Two big road wins for Western (10-3-0) against Concordia (5-11-0) and UQTR (11-2-1) last weekend helped send a message to the rest of the OUA: that the Mustangs aren't going to be pushed around anymore at opposing arenas. This week, the team will have an opportunity to put a cherry on top of that performance, as they close out November with a double-header against the Lakehead Thunderwolves.

Heading into last weekend, the Mustangs probably expected at least one tough test, although they probably wouldn't have guessed that test would come against Concordia. The Stingers charged out of the gates with four first period goals but the Mustangs were able to fight their way back into the game, scoring seven consecutive times to close out the game, including five times alone in the second period.

With that test out of the way, Western seemed rejuvenated in a way, and when the time came to play UQTR on Saturday, the Mustangs blew the OUA's team—both at home and overall—out of the water with a dominant 5-1 victory—the Patriotes' first defeat at home so far this season. If there were any concerns about Western's road efforts, there certainly aren't now.

Adam McKee was Western's most consistent player over the weekend, tallying a pair of goals and assists on Friday night before adding two more points on Saturday. Those performances were more than enough to earn him the title of Mustangs' Male Athlete of the Week. After failing to record a point in October, McKee has been red hot in November, registering all 10 of his points in the month and getting on the board at least once in his last five games. 

Meanwhile, Western captain Steve Reese, who had the primary assist on all three of McKee's weekend goals, continues to lead by example for the Mustangs. The veteran forward also had six points over the weekend, turning in a trio of helpers against both Concordia and UQTR. He now has a team-leading 20 points through 13 games this season.

Also providing some timely offence over the weekend were Stefan Salituro and defenceman Jed Rusk, as Salituro had two goals and two assists while Rusk netted his first two tallies of the year to fuel Western's comeback on Friday. With Kyle De Coste currently serving a five-game suspension for abuse of an official, Matt Herskovitz was also able to draw in, shifting from defence to forward and chipping in a goal and an assist against the Stingers. 

In net, Marc Nother got the win in relief of Greg Dodds on Friday—his second in as many games. But Dodds was back in goal on Saturday and played a huge part in Western's dominant win, returning to his typical All-Star form to turn aside 37 of 38 shots. He still ranks third in the CIS in save percentage at .938.

Western vs. Lakehead - Friday, November 28 at 7:30 p.m./Saturday, November 29 at 7:30 p.m.

Lakehead (5-8-2) heads into this weekend fresh off of a double-header with Queen's (7-5-1) that saw them alternate between their worst and their best; on Friday, the Thunderwolves dropped a tough 6-0 contest to the Gaels before bouncing back to win 7-6 in a shootout on Saturday.

In a way, the games served as a fitting summary of the early season for Lakehead.

In the five games that Lakehead has won this season, they've scored four or more goals with a fantastic average of 5.80 goals per game. That firepower was once again on display on Saturday. But in losses that trend is reversed, as the Thunderwolves have given up an average of 5.10 goals against per loss. Similarly, their team save percentage is .918 when they win and just .872 when they lose.

There may be a number of reasons for these stats; after all, teams expect to do better when they win, especially if those wins come against weaker teams. But the fact that the Thunderwolves have beaten some strong teams in Queen's, Ryerson, and Toronto suggests that, when they're on, they're on, and when they're off? Well…

One can hardly fault Lakehead's goaltenders for the team's high goals against average in losses. While the Thunderwolves' rank just 13 in the league in team save percentage, their goaltenders have faced the second-highest total of shots in the OUA at 589 and also rank second in saves at 522.

Like Western, Lakehead has also been stronger at home. Despite only grabbing two of their five wins on their own ice, the Thunderwolves have posted a higher goals-for average (4.14 vs 3.50), better penalty killing numbers (85.7% vs 79.4%), lower shots-against totals (245 vs 344), and a higher success rate on the power play (22.2% vs 13.3%) when at home.

Veteran forward Mike Hammond has been solid for Lakehead so far this year, ranking second in the OUA in points at 25 so far this year after leading the team with 34 points in the 2013-14 season. Hammond has registered points in all but four of the Thunderwolves' 15 games this season, with two of those games coming last week against Queen's. Hence, he'll be looking to get back on track at the Mustangs.

Western should also keep an eye out for Keith Grondin and Kelin Ainsworth, who have compiled 19 points and 16, respective, for Lakehead this year to rank second and third on the team. Both players had three points in the Thunderwolves' 7-6 victory over Queen's last week, with Grondin picking up three assists and Ainsworth a goal and two helpers.