Dalhousie Hockey Weekend Recap

Women’s Hockey Gets Big Win at Home
The Dalhousie Tigers gained a huge confidence building win over one of the top teams in the AUS women’s conference on Friday night at the Memorial Arena. The tilt can be seen on ssncanada.ca. http://www.ssncanada.ca/game/603/

The Tigers defeated Saint Francis Xavier 4-3 in a game that featured a plethora of thrills, goals, and physicality. It was the Tigers second win of the season giving them 4 points in the early stages of the conference schedule.

Last year’s leading scorer and third year forward, Jocelyn Leblanc, lead the way with 1 goal, 1 assist and stellar two way play en route to garnering player of the game honours for Dalhousie.

Carolyn Campbell scored 2 goals and was named player of the game for the X-Women.

The Tigers pounced on the X-Women early in the second period with two goals, but X pushed back later in the period with two markers of their own to draw within a goal. Despite a valiant and desperate effort in the third period, the X-Women could not get the equalizer.

Two days later the Tigers lost a heartbreaker at Saint Mary’s. The Huskies would get the game winning goal on the power play by Kyla Thurston with 1:17 left in the third period.

The Tigers will take a 2-2 record to Moncton for a game the 2009 AUS Champs on Friday night.

Men’s Hockey Still Winless

Pete Belliveau spent the entire summer on planes, trains, and automobiles to try and rebuild the Dalhousie Tigers men’s hockey team. The second year coach brought in nearly a dozen new recruits in an attempt to turn around a program that has been the worst in Canada over the past 6 years.

So far it’s been the same old Tigers.

Dalhousie lost 2 games in New Brunswick, 4-2 to Moncton, then a shellacking to the St. Thomas

Tommies, 9-3.

Goals have been hard to come by for the Tigers. After 4 games the team has scored a total of 9 and are still searching for their first win of the season.

Patrick Sweeney, Jordan Gagne, and Francois Gauthier lead the team with 3 points each. Daniel Bartek has 13 shots on goal but has only managed to put one puck in the net.

First year goaltender Bobby Nadeau allowed 5 goals in 30 minutes in a relief effort vs St. Thomas. Asides from that dismal outing, Nadeau has been stellar and has kept the Tigers in contention in several games. Nadeu has faced the most shots in the AUS so far this season.

As Belliveau’s talented recruits learn how to come together and play winning hockey, Nadeau should get used to seeing a lot of pucks.

This weekend the Tigers will try to get their first win as they host two games that can be seen on ssncanada.ca. The Moncton Blue Eagles come to town on Friday night for a 7:00 match up, while the Tigers will look for revenge against St.Thomas on Saturday at 2:00.

Huskies Host X-Men in Pivotal Showdown;Home Field Advantage for Playoffs on the Line

This Friday’s showdown between Saint Mary’s and Saint Francis Xavier at Huskies Stadium lost a little bit of lustre on Saturday when the X-Men were routed at home to the Bishops Gaiters.
Instead of a classic undefeated #1 vs. a hungry #2, we now have two teams tied for first playing for a bye and home field advantage for the AUS Championship.
Not a bad substitute.
The winner is essentially guaranteed of a one loss season and first place, the loser will be destined to finish 6-2 and have to host lame duck Acadia in the AUS Semi-final, then travel to play in the championship game.
After this weekend, SMU and X will finish their season vs. Mount Allison and Acadia respectively. An upset by either the Mounties or Axemen is highly unlikely.
The X-Men beat the Huskies way back at the start of September, 24-19, on a beautiful day in Antigonish. The storyline of the game was the lack of focus and sense of entitlement from the Huskies, said to be reading too many newspapers and thinking they could waltz their way to the Uteck Bowl.
Since then the Huskies have looked more impressive each week, blowing out weak sisters MtA and Acadia, while winning tough games vs. Mcgill and Sherbrooke. The X-Men were starting to make believers of AUS sceptics, until they collapsed vs. a Bishops team they were expected to beat soundly.
Advantage: Huskies.
Saint Mary’s comes into the game on a 5 game winning streak. The Huskies have outscored their opponents during the winning streak 185-81. Quarterback Jack Creighton has been steady after a disastrous 4 interception effort at STFX to begin the season. Creighton has thrown for over 300 yards twice and has shown the ability to spread the ball around to multiple targets.
The emergence of the Jones brothers running attack has propelled the offence. Devon and Tristan have combined for 796 yards; Devon has 6 rushing touchdowns while Tristan averages over 7 yards per carry.
The Huskies defence is holding opponents to 16 ppg and hasn’t surrendered more than 24 points all season.
Special teams have been the X factor for SMU all season. Placekicker Justin Palardy is 17-20 in field goal attempts en route to becoming the AUS record holder for successful kicks made in a career. Palardy is also perfect on 21 Point after attempts. Kick returner Jahmeek Murray is averaging 17 yards per kickoff return and nine on punt returns.
Steve Sumarah has to like his chances. His biggest challenge this week may be to make sure the Huskies show up on Friday night ready to play.
Focus was not a problem for Gary Waterman’s X-Men, until last week when his team became victim to the classic “trap” game. The X-Men had to be looking ahead to the big game this week in order to lose so badly at home to a team they should have been able to beat with a solid effort.
Despite the road-bump, there’s no reason to believe X can’t win in Huskies Stadium.
QB Steve Snyder is the favourite to win AUS MVP. The fifth year senior has averaged 317 yards a game and will likely finish the season with over 2500. Fellow senior, James Green of Halifax, has been solid on the ground, averaging 3.5 yard per carry for a total of 307. The trio of Peter Giannikopulous (35 catches), Akeem Foster (27), and Mark Metulynsky (27), form a talented and dynamic group of receivers.
The X-Men have been solid on defence all season, allowing only 14 ppg. Tom Lynch and David Skillen have been monsters with 42 solo tackles between them, while Dylan Hollohan has 5 interceptions to lead the secondary.
The game may come down to field goals, in which case the advantage clearly goes to the Huskies with Palardy, who may be the best placekicker in the country.
Excitement is building for what should be an incredible game. There will be lots of X rings in the crowd, with proud Xavier alumni attached. The Huskies student body have been coming out in full force so far this season, and the “old dogs” alumni section will be packed as always.
Based on the way the Huskies have been getting better each week, and the way they handled a decent Mcgill team in Montreal last weekend, I have to go with the home team in this showdown.
Take the Huskies by 7points in what should be an incredible football game.
Kickoff is at 7:00 at Huskies Stadium on the campus of SMU. For some strange reason, Eastlink has chosen to show the Acadia/MtA game on Saturday so the only way to see it is to head down to the stadium.

