CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos men's hockey team couldn't hold on to a two-goal lead Friday evening, falling 4-3 to the University of Manitoba Bisons at Father David Bauer Arena.
Dawson Pasternak's short-handed goal with less than nine minutes left in regulation broke a 3-3 tie and stood as the game winner. The loss drops the Dinos to 2-9-1 on the season, while Manitoba improved to 9-3-0.
Calgary came out strong. Matt Corbet opened the scoring with just over four minutes left in the first period, collecting a rebound off a Davis Fry shot from the blue-line and wrapping it around Manitoba goaltender Matthew Kieper. Early in the second period, Hayden Pakkala doubled the lead on the power play, sniping one through Kieper from the top of the right circle on a feed from Fry.
The Bisons answered quickly. Brandon Funk scored in a crease scramble just before the midway point of the second period to make it 2-1. With just under six minutes left in the period, Lucas Brennan tied the game on the power play with a one-timer from the left face-off dot off a cross-ice pass from Pasternak.
Riley Gannon put the Dinos back in front with a minute left in the period, taking a pass from Remy Aquilon through the neutral zone and sending a shot from the top of the left circle over Kieper's glove to make it 3-2.
"In the first period, we were really, really good," said Dinos head coach Mark Howell. "Our energy was high, our intensity and focus and everything was really good. In the second period we lost focus and let them back in the game.
"When you give away momentum you just never get it back."
Samuel Borschowa tied it early in the third period when his shot from the outer edge of the right circle went off a Dinos defender and in. Then, on a Bisons penalty kill, Pasternak broke in alone on Dinos goaltender Kelton Pyne and lifted a shot over his glove for the Bisons' first lead of the night and the game-winning goal.
The Dinos outshot the Bisons 37-23, with Kieper turning away 34 of his 37 shots while Pyne blocked out 19.
"We had a lot of urgency to play, but we just deviated from what we were supposed to do," said Dinos captain Jake Poole. "It ended up costing us with mental mistakes and not having the same kind of play we had in the first period."
Poole said the group's belief in each other hasn't wavered.
"Everyone in that room still believes in each other and we just have to make sure we keep believing," he said. "Stuff happens, but at the end of the day we just have to bear down and figure out how to play a full 60 minutes with high intensity and playing the right way."
The Dinos will now head into a bye week before returning to action on Nov. 26 against their cross-town rivals, the Mount Royal Cougars.
"We'll review everything," said Howell. "We haven't been good enough and we're losing too many games. We have to look at absolutely everything to find a way to dig ourselves out of the massive hole we've put ourselves in."
The Crowchild Classic match-up will start with a 7:30 p.m. puck drop from Father David Bauer Arena. Tickets are available at GoDinos.com/Tickets.
Manitoba will travel to face the Saskatchewan Huskies on Friday, Nov. 20.
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