Panthers at Home, March 9 and 11—It’s PLAYOFF time!
It’s the most exciting time of year in winter sports, when both UPEI hockey teams prepare for the playoffs.
UPEI Women’s Hockey kick things off Wednesday night when they host the St. Thomas Tommies in a win-or-go-home quarter-final game. Puck drops at 7 pm. The winner will then move on to a best-of-three semi-final. So, let’s "PACK THE MAC" and help us cheer on the Panthers who look to capture their second AUS championship. Tickets can be purchased at the Bell Aliant Centre box office Wednesday at 6 pm.
During the regular season, the Panthers finished with a 1-2 record against the Tommies in what were three hard-fought defensive battles. St. Thomas outscored UPEI 4-2 in those games.
Head coach Bruce Donaldson expects some key reinforcements to rejoin the team including forward Lexie Murphy and defenders Sydney Lyndon and Wasyn Rice.
“We know it will be a close match with the Tommies. St. Thomas played a great game against us on Sunday, so we will need to figure out a few things if we want to come out on the winning side,” Donaldson said. “We need to limit our mistakes, stay out of penalty trouble, and take advantage of any opportunity that presents itself.”
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UPEI Men’s Hockey returns to the ice Friday night at 7 pm when they take on the visiting Saint Mary’s Huskies in Game 1 of a best-of-three quarter-final series at MacLauchlan Arena.
The Panthers are looking for some revenge against the Huskies, who took all three games against them in the regular season by a combined score of 13-4. Tickets are available to purchase on Wednesday at 11 am at the Eastlink Centre box office or online at www.eastlinkcentrepei.com. Capacity remains at 50 per cent.
“Our group is very excited to have playoff hockey again,” said head coach Forbes MacPherson. “Saint Mary’s is a well-balanced team that has had our number all season, but we’re preparing to make this a great series.”
For ticket information, visit gopanthersgo.ca.