Tigers have Mixed Results in Home Openers;Women's Basketball Continues to Struggle

Tigers have Mixed Results in Home Openers; Women’s Basketball Continues to Struggle in Exhibition.

This past weekend the Dalhousie Tigers had tripleheader action on ssncanada.ca. The men’s and women’s hockey teams held their AUS home openers, while the women’s Basketball team finished off the Subway tournament playing host to the Brock Badgers.
AUS Champion Huskies Beat Scrappy Tigers; Nadeau Brilliant in Defeat.
On Friday night, Pete Belliveau’s rebuilt Dalhousie Tigers men’s hockey team welcomed cross town rival and defending AUS champs, Saint Mary’s, to the Dalhousie Memorial Arena.
The Huskies were looking for a measure of revenge after the Tigers whipped them 7-2 in exhibition play a few weeks prior.
Head Coach Trevor Steinburg entered the game having just signed a 5 year contract extension, and the Huskies having all the principles from last year’s championship team back, including the reigning AUS MVP Marc Rancourt.
SMU came out the aggressor looking for an early lead, but they were turned away time and again by the Tiger’s goaltender who has become the early storyline of the Dalhousie season;
Bobby Nadeau.
The Huskies would score the first goal of the game with 2 minutes left in the first period, but not before Nadeau would turn away over a dozen shots, including several high quality chances.
The teams would exchange goals twice with SMU outshooting Dalhousie 43-26. The game seemed destined for overtime as the game clock was about two tenths of a second from expiring.
That’s when Tiger’s defenceman Josh Manning hit a Saint Mary’s player on the helmet with his stick. Manning received a minor penalty and the Tigers began overtime shorthanded.
Cam Fergus would score the game winner a minute later, helped by Rancourt’s third assist of the night, and Saint Mary’s would hold off a scrappy Tigers team that nearly pulled off the season’s first upset thanks to the stellar play of Nadeau.
Patrick Sweeney and Kenzie Sheppard scored for Dalhousie, with Francois Gauthier assisting on both goals.
The Tigers are now 0-1-1 after losing to Saint Francis Xavier on Saturday night, 4-2. The team’s next game is Friday, October 23rd at Moncton.

Tigers Begin Season with Big Home Win over Tommies
Lesley Jordan has been trying to get her Dalhousie Tiger’s hockey team over the hump for several years.
On Saturday night at the Dalhousie Memorial Arena, the Tigers took the first step, beating a St.Thomas team that finished 8 points ahead of Dalhousie in last year’s standings.
The storyline of the game was the power play, Dalhousie scoring the first two goals on the advantage. Kaitlyn Mcnutt scored the opening goal in the latter stages of the second, and Rebecca Sweet added the game winner early in the third.
Jillian Coughlin brought the Tommies to within a goal halfway through the final period, but Ashley Boutilier would shut the door, stopping 26 pucks en route to the Tiger’s first victory of the year.
Boutlier made the biggest play of the game, turning away Coughlin on a penalty shot late in the second period.
The Tigers would lose the next day in Moncton to the AUS champion Blue Eagles by a score of 2-1 to tie their record at 1 win 1 loss.
The Tigers next game is Friday, Oct. 23rd, as they host the second game of the 2 game set with the Blue Eagles. That game can be seen on ssncanada.ca at 7:00.

