On March 25, engineering and math students battled for hockey glory at Columbia Icefield (CIF) during the EngSoc vs. MathSoc hockey game. Both societies assembled teams of students from all years and programs in each faculty. In the end, the engineers came out on top with a convincing 6-2 victory.
It took less than a minute for the engineers to get on the board, scoring 27 seconds into the game. That being said, it was a relatively even first period with lots of scoring chances at both ends of the ice. Nearly the entire period was played at 5-on-5 aside from a Math tripping penalty, which they were able to kill. Math would take advantage of a giveaway and score a breakaway goal 10:20 into the frame. This left the game in a 1-1 tie after one period of play.
Much like the first period, the engineers struck again within the first minute of the second on a point shot. Engineering would continue to dominate, scoring another goal midway through the period to stretch their lead to two. The majority of this period was controlled by Engineering, with Math generally unable to have sustained possession in the offensive zone. Even while on the penalty kill during the last two and a half minutes of the period, Engineering had chances to score, including a 2-on-1 that was denied by the Math goalie. The engineers were able to kill the penalty off and head into the third period with a solid 3-1 lead.
Once again, there was another goal for Engineering at the start of the third period (it was somewhat unsurprising at that point) on a cross-crease pass 20 seconds in. Unfortunately, the engineers got into some penalty trouble throughout the first half of the period, taking two penalties nearly back-to-back. This allowed the momentum to briefly swing in Math’s favour, leading to them scoring a goal off a 2-on-1 in between Engineering’s two penalties of the period and bringing them within two once again. Despite the penalty trouble, a strong defensive effort from Engineering was able to kill both of them off, and the rest of the game would be played at even strength.
With 6:19 to go, another goal restored Engineering’s three goal lead. After that goal, the comeback hopes for Math had effectively been crushed. Although both teams had their fair share of shots on net, Engineering continued to have better scoring opportunities off their shots, including hitting the crossbar with five minutes remaining. As the clock ticked down, the Engineering goaltender held the fort, most notably saving a breakaway with less than three minutes to go. In a last ditch effort, Math pulled their goalie with about two and a half minutes to play. However, their efforts would be no match for Engineering, who scored on the empty net with 49 seconds remaining to seal the 6-2 victory.
After an exciting game with plenty of chances back and forth throughout, the skill and teamwork of the Engineering team resulted in the win. Despite the outcome, both Engineering and Math students alike had fun watching in the stands. Well, maybe us engineers had a bit more fun, considering the final score…it looks like between these two faculties, Engineering reigns supreme this year when it comes to hockey.
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