THUNDER BAY, Ont. (CIS) - Third-year forward Lachlan MacIntosh of Perth Andover, N.B., scored a hat-trick as the New Brunswick Varsity Reds captured their second University Cup in three years with a 4-2 win over the Western Ontario Mustangs in the gold-medal final of the 2009 CIS men's hockey championship, Sunday afternoon, at Fort William Gardens.
Cavendish University Cup website:
www.universitysport.ca/e/championships/m_hockey/2009
Three-time national champion UNB became the seventh CIS team ever to appear in at least three straight CIS finals. The V-Reds, who claimed the first title in school history back in 1998, had lost 3-2 to Alberta in last year's final after defeating Moncton in overtime in the 2007 gold-medal duel.
The Mustangs were playing for CIS gold for the third time. They captured their lone title in their last tournament appearance in 2002 with a triple-overtime win over UQTR, and lost to York in the 1988 final.
MacIntosh, who had nine goals in 26 regular-season games and failed to score in six Atlantic conference playoff outings as UNB settled for AUS silver, finished with a tournament-leading five goals in three contests and tied for the championship lead with six points. The five-foot-10, 195-pound kinesiology student was named University Cup MVP and UNB's player of the game, an honour he had also received on Thursday in the V-Reds 6-3 win over top-seeded Alberta.
"I was just fortunate to get some chances, and capitalized. It was just one of those days where the bounces went my way," said MacIntosh, who opened the scoring with 62 seconds left in the first period, scored the game-winner at 10:24 of the third frame and added the insurance marker in an empty net with 46 seconds remaining in regulation.
"MacIntosh just brought it all today. He brought it in the first game against Alberta, the second game against Lakehead and he just took it to another level today," said Gardiner MacDougall, in his ninth season as head coach of the V-Reds. "He's a kid who never played a game at the major junior level and he's just getting better every year for us."
Kyle Bailey, who netted the game-winner Saturday night for UNB in a 3-1 victory over tourney host Lakehead, assisted on MacIntosh's two third-period goals to also finish the weekend with six points (1-5-6).
The sophomore forward from Ponoka, Alta., was named to the championship all-star team along with MacIntosh, first-year UNB goaltender Travis Fullerton of Riverview, N.B., fifth-year V-Reds defenceman Dustin Friesen of Waldheim, Sask., as well as rearguard Chris Petrow of Haliburton, Ont., and rookie forward Joe McCann of Essex, Ont., both of Western.
Senior forward John Scott Dickson of Barrie, Ont., scored the other UNB goal 62 seconds into the middle period.
"We had a lot of soldiers out there," MacDougall said. "To win a national championship we need complete efforts from everyone but your best players have to be your best players."
Left-winger Patrick Ouellet of Baie-Comeau, Que., at 8:57 of the second stanza, and freshman Kevin Baker of Georgetown, Ont., who tied the contest at 2-2 after 1:13 of play in the third, responded for the Mustangs.
"We were in tough out of the gate, and just wanted to weather the storm," said Clarke Singer, in his 10th campaign at the helm of the Mustangs. "I thought we did a pretty good job of that. I wish we would have had a little more offence, but they have a very good team."
"We were able to turn it around after the first period, played real well in the second and third, but couldn't find the equalizer."
Western could only muster one shot in the opening frame, finally testing Fullerton 32 seconds before the intermission, while UNB replied with 10 shots on senior netminder Brad Topping of Strathroy, Ont.
The Mustangs had a better showing in the second period, outshooting their AUS rivals 18-10. UNB held a 17-11 margin in the third for a final count of 37-30.
"It's incredible, more than I could ever ask for in my first year," said Fullerton, who allowed only six goals on 90 shots in his first University Cup appearance for a tournament-best .933 save percentage. "It's a feeling I wish could last forever. Obviously we accomplished our goal at this tournament and it feels pretty good right now."
SCORING SUMMARY
No. 4 UNB 4, No. 3 Western Ontario 2
FIRST PERIOD
SCORING:
1. UNB Lachlan MacIntosh (3) (unassisted) 18:58
PENALTIES:
Dion Campbell (UNB) interference, 4:06;
Yashar Farmanara (UWO) hooking, 9:31;
Adam Nemeth (UWO) tripping, 12:57.
SECOND PERIOD
SCORING:
2. UNB John Scott Dickson (1) (David Bowman, Jonathon Harty) 1:02
3. UWO Patrick Ouellet (1) (Joe McCann) 8:57
PENALTIES:
Ryan Seymour (UNB) tripping, 12:15.
THIRD PERIOD
SCORING:
4. UWO Kevin Baker (3) (Jeffery Martens, Jason Furlong) 1:13
5. UNB Lachlan MacIntosh (4) (Kyle Bailey, Jimmy Cuddihy) 10:24
6. UNB Lachlan MacIntosh (5) (Kyle Bailey) 19:14 EN
PENALTIES:
Geoff Killing (UWO) tripping, 1:43;
Lachlan MacIntosh (UNB) tripping, 11:23;
Bretton Stamler (UNB) hooking, 16:40.
GOALS (by period)
UNB: 1-1-2:4
UWO: 0-1-1:2
SHOTS ON GOAL (by period)
UNB: 10-10-17:37
UWO: 1-18-11:30
POWER PLAY:
UNB: 0-3
UWO: 0-4
GOALTENDERS
UNB - Travis Fullerton (W, 3-0, 30 shots, 28 saves, 2 GA, 60:00)
UWO - Brad Topping (L, 1-2, 36 shots, 33 saves, 3 GA, 59:13)
UWO - Empty net (1 shot, 1 GA, 0:47)
PLAYERS OF THE GAME:
UNB: Lachlan MacIntosh
UWO: Joe McCann
REFEREE: Derek Zalaski
LINESMEN: Nigel Black, Matt Traub
ATTENDANCE: 2,715
UNIVERSITY CUP CHAMPIONSHIP ALL-STARS
MVP: Lachlan MacIntosh, UNB
All-Star Team:
Goaltender: Travis Fullerton, UNB
Defence: Dustin Friesen, UNB
Defence: Chris Petrow, Western
Forward: Lachlan MacIntosh, UNB
Forward: Kyle Bailey, UNB
Forward: Joe McCann, Western