Tigers Continue to Struggle at Dalplex
Head Coach Anna Stammberger may not be too excited the next time she spots ssncanada.ca covering her Dalhousie Tigers women’s basketball team.
For the second straight week the ssncanada cameras have been rolling as Stammburger’s Tigers were beaten soundly by visiting Ontario schools.
Last week the Tigers served up a turkey on Thanksgiving, losing to a very average Carleton team 58-48.
This past Sunday, a day after a big victory over York, the Tigers closed out the Subway Invitational Tournament in embarrassing fashion, as the Brock Badgers dismantled them over the course of 4 agonizing quarters for Stammberger and her players.
Dalhousie would score only 58 points in a 20 point drubbing at the hands of a Badgers team that had an easy time on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Halifax.
The Tigers would trail 63-35 midway through the 3rd quarter, as the Badgers continued to press the Tiger’s youthful and inexperienced backcourt.
Brock finally took the foot off the pedal near the end of the quarter, and Dalhousie would close out the game by outscoring the Badgers in the 4th quarter.
3rd year forward Brooke Sullivan from Miramichi, NB, was named player of the game for Dalhousie.
5th year post Leah Girdwood was named a tournament all star, bouncing back from her foul laden performance the previous week vs. Carleton.
The Tigers will look to get on track with a trip to Moncton for the annual Don Grant Classic. Dalhousie will play Ottawa, Mcgill, and Bishops.
Observations from the Broadcast Booth
Assistant Coach of the Women’s basketball team, Dani Everitt came over for an interview during halftime of Sunday’s game vs. Brock. When asked about her team’s struggles, Everitt said that the Tigers are “storming”. This is a reference to a great basketball quote regarding the development of a team throughout the season. I first heard it from Jerry Hemmings, the legendary Brandon Bobcats coach. The expression suggests that each basketball team goes through four stages in a season; forming, storming, norming, performing. Most teams that have lost or added players and gone through a coaching change are going through the forming/storming stage at this time of year.....Alyssa Hennigar did not play for the Tigers hockey team over the weekend. The 3rd year defender is a key part of the Tigers power play and brings energy and physical play.......The Dal Memorial Arena was still buzzing about Bobby Nadeau’s performance the next night at the women’s game. Nadeau stopped 45 pucks....Brooke Sullivan is playing solid basketball for the Tigers. She’s become a legitimate three point threat and a high energy player who is tough on the boards.....Meghan Wiggins, 1st year player from Fillmore, Saskatchewan, was stellar in spots in Sunday’s loss....the Men’s hockey team seemed to be bullied a little bit by the Huskies, who were definitely the aggressor. Ryan Jenner and Benoit Gervais did take it upon themselves to bring some physicality to the Tiger’s attack. Jenner appears to be the guy who is going to stick up for teammates......Alot of confused and bewildered Tiger’s fans at the Dalplex on Sunday. Many watching couldn’t remember ever seeing the Lady Tigers getting beaten that bad on the basketball court. The Tigers are desperate to get 3rd year leader Alex Legge back on the court. The dynamic Legge would bring a lot of stability to a youthful backcourt that could really struggle against physical teams like Memorial and X next month. In an interview at halftime on ssncanada.ca, Legge said she did not expect to return until second term.

Mixed Results For Tigers in Exhibition Play

The Dalhousie Tigers Men’s Volleyball and Women’s Basketball teams played their exhibition home openers of the 2009/10 season last week at the Dalplex in Halifax.
The Men’s Tigers looked like the team that has dominated the AUS Volleyball Conference for over two decades. The Women’s Tigers looked like a shell of the team that came 1 win away from a conference championship last season.

Men’s Volleyball- AUS champs split with powerhouse Thunderbirds
The Tigers welcomed Canwest powerhouse UBC Thunderbirds to Dalplex for a 2 match set of exhibition volleyball.
On opening night, the Tigers swept the T-Birds 25-23, 25-19, 25-18, in front of a very loud and enthusiastic crowd.
In what has become a familiar sight for the fans at Dalplex, the Tigers were led by their dynamic duo of CIS all stars, Sander Ratsep and Max Burt. Reigning AUS MVP Ratsep picked up where he left off last season. Playing alongside AUS First team all star, Burt, the two delivered multiple kills and aces to pace the Tigers attack.
Burt was especially tough on the serve and with kills at the middle of the net. Danielle You provided a presence in the middle en route to garnering player of the game honours, and Devon Parkinson was a force on the outside.
The following night the Thunderbirds came out focused and ready to make amends while the Tigers opened up the bench and didn’t seem to play with the same intensity as the night before.
Sloppy service and poor timing at the net cost the Tigers the first two sets, as UBC played aggressive, in- system volleyball. The Tigers rebounded taking the third set but could not hold off the hard charging T-Birds, losing the final set 25-17.
Despite the loss, the Tigers are looking tough. They seem focused on winning their 24th straight AUS championship and building on their national success. Last year Dalhousie finished 5th at CIS playoffs, and ranked as high as #3 during the season.
The team will be without the services of graduating CIS all star Dan Murray, but they return 11 players from last year’s squad. Coach Carry MacLean, father of the Tiger’s Libero, Travis, said on Thursday’ s ssncanada broadcast that losing Murray will be significant for Dalhousie. However, he also said that this is the season many of the players have been looking forward to. The team thinks this is the year they win it all.
The status of Erik Montgomery will be an issue for the Tigers in the early going. Montgomery played his first game on Thursday after recovering from a late season injury in March. Physically, he looked pretty healthy, but his timing was way off, and the 5th year senior was mentally shaken as the match wore on.
Daniel You looked solid in Wednesday’s night game and may be able to bridge the gap in the middle until Montgomery regains his timing and confidence.
Regardless, with Ratsep and Burt leading the way, there is no reason to believe that Dan Ota’s Tigers won’t be in the chase for a national championship.

Women’s Basketball- Tigers Sloppy in Loss to visiting Carleton.

