Waterloo, Ont. - The Toronto Varsity Blues scored three unanswered goals, overcoming a 3-2 deficit to defeat the Laurier Golden Hawks on Saturday night at the Sun Life Financial Arena. 

Luke Wilson potted his first career OUA goal when he opened the scoring for the Golden Hawks on a tip out front that beat the glove of Jett Alexander just three minutes into the opening frame.
 

M?? P1 - Luke Wilson picks scores his first OUA goal to give the Golden Hawks the lead just over 3 minutes in!

Golden Hawks | 1@Varsity_Blues | 0#WLUvsTOR #SoarAbove pic.twitter.com/G5ZeFWfjOz

— Laurier Golden Hawks (@WLUAthletics) February 5, 2023

Patrick Brown extended Laurier's lead on another tip out front with three minutes remaining in the first period. Fourth-year defenseman Steven Maclean picked up his second assist of the night on the goal. 
 

M?? P1 - Patrick Brown redirects the point shot from Grayden Gottschalk to extend the Laurier lead!

Golden Hawks | 2@Varsity_Blues | 0#WLUvsTOR #SoarAbove pic.twitter.com/Emjbx4QQvN

— Laurier Golden Hawks (@WLUAthletics) February 5, 2023

Laurier dominated almost every aspect of the first period. From shots to hits, the Golden Hawks were all over the Varsity Blues and for just the second time this season, the purple and gold went to the first intermission with a multi-goal lead.  

The Golden Hawks had sustained pressure for the first bit of the second period, but the momentum began to shift around the halfway mark. 

Emmett Serensits put the Varsity Blues on the board with a bomb from the point that somehow found its way through a sea of bodies and behind Christian Propp.

Laurier had three attempts at extending the lead on the man advantage in the second period, but the Golden Hawks struggled to get set up in the UofT zone, so high-quality scoring chances were scarce on the powerplay.

After a lacklustre Laurier powerplay to open the third period, the ice tilted heavily in favour of the Varsity Blues. 

Five and a half minutes into the final frame, Owen Robinson began a rush in the Varsity Blues zone and walked through three Laurier defenders on his way to tie the game. 

Cole Purboo scored three minutes later in the second half of a four-minute powerplay to put U of T in the lead for the first time in the game. 

The Golden Hawks were unable to score an equalizer, and the Varsity Blues headed back to Toronto with an important two points. 

Propp faced 40 shots in total, 17 of which came in the third period, stopping 37 on the road to a .925 save percentage. 

When asked about his team's performance, Laurier's interim Head Coach Kevin Forrest said "I think we gave [the game] away. We lacked a killer instinct tonight, we had them and we didn't put them away. And if we don't get that in us then we are not going to get where we want to go."

Playoff Picture
Things just got complicated. 

York has lost their last two games, and because of the School Day Game cancellation, Laurier sits on top of York with 23 points, but with a game in hand. The only problem is that both Western and Guelph have climbed their way to 23 points as well, but have fewer wins than the Golden Hawks.

Laurier's next two games against the Western Mustangs could determine the fate of the Golden Hawks. 

Minus - The Powerplay 
 
 Heading into the game, Laurier's powerplay sat at a solid 22.5%, which is good enough for fourth in the OUA but struggled to get anything going Saturday. On their four attempts, scoring chances were minimal and Laurier was hard-pressed to set anything up in U of T's zone. 
 
 Minus - The Reffing

The reffing in this game was inconsistent. Ten penalties were called and each team had four powerplays, but all four of Laurier's penalties were called in the third period. 

The referees missed a couple of calls, and one questionable no-call led to U of T's game-winning goal.

Minus - Discipline 

The reffing may have been questionable but "discipline let us down tonight," said Forrest. The powerplay that U of T scored the game-winning goal on was a four-minute double minor penalty for spearing that was taken 200 feet from the Golden Hawks net. 


UP NEXT:
The Golden Hawks (11-13) will continue their four-game homestand to wrap the regular season with a huge back-to-back against the Western Mustangs (9-15). Both teams, along with York and Guelph, are tied at 23 points apiece for the final playoff spot although Laurier holds the spot due to more regulation wins.

The matinee was rescheduled from the original School Day Game that was postponed due to weather back on January 26. Tickets are available now.