The No. 3 Lakehead Thunderwolves welcome the No. 6 York Lions for two crucial OUA West Conference games. Lakehead (4-1-0 OUA, 8-2-0 overall) took one out of two games in London against Western and also defeated Windsor one game in their three game road trip two weeks ago. York (6-0-0 OUA, 9-2-0 overall) is coming off a 4-3 win over Western at home and a 3-2 home victory over Waterloo.
This will be the sixth meeting between the two teams and the only regular season meetings this year. Lakehead has a record of 2-3 against the Lions over the last two seasons with Lakehead outscoring York 17-16 in those five games.
Lakehead is counting on its overall balance against a tough York side, the only team to shut out the Thunderwolves last season and the only team to defeat them twice. The Thunderwolves will be counting on Captain Joel Scherban who leads the Thunderwolves with 5 goals and 3 assists in OUA play. Bryan Duce has also been scoring with 3 goals and 4 assists in 5 OUA games. Speedster Jeff Richards is also lighting it up with 3 goals and 3 assists. Defenseman Tyler Williamson is also showing his offensive prowess, tallying 2 goals and 3 assists.
The team is also looking for more strong play from the line of Robert Hillier, Murray Magill, and Wyatt Tunnicliffe, who have accounted for 24 points in the Thunderwolves's 10 games, including a 9 point night in Lakehead's 7-3 win over Windsor. Rookie Mike Wehrstedt has been a great addition to the Thunderwolves, recording 2 goals and 3 assists. The team will also be counting on strong defense from their blueline corps ofMattKenny, Shawn Perring, Hugo Lehoux, MikeJacobsen,Mike Self, and Steve Rawski and their goaltending duo of Grant McCune and Cory McEachran.
The Thunderwolves are third in the OUA on the powerplay, scoring on 24% of their opportunities. Lakehead is fifth in the conference on the penalty kill, successfully defending 93.75% of their pk situations. Lakehead has used the bye week to rest and recuperate and all players are ready to play except Peter Cava who is out until at least Christmas with a fractured wrist.
Lakehead Head Coach Pete Belliveau said this is a crucial series for his squad against one of the Thunderwolves' toughest opponents. "York is coming to town. York is coming to Thunder Bay. We all know how York spanked us last year at the Queens' Cup, and we all know how they defeated us 3-0 during last season's regular season game at York. So, we have our work cut out for us this coming weekend. We all (players and coaches) respect Graham Wise and his York Lions for what they have done in the OUA and how they like to play us. We know that these two games will have playoff hockey intensity in November! But, we cannot wait to play them again, so let the games begin!!!!"
Thunderwolves' Notes:
Lakehead leads the CIS in scoring, averaging 5.4 goals per game while they are 12th in defense, allowing 2.8 goals per game. Their winning percentage of .800 is 7th in the nation. The Thunderwolves have a very balanced attack early in the season with 14 players scoring in five games.
York will be relying upon the scoring prowess of OUA points leader Darryl Bat and the goaltending of second year player and 2002-2003 OUA MVP Derek Dolson. Dolson has one shutout this season. The Lions are a strong club, featuring a team deep with Major Junior Grads. York is fourth in the OUA on the powerplay at 16.67, and sixth in the conference on the penalty kill at 89.47%.
York Head Coach Grahah Wise said his team always gets up to play the Thunderwolves at Fort William Gardens. "We have a lot of respect for the Thunderwolves, they are well coached team with top quality players. In their third year of competition, they are an outstanding team that has to be taken seriously."
York Team Breakdown:
With 14 returning players an