Maybe the Tigers had their thanksgiving turkey on Sunday morning?
Whatever the cause of the Tiger’s Performance, certainly rookie Head Coach Anna Stammburger did not envision this outcome in her first game at Dalplex.
It wasn’t pretty.
Carleton led from start to finish, slowly but surely pulling away in the second half, defeating Dalhousie 58-48, on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Halifax. ( http://www.ssncanada.ca/game/599/ )
The Tigers came out looking sleepy and disinterested in the first quarter, while the Ravens were focused and full of grit, trying to avoid being swept by a trio of AUS teams on their tour of Nova Scotia. Carleton lost to Acadia and SMU in the days leading up to their matinee with the Tigers.
Kendall MacLeod was a huge spark off the bench for Carleton, and 5th year senior Ines Jellick (pronounced Enos Yellick) was a force down low. The Ravens looked like they were in mid season form on the offensive end, and received solid, steady play from their backcourt, led by Alyson Bush.
The Tigers received zero contribution from Leah Girdwood; the fifth year post player was in foul trouble from the get go. Her twin sister, Laurie, gave it her best shot, but triple teams in the post and a flurry of questionable offensive fouls kept her limited and frustrated before she eventually fouled out in the 4th quarter.
The Tigers lost a trio of stellar guards from last season in Kelly Donald, Jenna Kaye, and Brianna Orr. Rachel Legge is expected to pick up a lot of slack but she was scratched for this game, leaving the backcourt in the hands of key returnee Rachel Harrison, and the athletic combination of local recruits, Patricia McNeil, and Anna Von Maltzahn.
While Mcneil and Von Maltzahn were dynamic at times, their lack of experience and conditioning showed, as both players logged heavy minutes and faltered down the stretch.
McNeil was named player of the game for the Tigers.
The Tigers showed a different look then previous years. The Girdwood sisters and post Player Caitlin Crosby were very active setting ball screens and rolling to the basket. It was also clearly evident that Stammburger likes the penetration and kick game with her guards.
Von Maltzahn and Mcneil definietely bring a new look to the Tigers backcourt with their length and athleticism, while key 3rd year player Brooke Sullivan is looking tough on the defensive boards and could become a three point gunner on the offensive end.
We’ll know more about the women’s basketball team after this weekend. The Tigers host the annual Subway tournament as Dalplex featuring AUS and Ontario schools. The Tigers play the Brock Badgers on Sunday, a game that can be seen on ssncanada.ca. Tip time is 1:00.

Spoke with SMU women’s bball Head Coach Scott Munro. Big time local recruit Justine Colley is making an impact already. The first year haligonian was sought after by schools across Canada and the USA, but decided to stay home and play for the Huskies. Colley has averaged over 20 points a game so far in exhibition play......Carla Norrad, 2nd year from Sussex, was solid in the backcourt for the Tigers.....Von Maltzahn and Mcneil look strikingly similar. Both rookies are about 5’10”, long, and athletic. The combo should bring some much needed athleticism to a Tigers team that could have used it last year when trying to match up with Kelsey Hodgson of Cape Breton in the AUS final.....Triple Header Tigers action this weekend on ssncanada.ca! Men’s hockey vs. SMU, Friday night at 7:00; Women’s hockey Saturday night at 7:00 vs.STU; Women’s basketball Sunday afternoon at 1:00 vs. the Brock Badgers. Check out all the games on ssncanada.ca!

AUS Football Power Rankings Week 6

Heading into week 6 of the AUS Conference football season and it would appear that one unwanted storyline for AUS officials has become all too real and apparent to all interested fans and observers.
The Saint Francis Xavier X-Men and Saint Mary’s Huskies are really good; The Acadia Axemen and Mount Allison Mounties are really not.
As the conference heads into the middle weeks of a pivotal season in which it pursues an extension on an interlock contract with the QUFL, it was hoped by all involved that the AUS would be able to show strength from top to bottom.
However, as the teams prepare for its second and final week of games vs. teams from the high powered Quebec conference, the division between the top 2 teams and bottom 2 teams is as wide as a 25 yard end zone.
While the X-Men and Huskies are expected to beat Bishops and Mcgill respectively, the Mount Allison Mounties may lose 105-0 at powerhouse Laval, just as they did several years ago in Huskies Stadium vs. SMU.
The critical game could be Concordia at Acadia. Concordia is down this year, but Acadia doesn’t appear to be much better than last year’s 1-7 effort. Regardless, if Acadia can beat the Stingers in Wolfville, the AUS would be able to boast a 5-3 record vs. Quebec for 2008.
This could go a long way in proving to Quebec during negotiations that the AUS can hang tough with the mighty conference, and help the Atlantic schools secure another few years of interlock play.
Of course, if schools like UNB, UPEI, and Dalhousie would just working towards putting football programs on their respective campuses, this whole interlock business wouldn’t be such dire straits for the AUS.
Finally, I’ve heard from several sources that a guaranteed annual SMU/Laval game is on the table in the current negotiations. I’ve talked about this many times with many different people on both my shows. An annual Huskies/Rouge Et Or game would be a huge asset for both conferences. You’re talking about the 2 best teams in the country over the past decade, and a huge rivalry which both schools and their coaches embrace. The fact that this wasn’t pushed through years ago is puzzling at best.
Here are your AUS Power Rankings heading into week 6. They are unchanged from the rankings produced after week 2.

1. Saint Francis Xavier X-Men- Three weeks ago I was hesitant to pick the X-Men at #1, citing their average performance at Mt.A in week 2, and the common belief among AUS pundits that they benefitted playing at home in week 1 vs. a cocky, and unprepared Huskies team.
This just in; the X-Men are good.
Since week 2 they have made the long trip to Montreal and beat a game Concordia team 19-17, then they pummelled Acadia in a home and home set, outscoring the Axemen 81-17.
The X-Men have outscored opponents 2-1 and fifth year QB Steve Snyder is on pace to be AUS MVP.
The defence has given up a lot of first downs, more than the X-Men have gained (101-91), but this bend but don’t break mentality has surrendered an average of only 13 points a game.
The X-Men are gaining the respect of coaches across the country, locked in at the #6 spot in the national rankings.
With lame duck Bishops coming into Antigonish this Saturday, the X-Men should enter next week’s pivotal showdown with SMU with a perfect record of 6-0. Note- This weekend’s matchup with Bishops will be the first ever CIS football game to feature two black head coaches; Gary Waterman of X, and Leroy Blugh of Bishops.

