Manitoba Moose

MANITOBA SWEEPS TWO-GAME SET IN ABBOTSFORD

By Christina Caligiuri

For the second night in a row and fifth time this season the Moose beat the Abbotsford Heat – last night by a 3-0 decision in front of a sold out crowd at the Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre. Mathieu Schneider scored his first-ever goal in antlers while Guillaume Desbiens netted his seventh and eighth of the season. Starting goaltender Cory Schneider was flawless making 34 saves for his third shutout this campaign.

Abbotsford’s Garth Murray drew an interference penalty a mere 32 seconds into the matchup. Mathieu Schneider connected on the powerplay and on the first shot of the night. With a pass from Evan Oberg, the veteran defenceman fired a one-timer from the short side to take the lead at 47 seconds. 

Moments later Garth Murray bumped Travis Ramsey into starting goaltender Cory Schneider. Rough and tumble forward Tommy Maxwell rushed Murray to brawl, in the process earning himself an instigating minor. The Moose killed-off the two-minute disadvantage and the clubs were back at even strength.

Guillaume Desbiens benefited off a defensive slip up by the Heat at the 10-minute mark. A giveaway in their own zone allowed Desbiens to go one-on-one with goaltender Matt Keetley and he came out victorious to put his club up by a pair of goals.

Back-to-back fights in the second period showed just how much tension there was between the two North Division rivals. After 40 minutes of play the Moose were leading the game 2-0 but Abbotsford was leading in the shot department 21-16.

After the puck dropped on the third period, Pierre-Cedric Labrie and Ryley Grantham squared off in the fourth fight of the evening. Both tough costumers brought early punches, but Labrie finished the fight strong bringing Grantham to his knees in his own barn. After the fight, both players were handed five-minute fighting majors.

Despite breaking the 30 shot mark, the Heat couldn’t break Cory Schneider. Abbotsford pulled their goaltender in the final minute to opt for an extra attacker. Desbiens managed to steal the puck from the home team and slide it across the ice and into the empty net to confirm the game with his second of the night, 3-0.