The Concordia men’s hockey team picked up 19 wins and 40 points in 28 games making the 2016-17 regular season the best in more than 30 years for the Stingers.
So what are head coach Marc-André Élement’s thoughts on the success? Well this week, he’s not interested in talking about it. “It’s in the past,” he says.
Round 1 of the OUA playoffs starts tonight at 7:30 p.m. with Concordia in Oshawa, Ont. to face the UOIT Ridgebacks. Élement and his Stingers have no time to pat themselves on the back. Instead they are determined to extend their season starting with the best-of-three series with the Ridgebacks.
“Discipline is the key – on the ice and with the game plan,” says the head coach. “We are playing a good team. We have to focus on playing our game and on what we have to do to be successful. UOIT is fast and always in your face. Again we have to be disciplined.”
Concordia finished second in the 10-team OUA East division with a 19-7-2 record, while the Ridgebacks wrapped up the season in seventh place with a 16-11-1 record.
The Stingers won both regular season matchups between the teams – 4-3 on Nov. 18 and 5-4 on Dec. 2.
Game 2 of the series will be held on Concordia’s Loyola campus Friday at 7:30 p.m. Game 3, if necessary, is slated for Saturday at 7:30 p.m., also at Loyola.
Élement promises his Stingers will be pulling out all the stops to win before the home crowd.
“Fans will see a dynamic team with a lot of energy,” he said. “We have a group of players who are really excited to be in the playoffs and who want to win for their school.”
The Ed Meagher Arena on the Loyola campus is located at 7200 Sherbrooke St. W. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students/seniors.Series
Schedule:
- Game 1 — Wednesday, Feb. 15 – 7:30 p.m. Concordia at UOIT
- Game 2— Friday, Feb. 17 - 7:30 p.m. UOIT at Concordia
- Game 3 — Saturday, Feb. 18 – 7:30 p.m. UOIT at Concordia (if necessary).
Webcasts:
- Wednesday – OUA.tv
- Friday and Saturday - https://portal.stretchinternet.com/cumo or OUA.tv
