Panthers roar back with explosive third period to stun Tigers 7-4

By Reegan MacAulay

The UPEI Panthers (7-12-0-1) rallied explosively after an ugly start against the Dalhousie Tigers (3-19-0-0), avoiding an upset with a four-goal burst in the third period en route to an emotional, high-intensity 7-4 win at the MacLauchlan Arena on Friday.

Unable to score in the first period despite countless shots, the Panthers improved in period two with three goals, but were still down 4-3; it seemed they may have underestimated the struggling Tigers, who came flying out of the gates looking to chase UPEI for the conference's final playoff spot. However, sophomore forward Elias Cohen and rookie forward Brett Bressette, both former Erie Otters teammates in the Ontario Hockey League, came together and put up their best performance of the season, each contributing to the team's three goals within the first 6:42 of the third period, two of which were on the power play.

Cohen, who has only played eight of the team's 20 games due to injury, scored two goals and added two assists, the first goal being his first of the season. A much-needed and long overdue performance, he rightfully earned Player of the Game honours and had young fans all over him after the game.

"The win feels good. Obviously back in the full swing of things, getting my feet under me, and it was a good team win. A lot of guys stepped up and played a full 60 minutes which is huge, and hopefully, we can keep rolling into tomorrow (against StFX). (Brett) and I played together in Erie and we have some good chemistry playing and living together. It's been good to be on a team with him again, make plays with him and have some fun," Cohen said.

Interim head coach Ryan Ramsay collected his first win in his new, short-term role substituting for head coach Forbes MacPherson, who, along with top players Kaleb Pearson and Kurtis Henry, is in Italy representing Canada's men's hockey team at the 2025 FISU Winter World University Games. After the game, Ramsay called it the wildest one he'd ever been part of since he first joined the Panthers in 2022, and he preached about the players stepping up with Pearson and Henry away.

"We got behind the eight-ball and chased it pretty much the whole game, but, you know, you talk about the character in the group, and we found a way in the third period to get the job done," Ramsay said. "For (Elias), we knew it was coming. He didn't have the first half anyone anticipated but we knew his game was building and we were being patient with him, and we were ready for him to break out tonight. To see (Brett) pot a couple, that's what we need and expect from him, so big credit to him as well.

"(The players) have really embraced the opportunity (to step up) and we've talked about it a lot. I've really enjoyed the experience, it's been fantastic, and I have to credit the players and the rest of the staff for really leaning in for these couple of weeks, and certainly getting that win tonight was absolutely huge."

Despite firing 15 shots at Tigers goaltender Nicholas Chenard in the first period, the Panthers couldn't get one past him, which Dalhousie took advantage of with an Evan MacKinnon goal at 12:18 to gain a 1-0 lead. In the second period, at 5:32, Robert Orr collected a pass from Bressette in front of the Tigers net and snuck a soft backhand shot underneath Chenard to tie the game, ending a seven-game scoreless drought. At the 10th-minute mark, each team exchanged goals, with Colin MacDougall giving Dalhousie a 2-1 lead and Cohen tying the game 2-2 with his first goal of the season.

MacDougall added another goal at 15:21 and so did Jarrett Baker on the power play, making it a 4-2 Tigers score. One minute and 12 seconds later, on the power play, Cohen found Ben McFarlane in the high slot, who ripped a shot down low to bring UPEI within one.

At 1:12 in the third period, a rebound attempt by Orr turned into a backhand feed to Bressette in the crease, who tipped the puck past Chenard to tie the game 4-4. About four and a half minutes later, the Panthers piled on two more goals within 52 seconds; Bressette collected a pass from Cohen within the right-wing faceoff circle and fired a one-timer over Chenard's glove, and Cohen scored with a low shot from the high slot through traffic. At 16:54, Cole Larkin capped off the period and the game with a low-shot goal from the point, sealing the deal for a 7-4 Panthers win. The game was called with 14 seconds left to play as a brawl broke out, which included a fight between Mike Stubbs and Brody Fournier.

Joe Ranger made his 11th start of the season, earning his third win with 13 saves on 17 shots. Chenard denied 34 of 41 shots. UPEI led the shot count 41-17 and went 3-for-5 on power plays while Dalhousie went 1-for-2.

The Panthers improved to 7-12-0-1 and now are nine points ahead of the Tigers for sixth in the standings, who they remain undefeated against this season, and seven points behind Acadia, who are fifth. Dalhousie dropped to 3-19-0-0, extending their losing streak to six games.

UPEI looks to keep the momentum going and charge up the standings with a big game on Saturday night, as the St. Francis Xavier University X-Men (12-7-1-1) return to town on Jan. 18 for their second match at the MacLauchlan Arena this season. While the Panthers are undefeated against StFX on the road, they lost 6-1 at home on Nov. 29, 2024. The X-Men are within a three-team battle for second in the conference, currently tied with SMU and two points ahead of Moncton, and they've won five of their last six games. Saturday's game is StFX's second of a four-game road trip across 10 days.

Coach Ramsay noted that UPEI's turnaround will be shorter than StFX's, as the X-Men haven't played since Wednesday. Ironically, that day, they beat Dalhousie.

"They're a bit ahead of the curve probably and in a bunch battling for second. Credit to X, a short turnaround for us, we need to be prepared. We need to play a more detailed game tomorrow; it can't be like what it was tonight. Certainly, we'll prep tomorrow morning for that and we look forward to the challenge," Ramsay said.

Puck drop on Saturday is at 7 p.m. Buy tickets now at panthertickets.ca.

Photo Credit: Janessa Vanden Broek