WATERLOO, Ont. - Two quick first period tallies by Western proved to be the difference as the Golden Hawks fell 2-0 to the Mustangs on Thursday night at the Waterloo Memorial Rec Complex.Â
The result put the Golden Hawks at an even 3-3-1 record, which is good for fifth in the OUA West division.
Laurier rookies
Colin Maund and
Xavier Lacoste put up noticeable performances while debutante
Brendan Ruskowski also had a strong effort.Â
Netminder Tristan Malbouef stopped 26 of 28 shots in his second loss of the season.
Western struck first and early, picking up both of their goals within the first seven minutes of play, with rookie Darius Bachler picking up his eighth and ninth points of the season.
Despite the Golden Hawks mounting pressure with strong offensive chances from
Connor Haynes,
Colin Maund and captain
Bryce Sutherland, the Mustangs kept the game in their favour for the remainder of the game.
 Laurier outshot the Mustangs 36-28 en route to a shutout for Western netminder Liam Sztuska.
"There were some great chances here," said Laurier's manager of men's hockey operations and head coach
Kevin Forrest after the game. "You've got to give their goalie some credit too … I actually thought we were pretty darn good from about the ten-minute mark of the first period on."
Having made his Golden Hawks and OUA debut, Ruskowski reflected on how he's looking forward to contributing to the group's success.
"I'm playing with a lot of good players; obviously it's going to take some time to get used to ... I'll keep working," he said.
With a lighter workload this week, the Golden Hawks will look to bounce back as they take on the Waterloo Warriors at Columbia Ice Fields next Wednesday, November 4.Â
Subscribers can catch the action live on OUA.tv at 7 pm.
