Antigonish, NS - The StFX X-Men (11-5-1) hosted the CIS #3 ranked Saint Mary's Huskies (12-4-1) to open the post-Christmas portion of the AUS hockey regular season Saturday night.
On a third period goal from freshman forward Adam Stevens (Bedford, NS), the X-Men skated to a 2-1 win in front of more than 500 fans at the Charles V. Keating Centre.
"It was kind of a sloppy game, but it was a hard fought one between two good teams," X-Men head coach Brad Peddle said, noting the effect of the long holiday layoff for both teams.
Stevens deposited the rebound of a Cory MacIntosh (North Sydney, NS) slap shot from inside the Saint Mary's blueline behind Anthony Peters (Blyth, ON) with 3:45 remaining in regulation time.
Brad Cuzner (Glace Bay, NS) notched the other assist for the X-Men.
X-Men goaltender Drew Owsley (Lethbridge, AB) made several key saves to preserve the victory.
Earlier in the third period, the Huskies tied the game 1-1 with a powerplay goal at the 9:22 mark. Stephen MacAulay (Cole Harbour, NS) completed a nifty tic-tac-toe passing play from Francis Menard (Embrun, ON) and Ben Duffy (Lower Sackville, NS).
The X-Men opened the scoring in the second period on a powerplay goal from junior defenseman Bronson Maschmeyer (Bruderheim, AB) at the 8:50 mark. Team captain Rob Slaney (Portugal Cove, NL) and Ted Stephens (Whitehorse, YT) garnered the assists.
"It feels good. It was nice to get on the board first," Maschmeyer said.
He noted his team was "trying to keep it simple" in their first game after the more than month-long gap between games.
"We are still making little mistakes, but it will come," Maschmeyer added during the second intermission.
The teams played to a scoreless opening period, with the Huskies outshooting the X-Men seven to six.
The three stars of the game were Maschmeyer, Owsley and MacAulay.
The first X-Men home game of 2015 marked Minor Hockey Night, with the crowd dotted by several jerseys representing the Antigonish Minor Hockey Association, along with the X-Men and X-Women.
"It was tonnes of fun," Maschmeyer said when asked about his minor hockey memories.
He also reflected on the great fun everyone had on the outdoor rink his father built each year on their Alberta farm. "It was great," Maschmeyer said.
The Huskies return to action Friday, January 9, when they visit Wolfville to face the Acadia Axemen.
On the same night, the X-Men will hit the ice against the Dalhousie Tigers in Halifax.
Puck drop for both games is 7 p.m.
"We need to continue to play good solid 'D' in our own end and the rest will continue to take care of itself," Peddle said, when asked to look forward to the rest of the season.
The X-Men return to home ice Saturday, January 10, when they host the Acadia Axemen at the Keating Centre, beginning at 7 p.m.
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