Western (8-3-0) survived a northern invasion last week, turning away Laurentian (7-5-1) in overtime on Friday before netting a quartet of second-period goals on Saturday to take a 4-2 victory from Nipissing (7-5-1). Now the cavalry of the OUA West will do some invading of their own, as they kick off a stretch of six straight road games with games against Concordia and UQTR in Quebec this weekend.
The Mustangs will take a pretty impressive hot streak into those games too, with three wins in their last three games and five in their last six. Furthermore, those last three wins have come against competition from the OUA's East Division, as the Mustangs have now won four of their five contests against eastern competition this year—a trend they'll look to continue this week when they head east to Quebec.
But wins haven't come easy for Western on the road this season, and they'll have to find a way to put those woes behind them quick if they want to close out the calendar year on a high note. All three of the Mustangs' losses have come on the road this season, with their only away victory coming against Queen's on October 25 in a game that saw Greg Dodds turn aside 48 shots and steal a win.
Hence, with the Mustangs not playing at Thompson Arena again until January, it's not a stretch to say their schedule isn't exactly ideal. On the other hand, if there's one defining characteristic of this year's team it's their impressive resiliency; Western has proven time and time again early in the 2014-15 season that they have the ability to adapt to tough circumstances.
After all, not many teams can lose their top three scorers and starting goaltender and still get off to a similar, if not better, start than they did the year before. And not just a comparable start as far as their record goes (8-3-0 versus 7-3-0), but also a strong start on both power play and penalty kill despite losing the four pieces that factored most often into their special teams success.
And those are just a few of the many areas where Western has had success early on.
As far as goaltending goes, it's safe to say that Dodds has proven he can fill the big shoes left behind by his talented and steady predecessor, Josh Unice. At this point last year, Unice had a save percentage of .913 and a goals against average of 3.36 to go with his six wins. So far this year, Dodds leads the OUA in both save percentage (.942) and goals against average (1.89) with seven wins.
Leadership? No problem. Captain Steve Reese has led by example so far this year, registering a team-high 14 points through eleven games and bringing his veteran experience and patience to Western's potent power play. And he isn't the only veteran contributing either, as Stefan Salituro, Julian Cimadamore, and Matt Paltridge have all been solid so far once again.
Last but not least, Western's defence has been solid to start the season. By this time last year, the Mustangs had given up an average of 2.9 goals per game on 356 shots. This year? They lead the league with an average of 2.10 and have allowed the third-lowest total of shots on goal in the OUA.
Their defensive core hasn't just been strong in their own zone, either; last weekend they broke out on offense by helping contribute to all eight of the Mustangs' goals. Stephen Gaskin, a traditionally strong possession player, had perhaps the most exciting contribution of the weekend, scoring Western's overtime winner against Laurentian on Friday to salvage the win.
Western at Concordia – Friday, November 21 at 7:30 p.m.
Concordia (4-10-0) has had a tough start to the year; with just four wins in 14 games so far, the Stingers sit second last in the OUA East in front of only winless RMC (0-12-0). But that doesn't mean they can't keep up with some of the better teams in the OUA, as two of their four wins have come against top teams in the OUA East Division in Carleton (10-2-0) and Nipissing (7-5-1).
They also have some potent individual talent. Olivier Hinse is currently tied atop the OUA's goal scoring leaderboard with 11 and has six assists for 17 points in 14 games, while three of his teammates—Antoine Houde-Caron (6-10—16), Domenic Beauchemin (7-8—15), and Dany Potvin (5-9—14)–are also contributing at a point-per-game pace or higher. Hinse is also the league leader in short-handed goals with three so far in the early season.
The Stingers have also gotten some offence from their defence, with three defenders featured on their list of top ten scorers. Leading that trio is Sean Blunden, who has two goals and seven assists for nine points in just 10 games player this season. Youssef Kabbaj and Alex MacDonald are right behind him with eight and seven points, respectively.
Concordia enters this week looking to break a three game losing streak, as they've dropped their last three contests against Nipissing, Waterloo and Laurier while giving up six goals or more each time.
Western at UQTR – Saturday, November 22 at 7:30 p.m. – Watch Live on OUA.tv
Even if this game was played at home it would still probably represent the toughest test that Western has faced this season. UQTR currently sits first in the OUA East with a record of 10-1-1, their only regulation loss coming, surprisingly, at the hands of York on October 25.
The Patriotes are at the top of the OUA in both goals (62) and goals-per-game (5.17). They're also second in power play percentage (25.5%), second in short-handed (4) and power play goals (14), and fourth in shots (470). Eleven of their twelve games have seen them score four goals or more and eight of those games were five goal efforts. This is a team that knows how to score.
But perhaps more relevant to the Mustangs is how strong they've been at home.
Just like Western, UQTR has yet to drop a game in their arena, going 6-0 since the beginning of the season. Furthermore, their stats at home dwarf those on the road: their goals per game average is exactly one point higher (5.67 vs 4.67), they've been handed 19 more power play opportunities in the same amount of games, their penalty kill average is 14.3 points higher (90.3% vs 76%), and their save percentage is a respectable .923 (vs .898 on the road).
All these stats point to Saturday as being a major test for the Mustangs. A win in Trois-Rivieres could be exactly what Western needs to show the OUA that they are a force to be reckoned with this year, even when they are on the road.
