The Lakehead Thunderwolves will host the Waterloo Warriors this Friday and Saturday night at the Fort William Gardens to kick-off the second half of the OUA season. Game times are 7:30 pm on both nights.
Last Time Out
The Thunderwolves came out of the RBC Christmas Challenge with a series split against the tough Carleton Ravens of the OUA East. Both games went into overtime, with Carleton taking the first game 4-3, while Lakehead rebounded for a 5-4 win in the second match.
Waterloo also played a top OUA East opponent last week, as the #2 ranked McGill Redmen hosted the Warriors on December 29th and 30th. McGill won the first game 4-2, but Waterloo rebounded for a 5-4 overtime victory in the second contest.
Series History
Lakehead holds a 26-15-3 edge over Waterloo all-time, but it was the Warriors that eliminated the Thunderwolves in the first round of last years OUA playoffs. Waterloo swept that opening series two games to none, winning game one 5-0 in Waterloo and then shutting out the Wolves 3-0 in game two in Thunder Bay with some spectacular goaltending by Warriors netminder Keaton Hartigan.
About the Warriors
Waterloo is led by a pair of high-scoring forwards; junior Kirt Hill leads the Warriors with 28 points in OUA league play, followed closely by fifth-year senior Chris Ray with 27 points. Hill and Ray are currently ranked 4th and 5th respectively in OUA scoring.
On the blue-line, freshman defenceman Joe Underwood leads the way with 15 points (all assists); and senior goaltender Keaton Hartigan has been strong between the pipes once again this season, posting a 2.89 GAA, with a save percentage of .915.
Wolves are Winning
The Thunderwolves had a strong first-half of the OUA regular season, posting a 13-3-0 record in league play. Lakehead won 13 of its last 14 OUA matches, and including the last four non-conference matches, has a record of 16-1-1 in its last 18 games played.
Tussle near the Top
With 26 points, Lakehead sits in second place in the OUA West Division, just two points behind the Western Ontario Mustangs, and 2 points in front of Waterloo. These three teams have separated themselves from the rest of the pack in the division, so the Wolves weekend series versus the Warriors will be crucial for both teams in the race for first place.