Halifax, N.S. - The StFX X-Men, coming off their first Atlantic University Sport (AUS) hockey championship victory since 2004, are readying to compete for a CIS University Cup crown.
The third-seeded X-Men will face-off against the defending national champion Alberta Golden Bears (#6) in quarter-final action Thursday, at 8 p.m., at Halifax Scotiabank Centre.
Leading up to the four-day event (March 17-20), players and coaches from the participating teams gathered for a press conference Wednesday morning.
"We are excited to be back," X-Men head coach Brad Peddle said, when he took the podium. "We are anxious to go."
Peddle described the competition as the "deepest field" he has experienced in the national championship tournament. "It is going to be a challenge," he said, of the X-Men's push for the title.
Peddle was accompanied by AUS all stars Eric Locke (league MVP), Nathan Chiarlitti (playoff MVP) and goaltender Drew Owsley. "They are a big part of why we are here," he said of the trio.
Peddle credited the entire roster for the successful campaign, including freshmen who brought "new energy and enthusiasm."
"We are looking to continue to build on a good regular season and a great playoff," he said.
Trevor Steinburg, head coach of the eighth-seeded and host Saint Mary's Huskies, talked about how his team battled injuries throughout the season.
"If you finish anywhere over five-hundred, you have to be happy with that," the veteran bench boss said, in illustrating the high level of competition in the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) conference. The Huskies lost to the X-Men in the conference semi-finals.
A familiar face leads the Carleton Ravens, who enter play as the seventh seed; former Dalhousie Tiger Marty Johnston coached the OUA squad to a 20-8 regular season mark.
"It was our first step in getting us going in the right direction," he said of a pre-season team tour to Europe. "And we kept moving," Johnston added. After a more than 30-year absence from men's varsity hockey play, the re-born Ravens are back in the national championship hunt in their ninth season.
"We had a lot of ups and downs," first-year Golden Bear head coach Serge Lajoie said, describing their campaign as a "season of transition." He noted the leadership of his squad, which includes seven fifth-year seniors. "It is always a privilege to compete for the University Cup," Lajoie added.
Gardiner MacDougall, head coach of the fifth-seeded UNB Varsity Reds, talked about the "special year" his club experienced.
After playing their "best hockey of the season" after Christmas, including a 13-game win streak and a return to #1 in the CIS, he credited the X-Men for stalling that momentum in a two-game sweep of the Varsity Reds for the conference crown.
"The road to the University Cup is getting more treacherous," Clarke Singer, Western Mustangs (#4) head coach, said, in commenting on the strong tournament field. "It is more and more difficult to get here every year."
Describing the season as "up and down," Singer said his team is "looking forward to the opportunity to play for a national championship.
"It is a privilege and we are very proud to be here," Dave Adolph, head coach of the second-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies, said. He noted his team was hitting the ice while the press conference was taking place. "We are going to work on our power play, so you can't watch it," Adolph quipped.
The UQTR Patriotes, with only three regular season losses, are the top seed in the competition. "We have an excellent group of leaders," head coach Marc-Etienne Hubert said.
He added his team has a "great mix" of new and veteran players, including six first-years playing 'key roles'. "We are honoured to be here," Hubert said.
For more CIS University Cup information, including the tournament schedule, visit www.universitycup.ca
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