Axemen’s race for the top stopped by UNB

(WOLFVILLE, N.S.) - The battle for first place in the AUS men's hockey conference was decided when Adrian Robertson netted his fourth goal of the regular season to give the CIS No. 2-ranked UNB Varsity Reds a 1-0 lead and eventual 2-0 win over the CIS No. 3-ranked Acadia Axemen.

A scoreless first period was followed by two unanswered UNB goals in the second frame. The Varsity Reds' first goal, scored by Robertson at 8:29, was followed by captain Chris Culligan's 17th of the regular season. With the man-advantage, Culligan stretched goaltender Evan Mosher on a high shot to the wide side to give UNB a two-goal lead that would hold for the remainder of the game.

The Axemen had a power-play opportunity in the closing minutes of the game, but could not capitalize despite having Mosher pulled for the two-man advantage. Mosher repelled 23 shots, while UNB's Charles Lavigne, named the Subway First Star, stopped 32 shots for the shutout and win.

Despite losing tonight, Mosher captured the honours as the top AUS goaltender with a 2.12 goals against average and only five losses this season.

The Axemen were 0-for-5 on the power-play, landing seven shots on net and the Varsity Reds took advantage of one of six opportunities with eight shots on net. UNB was outshot 32-25 including a 16-6 shots-on-net Acadia advantage in the final period.

Without the services of the leading AUS goal-getter Liam Heelis, the Axemen were held scoreless for the first time this season. Heelis and teammate Mike Cazzola remain tied for first place in the conference points race with 42 each. Cazzola hit the back of the net 11 times this season, while Heelis pocketed 24 goals in 26 games. Liam missed the last two games of the regular season.

Chris Culligan's goal tonight pushed him up to fourth overall in the conference in points with 17 goals and 23 points, while the Varsity Reds' Phillippe Maillet led the team this season with 41 points - 16 goals and 25 assists – good for third overall in the AUS.

The regular season series between both UNB and Acadia finished at a 2-2 tie. The Axemen grabbed the first two games before the Christmas Break and the Varsity Reds snagged two wins in a row after the holiday season. Acadia won the point differential by one point.

Both Acadia and UNB, finishing second and first respectively, will wait for the completion of the quarterfinals to determine who they will host in the AUS semifinals best-of-five series. The quarterfinals will include series No. 1, Moncton vs. StFX and series No. 2, UPEI vs. Saint Mary's.

Source: Acadia Sports Information