Western suffered their first loss of the season last week, giving up six consecutive goals in the last forty minutes to fall 6-4 to Laurentian in Sudbury on Friday.
 
It was a tough pill to swallow for a team that has beaten the odds all season only to end up on the other side of the equation. However, with a game the next night, it also gave them an opportunity to demonstrate that they can bounce back and they did just that, scoring three first period goals on their way to a 5-1 victory over Nipissing the next night.
 
That resiliency has helped the Mustangs earn a spot in the CIS Top-Ten for the third straight week, coming in at number seven on the latest poll. With a 6-1-0 record, Western sits second in the OUA West Division and fourth in the entire league.
 
This week, they'll face off against two strong OUA East teams in Concordia (3-4-1) and UQTR (6-1-1). Both teams project as tough opponents, ranking top ten in the OUA in power play percentage, penalty kill percentage and goals per game.
 
For their part, the Mustangs have been strong on special teams, ranking seventh in the OUA on the power play (21.1%) and putting up a CIS-best 96.4% success rate on the penalty kill. Defenceman Alex Micallef leads the team in power play goals with two.
 
Right behind him are rookie Andrew Goldberg and sophomore Trent Ouellette, who both have one marker with the man advantage. Both players have factored heavily into Western's impressive offensive output this season, with Goldberg scoring three and Ouellete putting up ten points.
 
That puts him second on the team in points behind veteran Matt Marantz, who has been a force for Western so far. His 10 assists and 14 points rank him first and second, respectively, in the OUA, and he's currently on a season-long point streak to boot.
 
Greg Dodds has a streak of his own going, as he's won all four of the games he's started this season while posting a .933 save percentage and an even 2.00 goals against average. Dodds picked up the win against Nipissing on Friday while Delmas took the tough-luck loss against Laurentian.
 
Friday, November 6 – 7 p.m. – Concordia at Western – Watch live on OUA.tv
 
The Stingers are tied for sixth in the OUA East Division with a record of 3-4-1, but they've punched above their weight for a large part of this season. For one thing, they've already had early success against tough opponents from the West, beating two of the top teams in Ryerson and Windsor.
 
Concordia's 30 goals put them right behind fifth-place Western on the OUA scoring leaderboard. Part of that firepower has to be attributed to their ability to draw penalties this season, as they're first in the OUA in power play opportunities with 44.
 
Saturday, November 7 – 4 p.m. – UQTR at Western – Watch live on OUA.tv
 
At 6-1-1, UQTR has a similar record to Western and would be tied for first in the division if they played in the West. But they don't, and as such they sit second in the East behind McGill.
 
The Patriotes have 43 goals through eight games, good enough for second in the league, and their 14 power play goals is the highest total of the OUA. UQTR has yet to lose at home this year and will be looking to even out their 1-2 road record when they take to the ice this week.