Saskatchewan Huskies oust Carleton Ravens in quadruple overtime of CIS men's hockey

By Victor Findlay

HALIFAX -Parker Thomas proved that not all superheroes wear capes. This one wears a Saskatchewan Huskies jersey with number 24 on the back.

Thomas' goal would be the punctuation mark in a game that lasted a total of 116:11 minutes, through seven periods of hockey. The longest game in University Cup history saw the Huskies defeat the Carleton Ravens 3-2 in quadruple overtime.

In the definition of a goaltender's duel, Carleton's Patrick Killeen and Saskatchewan's Jordon Cooke went toe-to-toe for all seven periods of hockey, making a combined 132 saves. Killeen had split time with Francis Dupuis all season, but head coach Marty Johnston opted for Killeen after a strong showing against the Guelph Gryphons in the OUA bronze medal game.

Cooke has been phenomenal all season long, gathering CIS goaltender of the year honours, and had his skill-set on full display Thursday night, making 56 saves in the win for the Saskatchewan Huskies.

When asked about Cooke's ability to keep Saskatchewan in the game, Huskies’ head coach Dave Adolph said, "That's his job, right? This year we went through our first four or five games of the regular season in new water and Jordon stood on his head."

Cooke started the game with a bang by making a marvelous glove save just shy of two minutes into the contest. From there he left it to part of Saskatchewan's rookie contingent to get on the board first. At 12:40 of the first period, Levi Cable would tack on a powerplay marker, shuffling a shot past Killeen. Cable's goal would stand as the only tally of the first period.

Brent Norris ensured the Ravens' second period began the right way, sniping a shot past Cooke just two minutes into the frame, locking the game at one goal apiece. When offence was hard to come by, the special teams took over.

Both teams traded power-play goals in the second period, with Saskatchewan's Kohl Bauml scoring his first goal of the tournament at the 5:57 mark of the second. Brett Welychka would later respond with a one-timer rocket, beating Cooke to once again equalize the game. From there on out, the nets would be sealed airtight.

"Our young guys were pretty nervous in that first period," said coach Adolph, "And then when they tied it up they were real nervous for about 10  minutes in the third."

What transpired over the next four periods of hockey was nothing short of amazing. Both teams exchanging opportunities in close, but the goaltenders were zoned in and seeing every shot sent their way. Twice in the game, Cooke looked to be down for the count after being run over by the Carleton Ravens, but each time the Huskies goalie got back on his feet.

"I'm used to it," says Cooke of getting knocked around in the crease, "Playing in Canada West it kind of happens. I just laid there hoping nothing was hurt, and I took my time to catch my breath. I don't think I had an injury, I just wanted to catch my breath."

With the pace of play beginning to wind down in the later overtime periods, and no one seemingly able to bury a shot with an open chance, it appeared the game may never end. As the record for longest CIS men's hockey game appeared to be within striking distance at the beginning of the fourth overtime, it was a second year forward from Winnipeg, M.B., who provided the heroics for Saskatchewan.

With neither team willing to spare an inch with the fear of making a costly mistake, Thomas found a way to stretch across the crease, forcing Killeen to pull off of his post. Not giving up on the play, Thomas tucked the puck into the back of the net, sending the Saskatchewan bench into hysterics.

"Before the draw, I talked to the centreman, we had a play," says Thomas, "I was going to drive the net. The puck came to me, I went hard to the net, got stopped the first time, stuck with it and put it in, and then I don't really remember after that."

The final goal signified the end of the line for the Ravens, but Johnston remains proud of his team's effort. "The tank was definitely on E, but there was no giving up in our group, and I'm really proud of that."

The Huskies advanced to Saturday's semifinal game with the St. Francis Xavier X-men, who knocked out the Alberta Golden Bears on Friday.