Calgary- It was an all-Cougar affair at Flames Community Arena on Friday evening as Mount Royal played host to the Regina Cougars for the first time this season.
Entering today's game, Mount Royal held a 5-5 record, with all 5 losses coming on Friday nights. Regina, on the other hand, had just one win heading into the weekend with hopes of rejoining the East Division playoff picture.
Regina didn't look like a 1-win team during the 1st period, earning themselves a power play off of a Josh Tarzwell hook. It wasn't long before Jaxon Steele put a wrist shot past Riley Sims, giving the away Cougars a 1-0 lead.
Not even a minute later, the Regina Cougars were back on the prowl as defenseman Leyton Holoien fired a laser from the blue line, putting Regina up by two.
On their heels early, Mount Royal refused to sit back as Blake Stevenson carved his way into the offensive zone, teeing up Spencer Moe, who cut Regina's lead to one.
Mount Royal's press continued with plenty of positive play in Regina's end, but 1st-year goaltender Damon Cunningham stood tall and kept his crew in the lead.
Towards the end of the game, veteran Paycen Bjorklund broke up a pass and found himself on a breakaway. Bjorklund threw a quick chip shot over the shoulder of Sims, extending Regina's lead to 3-1.
Once again, MRU found themselves trailing by a pair but continued to push offensively. A strong pinch by Captain Kyle Walker led to Connor Bouchard finding Jayden Wiens in tight, bringing Mount Royal to within one.
After a wild first period, Regina carried a 3-2 lead into the intermission with momentum on their side.
The green and yellow continued their strong play in the second, pressuring MRU's defence at both 5 on 5 and with the man advantage.
Although neither of Regina's power plays resulted in any goals, the Cougars pulled through late in the 2nd with an unlikely source potting home Regina's 4th of the game. It was the stay-at-home defenseman Ayden Third who brought the Cougars' lead back to 2 with less than 4 minutes left in the frame.
Period 3 brought more drama, this time on Mount Royal's side. Blake Stevenson, who had an excellent game all night long, whipped a shot from a distance that soared over Damon Cunningham's shoulder and into the back of the goal.
It wasn't long before Mount Royal established a strong setup in Regina's end, leading to Spencer Moe burying his second of the game and tying things at 4 apiece.
On their heels late in the 3rd, Regina forward Eric Houk got caught behind Connor Bouchard and took a penalty, sending MRU to the power play with a minute to go in the third.
Despite Mount Royal formulating a few good chances, both sets of Cougars would need overtime to decide things.
Even with an early power play in OT, Mount Royal couldn't put anything past Damon Cunningham, allowing for Regina to survive being down a man.
Off the heels of their penalty kill, Eric Houk nabbed a pass from Leyton Holoien, stormed up ice, and found 2nd-year forward Carter Belitski for his first goal of the season, giving Regina their second win of the year.
Mount Royal now drops to 0-6 on Friday's and remains behind the 8-ball heading into Saturday. MRU will host Regina once more at Flames Community Arena, looking for revenge against their Cougar counterparts.