2. Saint Mary’s Huskies- Talk to anyone at the Tower and they’ll tell you the Huskies are the best team in the AUS. The team still laments its no-show performance the first week at ST FX, having since run off 4 straight wins, most coming in convincing fashion.
But until they beat the X-Men face to face, the Huskies will have to settle for #2.
The Huskies travel to Montreal to play mediocre Mcgill, one week before the highly anticipated match up with ST FX at Huskies Stadium on October 23rd.
It may be the biggest “trap” game in the country this weekend.
The Huskies have shown a penchant for not showing up to games “ready to play”, a fact that has not been overlooked by Head Coach Steve Sumarrah.
Two weeks ago at home vs MTA, Sumarah was over yelling “too many mistakes” at his offence after they scored on the Mounties 70 seconds into the 1st quarter.
It would not be a surprise to anyone if the Huskies take the field at Molson Stadium in downtown Montreal with one eye looking towards the X game. The Redbirds are certainly not in the same class as QUFL powerhouses Laval or Montreal, but they’re no pushovers, especially on their home turf.
The Huskies have definitely rediscovered their swagger. The brothers Jones (Tristan and Devon), and Craig Leger have created a daunting three headed running attack, while QB Jack Creighton is getting better each week, throwing to a quintet of talented receivers in Carl Hardwick, Joe Doherty, Aaron Racioppa, Jahmeek Murray, and Firass El Fatah. Throw in the best placekicker in the country, Justin Palardy, about to break an AUS record for field goals, and you have a team that can put up a lot of points.
Everyone just hopes the Huskies don’t blow it in Montreal, so that we can have our big game next week at Huskies Stadium.

3. Acadia Axemen- Ranking a team as bad as Acadia is only justified by the fact that Mount Allison is that much worse. The demise of the Axemen under Jeff Cummins has people in Wolfville scratching their heads.
Dips and down-years are to be expected at any school. Injuries, bad recruiting classes, bad chemistry; a lot of things can cause a great football coach to have a bad season.
People forget that Blake Nill went 4-4 his last season at Saint Mary’s.
But Acadia is now three seasons removed from their last AUS championship, and the team has gone 5-16 since its blowout loss at Laval in the 2006 CIS Semi Final.
So what’s happened? Well, it would appear that the talent well has run dry.
The Axemen have surrendered 420 yards a game on defence. Worse, since trouncing MTA 58-15 in their season opener, the Axemen have been outscored 153-40. With the Mounties being so awful, it’s a safe bet the Axemen will play a playoff game on the road at X or SMU. But after the whistle blows on that fateful day and the Axemen head back to the valley to lick their wounds, a long off season of student and alumni discontent could surround the Acadia program and Head Coach Cummins.

4. Mount Allison Mounties- Ah, the Mounties. I’ve seen these kids play from the sidelines and it’s not for lack of trying. They work hard, they are well coached, and they stick together; but they are a bad football team.
The Quarterback, Jake Hotchkiss, is a gamer, but his arm strength is limited. The running back, Matt Pickett, is tough as nails, but undersized and lacks quickness. Their special teams are below average to put it kindly, and the defence is way overmatched.
The one shining light on this team is Gary Ross. The 4th year senior managed to garner Special Teams player of the week in the AUS for his performance vs. SMU, a 35-7 drubbing in which the all world wide receiver tallied nearly 300 all purpose yards.
The Mounties game at Laval this weekend will not be pretty, and it will be a long trip home from Quebec City. However, there is good news on the horizon; Acadia comes to Sackville the next weekend.

Do you have any thoughts, arguments, or criticisms on these power rankings? Please email me at ckdusports@gmail.com. Would love to have your feedback and begin a discussion on the AUS football season! Thanks for reading.

AUS Football Power Rankings

Heading into week 6 of the AUS Conference football season and it would appear that one unwanted storyline for AUS officials has become all too real and apparent to all interested fans and observers.
The Saint Francis Xavier X-Men and Saint Mary’s Huskies are really good. The Acadia Axemen and Mount Allison Mounties are really not.
As the conference heads into the middle weeks of a pivotal season in which it pursues an extension on an interlock contract with the QUFL, it was hoped by all involved that the AUS would be able to show strength from top to bottom.
However, as the teams prepare for its second and final week of games vs. teams from the high powered Quebec conference, the division between the top 2 teams and bottom 2 teams is as wide as a 25 yard end zone.
While the X-Men and Huskies are expected to beat Bishops and Mcgill respectively, the Mount Allison Mounties may lose 105-0 at powerhouse Laval, just as they did several years ago in Huskies Stadium vs. SMU.
The critical game could be Concordia at Acadia. Concordia is down this year, but Acadia doesn’t appear to be much better than last year’s 1-7 effort. Regardless, if Acadia can beat the Stingers in Wolfville, the AUS would be able to boast a 5-3 record vs. Quebec for 2008.
This could go a long way in proving to Quebec during negotiations that the AUS can hang tough with the mighty conference, and help the Atlantic schools secure another few years of interlock play.
Of course, if schools like UNB, UPEI, and Dalhousie would just working towards putting football programs on their respective campuses, this whole interlock business wouldn’t be such dire straits for the AUS.
Finally, I’ve heard from several sources that a guaranteed annual SMU/Laval game is on the table in the current negotiations. I’ve talked about this many times with many different people on both my shows. An annual Huskies/Rouge Et Or game would be a huge asset for both conferences. You’re talking about the 2 best teams in the country over the past decade, and a huge rivalry which both schools and their coaches embrace. The fact that this wasn’t pushed through years ago is puzzling at best.
Here are your AUS Power Rankings heading into week 6. They are unchanged from the rankings produced after week 2.

