No Kidding around for UNB
A slap shot from the point found its way to the back of the net pass CIS goaltender of the year, Dustin Butler of the Calgary Dinos with four seconds remaining in the game to give the Varsity Reds a 2-1 victory.
Kidd discussed after the game how the play was something they worked on quite often in practice.
“It’s something we work on in practice and you know its worked before and it’s pretty successful for our group,” he said. “I mean eight seconds left, you’re just trying to go out there and get a shot on net and hopefully it roles in. Luke Gallant set me up nicely and the puck had eyes and it was in the back of the net.”
Kidd continued saying he had not scored as big a goal in his career.
“No, I haven’t been to too many championships, so this is definitely the highlight of my career.”
Kidd’s goal came late to give UNB the win, but for much of the game the club did not have control of the game.
In the first both teams traded off penalties with neither having success in before the intermission as Calgary seemed to have the momentum through the period outshooting UNB 11-7.
After a penalty by the Dinos at the end of the first, UNB had 1:36 remaining in the powerplay going into the second. Four seconds in Luke Egener picked up another penalty for Calgary, a four minute high sticking minor. This set UNB up for a 1:32 5-on-3.
The Dinos killed off the first penalty, but with 55 seconds left in the powerplay UNB’s Jordan Clendenning found the back of the net assisted by Nick MacNeil and Lachlan MacIntosh to put the Varsity Reds up 1-0.
Less than a minute later Marc-Antoine Desnoyers took a holding penalty.
That was exactly what Calgary needed to get back in the game, with Teegan Moore putting the puck past Travis Fullerton 20 seconds into the power-play to even the game at a goal apiece.
After the early excitement of the second, both teams remained scoreless for the remainder of the period going back and forth, but neither were able to take the lead going into the third.
The third period was the most even of the game as both teams were back and forth with chances being equal.
UNB’s best chance came to the right of Butler as Hunter Tremblay fanned on his shot with an empty goal with 3:42 left in the game. Calgary bounced right back and with 2:58 Fullerton came up with another key save to keep his team in the game, with Kidd’s goal eventually coming with four seconds remaining.
UNB captain Kyle Bailey discussed his faceoff win that set up the goal.
“Thankfully that one (faceoff) was a clean one there and not a better guy to have on the backend taking the shot,” said Bailey. “I’ve played with a lot guys on a lot of different teams and I’ve never seen a guy that shoots the puck as hard as him. If you’ve got to have one guy ripping one from the point I’ll take him any day.”
Although it was not the way the Varsity Reds wanted to win, head coach Gardiner MacDougall said after the game that it’s good to have a scare sometimes.
“Sometimes a good scare is the best thing in this tournament,” said MacDougall. “And we certainly got a good scare tonight. We’re at ones until 19:56 in the third and sometimes you work hard enough to get an opportunity. Faceoffs are a key.” We’ve lived by the faceoff and we’ve had a sword go through us in the faceoff as well in the AUS final.”
“A faceoff especially late in the game is an opportunity and was a successful force tonight.”
UNB will play next Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. against Western, while Calgary plays Western Friday night at 7 p.m..
MacDougall says he is happy about the way the tournament schedule worked out for his squad.
“I think winning this game is a really key for our tournament,” he said. “We get a day to kind of recover tomorrow then we’ve got to bring it on Saturday and we look forward to that opportunity.”