8% (23-for-24) success rate, while the powerplay has been an abysmal 7.1% (1-for-14) in the same period.
In the second, Windsor opened the scoring as Sean Olson (10-2-12) scored his team-leading tenth goal of the season and moved into fourth in the OUA in goals scored.
On the goal, Propp's insane shut-out streak ended, officially standing at 168 minutes and 59 seconds. Unfortunately, nothing else materialized in the period as both teams stayed out of the box, and no other chances threatened a goal.
The game plan didn't change much in the third for Laurier, as they maintained the same defensive formation throughout the game. Unable to find the back of the net, this resulted in the same outcome for the Golden Hawks.
Meanwhile, Windsor had solved the Laurier defence and added two more goals to their lead. Each goal came off a rebound to a wide-open Lancer who potted them home with no chance for Propp to recover after the first save.
Players of the Game
Laurier
LW -
Sam Rhodes
The rookie was one of the lone bright spots on the Laurier offence as he led the team's energy on the forecheck and was a prominent player in the action.
Windsor
F - Mason Kohn
He earned the primary assist on the first and third goals to increase his team-high lead in points to eighteen on the season, which was also good for the sixth-best total in the OUA (6-12-18).
Next Up
The Golden Hawks (6-6-0) won't have to wait long to get another chance at the Windsor Lancer (11-3-0). The teams meet for the fourth and final meeting tomorrow afternoon, with Laurier looking to split the season series with a win.
Catch the game live on OUA TV.