1. Saint Francis Xavier X-Men- Three weeks ago I was hesitant to pick the X-Men at #1, citing their average performance at Mt.A in week 2, and the common belief among AUS pundits that they benefitted playing at home in week 1 vs. a cocky, and unprepared Huskies team.
This just in; the X-Men are good.
Since week 2 they have made the long trip to Montreal and beat a game Concordia team 19-17, then they pummelled Acadia in a home and home set, outscoring the Axemen 81-17.
The X-Men have outscored opponents 2-1 and fifth year QB Steve Snyder is on pace to be AUS MVP.
The defence has given up a lot of first downs, more than the X-Men have gained (101-91), but this bend but don’t break mentality has surrendered an average of only 13 points a game.
The X-Men are gaining the respect of coaches across the country, locked in at the #6 spot in the national rankings.
With lame duck Bishops coming into Antigonish this Saturday, the X-Men should enter next week’s pivotal showdown with SMU with a perfect record of 6-0. Note- This weekend’s matchup with Bishops will be the first ever CIS football game to feature two black head coaches; Gary Waterman of X, and Leroy Blugh of Bishops.

2. Saint Mary’s Huskies- Talk to anyone at the Tower and they’ll tell you the Huskies are the best team in the AUS. The team still laments its no-show performance the first week at ST FX, having since run off 4 straight wins, most coming in convincing fashion.
But until they beat the X-Men face to face, the Huskies will have to settle for #2.
The Huskies travel to Montreal to play mediocre Mcgill, one week before the highly anticipated match up with ST FX at Huskies Stadium on October 23rd.
It may be the biggest “trap” game in the country this weekend.
The Huskies have shown a penchant for not showing up to games “ready to play”, a fact that has not been overlooked by Head Coach Steve Sumarrah.
Two weeks ago at home vs MTA, Sumarah was over yelling “too many mistakes” at his offence after they scored on the Mounties 70 seconds into the 1st quarter.
It would not be a surprise to anyone if the Huskies take the field at Molson Stadium in downtown Montreal with one eye looking towards the X game. The Redbirds are certainly not in the same class as QUFL powerhouses Laval or Montreal, but they’re no pushovers, especially on their home turf.
The Huskies have definitely rediscovered their swagger. The brothers Jones (Tristan and Devon), and Craig Leger have created a daunting three headed running attack, while QB Jack Creighton is getting better each week, throwing to a quintet of talented receivers in Carl Hardwick, Joe Doherty, Aaron Racioppa, Jahmeek Murray, and Firass El Fatah. Throw in the best placekicker in the country, Justin Palardy, about to break an AUS record for field goals, and you have a team that can put up a lot of points.
Everyone just hopes the Huskies don’t blow it in Montreal, so that we can have our big game next week at Huskies Stadium.

3. Acadia Axemen- Ranking a team as bad as Acadia is only justified by the fact that Mount Allison is that much worse. The demise of the Axemen under Jeff Cummins has people in Wolfville scratching their heads.
Dips and down-years are to be expected at any school. Injuries, bad recruiting classes, bad chemistry; a lot of things can cause a great football coach to have a bad season.
People forget that Blake Nill went 4-4 his last season at Saint Mary’s.
But Acadia is now three seasons removed from their last AUS championship, and the team has gone 5-16 since its blowout loss at Laval in the 2006 CIS Semi Final.
So what’s happened? Well, it would appear that the talent well has run dry.
The Axemen have surrendered 420 yards a game on defence. Worse, since trouncing MTA 58-15 in their season opener, the Axemen have been outscored 153-40. With the Mounties being so awful, it’s a safe bet the Axemen will play a playoff game on the road at X or SMU. But after the whistle blows on that fateful day and the Axemen head back to the valley to lick their wounds, a long off season of student and alumni discontent could surround the Acadia program and Head Coach Cummins.

4. Mount Allison Mounties- Ah, the Mounties. I’ve seen these kids play from the sidelines and it’s not for lack of trying. They work hard, they are well coached, and they stick together; but they are a bad football team.
The Quarterback, Jake Hotchkiss, is a gamer, but his arm strength is limited. The running back, Matt Pickett, is tough as nails, but undersized and lacks quickness. Their special teams are below average to put it kindly, and the defence is way overmatched.
The one shining light on this team is Gary Ross. The 4th year senior managed to garner Special Teams player of the week in the AUS for his performance vs. SMU, a 35-7 drubbing in which the all world wide receiver tallied nearly 300 all purpose yards.
The Mounties game at Laval this weekend will not be pretty, and it will be a long trip home from Quebec City. However, there is good news on the horizon; Acadia comes to Sackville the next weekend.

Do you have any thoughts, arguments, or criticisms on these power rankings? Please email me at ckdusports@gmail.com. Would love to have your feedback and begin a discussion on the AUS football season! Thanks for reading.

