There are rivalries born of geography and then there are those, like the Ravens and Patriotes, born of battle. Wednesday night at Le Colisee in Trois-Riveres, for the tenth time in their history, the Carleton Ravens and UQTR Patriotes will meet in the OUA playoffs.
With a long history of lengthy overtime games, physical one-goal affairs and battles that have carried throughout program histories, the feud between the Carleton Ravens and UQTR Patriotes is reborn almost annually. Now, as the puck drops on round 2 of the OUA Queen's Cup playoffs, the rivalry is reborn.
It's been a back-and-forth season for the two clubs with Carleton closing the gap in the second half. With back-to-back games late in the season Carleton narrowly dropped a Wednesday night game on the road before orchestrating an impressive 5-4 come-from-behind overtime victory.
Kieran Craig's heroics late in the 3-on-3 period helped to give direction to a Ravens team that had faced an up-and-down first half of the season. That momentum then carried with Carleton through their first-round sweep of the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks.
Much of the Ravens success, and hopes for round two, can be tied to goaltender Mark Grametbauer. After finishing the regular season with a shutout, Grametbauer blanked the Ridgebacks in both round 1 games, making 87 saves in the round. Grametbauer's shutout streak has reached over 181 minutes and at even strength extends to 205 minutes.
However, if you were to ask the business major, the Ravens success has been a team effort. Carleton has scored 4 goals in three straight games and defenceman Majid Kaddoura (Calgary, Alta.) is currently third in playoff scoring with a goal and three assists. Teammate Lukash Matthews has had a breakout postseason as well recording a goal and two assists putting him halfway to his regular season total of six points.
Only five active Ravens didn't pick up a point in round one while the team's eight goals all came from different scorers. The Ravens will need to maximize their depth if they want to be successful against the defending champions from UQTR. Simon Lafrance led all scorers in the regular season with 38 points, five ahead of Ravens forward Parker Aucoin. Lafrance's teammate Julien Tessier also hit the 30-point mark recording 10 goals and 20 assists.
The Ravens offence will need to continue it's depth if they hope to find success in the playoffs, while the Pats pack a powerful offensive punch, their star is in goal. Alexis Gravel had a sparking 15-2-1 record in the regular season while posting top-five numbers in goals against average and save percentage.
The Ravens begin the series on the road before returning home on Saturday to host the Patriotes in game 2. Puck drop for all three games is 7 pm.
GAME 1: Wednesday, Feb. 22 | 7 PM | @ UQTR - OUA.tvGAME 2: Saturday, Feb. 25 | 7 PM | Carleton Ice House - TicketsGAME 3: Sunday, Feb. 26 | 7 PM | @ UQTR - OUA.tv
Previous Meetings: 9Playoff Series Record: 1-8Last Series Win: 2019 (2-0)Last Series: 2021 (Single Game - L6-1)Largest Victory: 5-1 Feb. 25, 2012 (Game 2 at the Ice House)Largest Defeat: 8-1 Feb. 22, 2012 (Game 1 at the Colisee)Longest Game: March 3, 2013 – 4OT (114:17 minutes) Patriotes 2 – Ravens 1 at Le Colisee. UQTR goalie Marc-Antoine Gelinas stopped Carleton’s Joey West on a penalty shot at 3:33 of the third period. The four-overtime game took 114 minutes and 17 seconds to play over a span of four hours and 26 minutes. It is believed to be the longest OT in OUA men’s hockey history.
