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Wolves host Mustangs with first place on the line

Tue Jan 17, 2012
Written by John Payetta
Photo by James Mirabelli

The Lakehead Thunderwolves hockey team will host the Western Ontario Mustangs this weekend for a pair of games at the Fort William Gardens. The opening face-off is set for 7:30 on both Friday and Saturday nights.


Last Time Out
Lakehead and Western Ontario both lost one out of its last two games in an upset-filled weekend that saw seven out of the eight top-ranked teams in the country take at least one loss.


The Thunderwolves split a pair of games at Ontario Tech by identical 8-5 scores, winning on Friday night and then taking the loss on Saturday.


Western Ontario lost 2-1 at Brock on the Wednesday, and then defeated Windsor 5-2 at home on Saturday night.


The Big Two on Top
The weekends showdown is between the top two teams in the OUA West Division, with first place up for grabs. First-place Western Ontario (16-2-2 in the OUA) is only two points ahead of the second-place Thunderwolves (16-4-0 in the OUA). A weekend sweep for Lakehead would catapult the Wolves into first place, while the Mustangs can strengthen their hold on the division lead with a pair of wins. A series split will keep the race tight as both teams head down the home stretch of the OUA regular season.


Series History
Lakehead has a record of 22-31-1 all-time versus Western Ontario; the Mustangs are the only OUA West Division team that has a winning record over the Thunderwolves.


The two teams met twice in London last season, with Western Ontario sweeping that mid-January series at home by scores of 3-1 and 4-1.


Its been nearly two years since the Mustangs last visited the Fort William Gardens; that was in game one of the 2009-10 OUA West Division finals. Lakehead won that game 4-1, and went on to sweep that series two-straight with a 5-2 victory in game two at Western Ontario.


About the Mustangs
Western Ontario is a perennial contender on the national scene, and this year is certainly no different. Currently in first place in the OUA West Division and ranked #4 in the country, the Mustangs are sitting two points ahead of the second-place Thunderwolves (ranked #8 nationally).


The Mustangs have the OUAs top scorer in winger Keaton Turkiewicz, who has notched 40 points in 20 OUA games played. Forward Kevin Baker is also a dangerous offensive threat, having posted 31 points so far in league play. Andrew Eastman, Matt Ashman, and Scott Aarssen are all solid defenders, and Western Ontario also has an excellent goaltending tandem in Josh Unice (2.41 GAA, 0.921 SV %) and Alain Valiquette (2.79 GAA, 0.908 SV %).