CKDU Fundraiser

Hello Friends,
On Saturday, October 10th at noon, CKDU Sports will be holding its 3rd fundraising show, trying to raise much needed cash for Halifax’s community radio station, CKDU 88.1 FM, ckdu.ca.
The mandate of CKDU Sports is to provide detailed analysis and coverage of Halifax sports. This past 9 months I have had phone and studio interviews with dozens of local athletes, coaches, and media, including in no particular order;
Chad Lucas, Steve Sumarrah, Pete Belliveau, Dr. Carolyn Savoy, John Campbell, John Macneil, Chris Tremblay, Anna Stammburger, Scott Munro, Trevor Steinburg, Simon Farine, Adam Tenwolde, Ryan Jenner, Andrew Sullivan, Dan Reed, David Fry, Colin Power, Ross Hagen, Wilf Jackson, Rachel Wise, Mitchell Kidney, Mark Forward, and Dyrick McDermott, our dear friend who was sadly and tragically taken from us in the early spring.
Tomorrow’s show will be strictly dedicated to asking for your donation to CKDU. Any amount of money you can contribute is greatly appreciated. CKDU has established a number of prizes that you can receive with pledges of 25, 50, or 75 dollars. These include entries into 3 incredible grand prizes, CKDU t-shirts, discount cards, and other goodies that are sure to please.
In addition, there are incredible prizes to be won with your exclusive donation to CKDU Sports. These prizes include;
· 2 Season passes to Halifax Lions hockey.
· 2 pairs of tickets to Halifax Mooseheads hockey, November 13 vs. the Moncton Wildcats.
· 3 $50 Gift Certificates to Finbars Restaurant in Bedford, home of the best Nachos in HRM.
· 2 $25 Gift Certificates to Mexicali Rosas on Spring Garden Road.
· $25 Gift Certificate to Brooklyn Warehouse, the premier eating spot in the North End of HRM.
· Nike Bauer Graphite Hockey Stick signed by Jason Blake of the TML (Thanks to Troy Ryan!)
· Souvenir Hockey stick signed by all members of the Halifax Mooseheads from 2007, including Logan Mcmillan.
· High quality t-shirts from the Halifax Mooseheads, Dalhousie basketball, and Dalhousie Volleyball teams!
So please, tune in Saturday at noon and donate to CKDU. You’ll help keep community radio alive and well in Halifax, and receive great prizes in return.
You can also donate online at fundingdrive.ckdu.ca! Donate safe and secure with your credit card and make sure you mention CKDU Sports in the space provided. Also, detail what prize you would like to receive for your generous donation.
$10 – High Quality Mooseheads and Dal Athletics T-shirts.
$25- Brooklyn Warehouse gift certificate, Mexis Gift Certificates, Mooseheads tickets, Mooseheads hockey stick.
$50- Finbars Gift Certificates, or any combination of prizes listed above.
$75- Jason Blake Hockey stick, or any combination of gifts mentioned above.
$100 or more- You tell me what you want from the gifts available!
Please tune in tomorrow at noon, or donate online. You’ll be helping to ensure that CKDU 88.1 FM remains an active and much needed voice in Halifax, and you can win some incredible prizes as well.
Thanks again and all the best to the Halifax sports family, and CKDU Sports listeners!
Bill McLean

Huskies Handle Mounties;Truro's Palardy Ties AUS Record

Huskies Take Care of Business; Pull Away From Scrappy Mounties in 2nd Half.
Steve Sumarah has seen his Saint Mary’s Huskies play a little too cocky for his liking on several occasions this season. Some AUS pundits say this over confidence and sense of entitlement cost SMU a victory in their season opener vs Saint Francis Xavier.

Sumarah made sure it didn’t happen on Friday night vs. last place Mount Allison Mounties.

The Huskies had their best start of the season, recovering an onside kick on the first play of the game, and scoring a touchdown on a 25 yard pass from Jack Creighton to Jahmeek Murray.

As the Huskies offence went to the sideline to celebrate and relax on the bench, Sumarah came over and delivered a firm message; “Too many mistakes out there!”

Sumarah was in no mood for sloppy football on this night, and his Huskies responded with arguably their finest performance of the season.

The Mounties would hang tough in the first half, racking up over 10 first downs on offence and attacking the Huskies with an excellent balance of run and pass.

But they could not stop the Huskie’s three headed monster running game, or Jack Creighton and his troop of talented receivers, eventually falling behind 44-18 by the end of the third quarter.
Craig Leger ran for 75 yards on 7 carries and the Jones brothers, Devon and Tristan, combined for 123.

Creighton threw for a staggering 438 yards, completing 24 passes to 8 different receivers. Murray had 6 catches for 132 yards and veteran Carl Hardwick caught 5 balls for 103 yards.

Place kicker Justin Palardy added a new chapter to his developing legacy, kicking 4 field goals to give him 56 for his career, tying an AUS record.

The Mounties were game in the first half. Led by running back Matt Pickett, and the short passing game of Quarterback Jake Hotchkiss, the Mounties accumulated 7 first downs in the opening quarter and took a 14-10 lead on a touchdown catch by Ben Stehr.

The Mounties would continue to move the ball in the second quarter thanks to all world receiver Gary Ross. Ross was all over the field at Huskies Stadium. Long passes, long runs after short passes, handoffs in the backfield, the dynamic Mountie’s receiver was doing everything.

But the Mounties were unable to punch the ball in to the end zone after putting together long drives, settling for a field goal and a rouge on the last play of the half.

On the other end of the field, the Huskies scored 2 touchdowns and a field goal to build a 27-18 lead as the tide slowly began to turn in favour of the defending AUS champs.

Gary Ross would finish with 11 catches for 130 yards, and Matt Pickett rushed for 116 yards on 21 carries for Mount Allison in defeat.

Akwasi Antwi led the Mount Allison defence with 8 tackles. Ryan King and Devon Hicks combined for 9 tackles for the Huskies.

The teams finish off their home and home series next Friday night in Sackville, NB.

