The Lakehead Thunderwolves hockey team lost to the Guelph Gryphons by a score of 5-4 at the Gryphon Centre Arena in Guelph, Ontario on Wednesday night in game one of the best-of three OUA West Division quarter-finals.
Guelph got on the board early when J.T. MacDonald beat Lakehead goalie Alex Dupuis on the glove side at 2:29 of the first period, giving the Gryphons a 1-0 lead. Lakehead tied the game at 1-1 when Devin Welsh found Guelph netminder Cody St. Jacques out of position at the 13:41 mark, and then Thomas Frazee gave the Wolves a 2-1 lead at 17:31 on a sharp-angle goal. Less than a minute later, Jake Carrick pounced on a rebound to give Lakehead a 3-1 lead heading into the second period.
Lakehead extended its lead to 4-1 when Ryan Magill scored at 6:47 of the middle stanza, but later in the period Guelph closed the gap with two quick goals less than a minute apart. The first was a Kris Belan powerplay marker at 14:08, and then J.T. MacDonald notched his second of the night at the 14:55 mark to narrow the Wolves lead to 4-3 at the end of the second period.
The Gryphons came out flying in the final frame, and tied the game at 4-4 when Justin Gvora scored on a deflection that eluded Dupuis at 1:23 of the third period. Then at the 6:29 mark, Guelphs MacDonald completed the hat-trick when he beat Dupuis from in-close to give the Gryphons the 5-4 lead. That goal chased Dupuis from the Lakehead net, as he was replaced by Jeff Bosch.
The Thunderwolves applied plenty of pressure on St. Jacques late in the period, but were unable to get one past him. Lakehead pulled Bosch for the extra attacker with just over a minute remaining, and when St. Jacques was called for a delay of game penalty for flipping the puck into the stands with 35 seconds left on the clock, it looked like the Wolves might tie it up. But the Gryphons held the Wolves at bay to secure the 5-4 comeback win.
The series now shifts to the Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay where Lakehead will face elimination when it hosts Guelph for game two on Friday night. If necessary, game three be played at the Gardens on Saturday night.