Valade's overtime winner lifts Huskies to 2-1 win over Aigles Bleus

HALIFAX, NS- Huskies forward Reid Valade scored the game-winning goal 42 seconds into overtime to lift Saint Mary's to a 2-1 win over the Moncton Aigles Bleus on Friday night at the Dauphinee Centre in Halifax.

The Huskies found themselves on the powerplay in the first minutes of play. Huskies captain Declan McDonnell (Buffalo, NY) looked to tap in a rebound, but it hit the post.

Moments later, forward Derek Gentile (Sydney, NS) fired a shot on the net, but Aigles Bleus netminder Olivier Adam (Drummondville, QC) made the pad save.

The Aigles Bleus successfully killed off their penalty. Building on the shift in momentum, forward Alexis Arsenault (Cowansville, QC) had a partial breakaway, but it was stopped by Huskies goaltender Justin Sumarah (Halifax, NS).

With six minutes played in the first period, the teams took coincidental penalties, resulting in two minutes of four-on-four play. Utilizing the open ice, Aigles Bleus Jonathan Desrosiers (Dieppe, NB) let one go from the slot, but Sumarah made the save.

Halfway through the period, Huskies forwards Nathan Dunkley (Campbellford, ON) and Jake Uberti (Toronto, ON) did a give-and-go play; Uberti's shot from outside the crease arched over the pad, but Moncton's goalie Adam managed to glove it down.

At under halfway to go in the first, the Huskies headed onto the penalty kill. The Huskies again fended off the Aigles Bleus offense, killing their penalty.

In the final minutes of play in the period, the Huskies headed back onto the penalty kill. The Aigles Bleus, keeping up their pressure, had a slew of chances, notably forward Michael Horth's (Ste-Catherine, QC) shot from down low, but Huskies goaltender Sumarah stood firm.

Seconds after the Huskies killed their penalty off, they headed onto the powerplay to close out the period.

The Aigles Bleus outshot the Huskies 10-7 in the first period, a scoreless first period heading into the intermission.

The Huskies started the second period on the powerplay, but the Aigles Bleus defence shut them down, resulting in few opportunities for the Huskies. 

Moments after their powerplay on a rush, Huskies forward Reid Valade (Caledon, ON) fired a shot from the top of the circle that hit the crossbar, teammate Dennis Busby (Oro-Medonte, ON) got his stick on the rebound, finding the back of the net, to take the lead for the Huskies, 2:06 into the second period.

HUSKIES HIGHLIGHTS ��

Dennis Busby scores on the two-on-one to give the Huskies a 1-0 lead early in the second period!

��D. Busby (5)
��R. Valade
��C. Ralph pic.twitter.com/09Ym2TpqvJ

— Saint Mary's Huskies (@SMUHuskies) October 18, 2024

Looking to use their powerplay to tie the game, the Aigles Bleus had a few opportunities, with forward Jérémy Michel (Lévis, QC) firing a low shot through traffic, but Huskies netminder Sumarah made the pad save. The Huskies killed off their penalty and stormed back to offensive control.

With just over eight minutes to go in the second period, the Huskies headed onto the powerplay, looking to extend their lead. However, the Aigles Bleus penalty kill remained strong, keeping the Huskies to a shotless powerplay.

In an action-packed final five minutes of the period, the Aigles Bleus had a powerplay opportunity. On a regroup attempt,  Huskies forward Connor Trenholm (Cole Harbour, NS) jumped a puck for a breakaway chance, trying to get around the left pad of Aigles Bleus' goalie, but Adam made the save.

Following that opportunity, the Huskies had a three-on-one chance, but a sliding Aigles Bleus Simon Maltais (Moncton, NB) stopped a pass on Charlie Da Fonseca (Thornhill, ON), and Aigles Bleus netminder Adam making the save on Ben Allison (Halifax, NS).

Seconds later, in a flurry of offensive chances, Huskies Valade and Bradey Johnson (Lindsay, ON) had opportunities on a wide-open net but couldn't find the back of the net.

The Huskies outshot the Aigles Bleus 13-4 in the second period, leading 1-0 heading into the second intermission.

Coming out of the intermission strong, the Huskies had strong chances, with Johnson firing a shot from the slot and Will Thompson (Fredericton, NB) with a shot in close off of a rebound, but Adam made the saves. 

Shifting the momentum, the Aigles Bleus pinned the Huskies in their zone, with chances from Michael Cyr (Sainte-Anne, NB) and Jacob Dion (Sherbrooke, QC).

Halfway through the period, Aigles Bleus forward Jeremy Lapointe (Drummondville, QC) capitalized on a rebound from teammate Denis Toner's (Lévis, QC) shot from defense to tie the game 1-1, with 9:59 remaining in regulation.

The teams traded penalties, deadlocked in a defensive battle as the period ticked down the final minutes of the third period, and as the teams were tied 1-1, they headed into overtime.

The Aigles Bleus outshot the Huskies 15-11 in the third period. The teams were tied 1-1 as they headed into the overtime intermission.

Less than a minute into overtime, Cedric Ralph made a pass to spring Valade had a breakaway and fired a shot five-hole to win the game for the Huskies.

HUSKIES HIGHLIGHTS ��

HUSKIES WIN! Reid Valade with the overtime winner as the Huskies defeat the Aigles Bleus 2-1 in overtime!

��R. Valade (3)
��C. Ralph pic.twitter.com/uoqJWEoKRx

— Saint Mary's Huskies (@SMUHuskies) October 19, 2024

Reid Valade was named Player of the Game, with the winning goal and an assist on the night, while his linemate Ralph had a pair of assists.

Huskies goaltender Justin Sumarah made 28 saves for the win, while Olivier Adam turned away 29 shots in defeat. 

The Huskies win improves their record to 4-1-0 on the season. Saint Mary's will be back on home ice tomorrow, hosting the U SPORTS #1 ranked UNB REDS (5-0-0) on Saturday night at 7 p.m. at the Dauphinee Centre. GET TICKETS

The Aigles Bleus loss drops their record to 3-2-0 on the campaign will continue their road trip on Saturday, visiting the Acadia Axemen (2-3-0) in Wolfville at 7 p.m.

Recap by Alyson Duffy / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics
Photos by Mona Ghiz / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics