TORONTO, Ont. - Veteran defenceman
Callum Chisholm recorded a goal and an assist, but the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks fell 5-4 in overtime to the Toronto Varsity Blues on Thursday night in the GTA.
The loss came in Laurier's second overtime game in as many outings, having beaten Guelph in the extra frame on home ice last Saturday, and moves the Golden Hawks to 2-2-1 through the first five games of the OUA men's hockey season.
Toronto opened the scoring less than three minutes in when Ryan Watt struck at 2:58 of the first period, giving the Varsity Blues a 1-0 lead heading into the intermission.
Laurier responded midway through the second period. Rookie forward
Tristan Tremble picked up the first OUA point of his career with the primary assist on Chisholm's second goal in as many games, tying the contest 1-1 at 13:37.
The deadlock lasted just 42 seconds before Aiden Reeves restored Toronto's advantage, but the Golden Hawks answered again when
Bryce Sutherland finished a setup from
Travis Verbeek at 15:03 to make it 2-2 heading into the third.
The teams continued trading goals in a back-and-forth final frame. Sean Clarke put the Varsity Blues ahead 3-2 early in the period before
Justin O'Donnell converted a pass from
Thomas Lenart and Chisholm to even the score at three.
Toronto regained the lead through Ryan Gillespie at 10:06, but Laurier refused to go away. With just under six minutes remaining,
Connor Haynes found
Alec McDonald in the slot, and the veteran forward buried the equalizer to force overtime.
The Golden Hawks generated chances in the extra period, but Toronto capitalized on a two-on-one opportunity when Watt scored his second goal of the night with under a minute to go, sealing the 5-4 victory for the home side.
In goal,
Andrew Ness turned aside 37 of 42 shots, recording his second consecutive 30-plus save performance.
The Golden Hawks remain in Toronto for a quick turnaround as they take on the York Lions on Saturday night. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Canlan Ice Sports York.
Subscribers can catch the action live on OUA.tv.