Opinions and Observations
Gary Ross is the real deal. Previously I had only seen him on Eastlink, but Friday night I watched him from the sidelines and he is the total package. Great hands, speed, toughness, and durable; it’s a shame he has played his career in national obscurity with the Mounties.......Speaking of great receivers, Carl Hardwick is one for the Huskies. He’s not blessed with the same physical gifts as Ross or teammate Firass El Fatah (very impressive looking athlete), but Hardwick is tough as nails, runs great routes, and has terrific hands....Mounties RB Matt Pickett took a vicious hit at midfield just before the end of the half. QB Hotchkiss spun away from big David Dominic when it looked like he was going to get hit hard from behind. Hotchkiss threw a pass across the field to a waiting Pickett who was getting lined up by Jeff Zelinski. Pickett caught the ball and began to turn upfield, and Zelinski delivered a bone rattling hit that brought the Huskies crowd to their feet. Give credit to Pickett, he got up right away and walked off the field while suggesting to the crowd that the hit had no effect. One of the hardest hits I’ve ever seen at Huskies Stadium...... Mounties Head Coach Kelly Jeffrey had choice words for officials during the game from the sidelines. Jeffrey was very upset with the lack of holding calls on the Huskies offensive line. After consecutive calls on #20 Matt Kenny for roughing the passer and pass interference, setting up the Huskies with a first and goal, Jeffrey could be heard yelling, “...(QB Jack Creighton) is getting 7 seconds in the pocket and not one holding call!”. Certainly Kenny’s back to back penalties was the key moment of the 1st half, and was the beginning of the end for the Mounties.......Attendance was announced at 3200. Great crowd, very vocal and excited. However, the student section could probably do without the kid on the megaphone, taunting the Mount Allison players on the sidelines. It’s a good idea, but the drunken ramblings of a 20 year old who thinks he is funny is more annoying to people in attendance than the visiting players.....After the rematch with MTA next weekend in Sackville, the Huskies travel to Mcgill on October 17, followed by the highly anticipated re-match with the undefeated X-Men at Huskies Stadium on October 23rd. St FX has a trip to Acadia and a home game vs. Bishops before then, so they should come into Halifax still undefeated for a game that will go a long way in determining which team finishes 1st, receives a bye, and hosts the AUS championship.

Tigers Romp Huskies in Exhibition Play

Tigers Romp Reigning AUS Champs in Exhibition Men’s Hockey
This past Wednesday there was exhibition men’s hockey played at Dalhousie Memorial Arena in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
The night before the game I hardly slept. I felt like I was 12 years old again, staring at the ceiling, anxiously awaiting the morning and my 8:30 am Pee Wee game.
It was my first play by play broadcast of men’s hockey for ssncanada.ca.
Sure, it was exhibition hockey. But I couldn’t wait.
Steve Betts and I had the call on http://www.ssncanada.ca/game/574/. The defending AUS champion Huskies made the 10 block walk through the south end of Halifax to play the rebuilt Dalhousie Tigers.
The Huskies had everyone back from last year’s team that suffered a historic collapse at nationals. The Tigers had several survivors from the basement dwelling team of 2008, surrounded by one of the nation’s top recruiting classes, the first in the Pete Belliveau era.
The Huskies, fresh off winning the Don Wells Classic at Acadia, jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, thanks in no small part to the stellar play of reigning of AUS MVP, Marc Rancourt.
It was looking like business as usual for the champs, going about their routine at Dalhousie Memorial Arena, brushing aside the hapless Tigers.
But just wait.
The Tigers came roaring back. Two goals to end the first period to tie the game, three goals in the second to build an insurmountable lead, and two more in the third, bringing the total of unanswered Dalhousie goals to seven, and sending the Huskies to their first loss of the exhibition season.
Message delivered.
The Dalhousie Tigers, with over 10 new players brought onto campus by Coach Pete Belliveau, may just be a legitimate AUS hockey team. Belliveau’s crew of tough luck kids from last year, combined with newcomers from all over the world, could be a contender in the CIS’s toughest conference for men’s hockey.
In contrast, they may have been fortunate and caught a very good hockey team on a down night coming off a big exhibition hockey tournament win down in Wolfville.
We’ll know more on October 16th, when these two teams meet again at Dalhousie Memorial Arena, in a game that actually counts, and can be seen live on ssncanada.ca.

Opinions/Observations
Bobby Nadeau, the first year goaltender for the Tigers, was stellar. The highly respected former QMJHL goalie, played last year for the PEI Rocket, and is well known as the goalie who was beaten down upon by Jonathon Roy, in the highly controversial case of Patrick Roy’s son and his vicious assault on Nadeau 2 seasons ago. Nadeau was as solid as it gets vs. SMU and could be a huge factor this year in the AUS.....The teams got into a colourful exchange of hostilities in the first period. SMU’s 6’7” monster defenceman, Justin Wollingford, took a hit from behind in the corner by Tigers newcomer Daniel Bartek of the Czech Republic. Upon discovering no penalty call was forthcoming, Wollingford took it upon himself to skate over to the Tigers bench as Bartek was heading off, and gave the Czech a little one hander to the back of the leg. Moments later, Wollingford accidentally kneed Sweeney of the Tigers as he fell down coming across the blue line, earning the big fella an undeserved penalty. After the whistle, Wollingford appeared to spear Trevor Mckenzie, which drew the ire of Tigers Assistant Captain Ryan Jenner, which lead to a heated exchanged of pleasantries. The Tigers/Huskies rivalry could be back!.....Speaking of Wollingford, he lowered the boom on Mathew Stoddard of the Tigers in the 3rd period. Stoddard got held by a Huskie forward as he approached the SMU zone, lost balance, and just got flattened by Wollingford..... The Dalhousie line of Mckenzie, Sweeney, and Villeneauve-Gagne were the best crop of forwards for both teams. They literally took over the second period and turned the tide in the Tiger’s favour.....1st year defenceman Benoit Gervais was very impressive for the Tigers as well....although they didn’t score many goals on this night, watching the Huskie’s talented forwards Marc Rancourt and Cam Fergus work together is something special.