Jefferson Hagen
MacEwan Athletics
VANCOUVER, B.C. – The scrappy cardiac kids refused to go away even when facing a 4-0 deficit in the first period on Sunday night.
A do-or-die Game 3 seemed all but over halfway through the opening period, but somehow the MacEwan Griffins clawed back to within one, scoring three unanswered goals to get within striking distance of the UBC Thunderbirds in the dying minutes.
A stone-wall defensive display by the defending Canada West men's hockey champions proved to be the difference, denying MacEwan a miraculous comeback for a 4-3 victory that sends the T-Birds to the conference semifinals in Saskatchewan next weekend.
While the Griffins' season is over, they can go out with their heads held high after an effort that can only be described as valiant.
"I think that just sums up the group of guys that we have is that effort at the end," said Griffins head coach Zack Dailey. "We handled a lot of adversity, not just this year, but especially these graduating guys their whole careers, and it seemed like they always answered the bell. I'm really proud of the group.
"It's unfortunate that we let our emotions get the best of us for the first two periods, but I'm super proud of the guys figuring it out and making a push and trying their best at the end there."
The fact they were able to push the Thunderbirds to the limit in the series is a step forward from their first Canada West playoff experience – a 2-0 sweep at the hands of Mount Royal last February.
"Our group at the start of the year had a meeting and (concluded) that we wanted to take a step forward this year," said Dailey. "What we thought was a step was just becoming a more competitive team against the top programs. And I think we did that.
"We proved that when we're at our best we can compete with these teams, make them close games and beat teams. I think that's what we can take out of this. If we play hard, we play the right way, we play together, we're a hard team to beat regardless of who we're playing."
Carson Haynes checks Tian Rask during Sunday's game (Jacob Mallari photo).
After a 3-2 Griffins' overtime win in Game 1 on Friday, the Thunderbirds hit back with a 3-1 triumph on Saturday, setting the stage for Sunday's winner-take-all rubber match.
The home team came out firing and quickly had MacEwan under siege in the opening minutes.
Josh Williams opened the scoring 4:27 in when he cut wide around Sean Comrie and beat Griffins goaltender Brett Epp on a highlight-reel individual effort.
Just over two minutes later, Game 1 OT hero Loeden Schaufler fanned on a D-to-D pass and Tian Rask scooped up the turnover and fired it in for a 2-0 UBC advantage.
The shots were 11-0 for UBC at that point, forcing Dailey to call a timeout.
It didn't work as the Thunderbirds kept coming with Sam Huo's powerplay snipe from the left circle putting them up 3-0 8:53 into the contest. And then Jake Wright made it 4-zip with 6:59 left in the first when he one-timed Ty Thorpe's pass from behind the net past Epp.
It would have been easy for the Griffins to fold their tents after that, but their penalty kill held them in it. MacEwan was in the box for most of the second period, but Epp and his PK unit in front of him not only refused to allow another UBC tally, they scored a short-handed goal.
"Assistant coach Ryan Benn takes a lot of pride in (our PK)," said Dailey. "He had a good plan in place for this weekend and our guys executed that plan. So, I'm really proud of Ryan, really proud of our guys. When it mattered most, they came through and gave us a chance to win."
GOAL��
— MacEwan Griffins Men's Hockey (@GriffinsMHKY) February 24, 2025
Liam Ryan gets the @MacEwanGriffins on the board with a slick short-handed deke midway through the second period.
The rally starts here as it's now 4-1 for @ubctbirds in Game 3 of their @CanadaWest quarter-final.#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/KeNrDCBj1S
At the 7:13 mark, with the Griffins killing off a hooking penalty against Hunter Donohoe, Brendan Boyle cleared the puck up the wall to Liam Ryan at the far blueline, sending him in alone and he made no mistake, tucking it between Cole Schwebius' legs on a short-handed deke.
Ryan gave the 'let's go' hand motion to the bench during the celebration and it could easily be the moment that sparked an impressive rally.
"He's been an energizer bunny for us all weekend," said Dailey. "I've seen a different kid the second half of the season. He got rewarded with some time on top lines. He was an emotional leader for us this weekend, not only just with energy, but with production and physicality. So, really proud of him. We needed the spark, and he was the guy to give it to us."
GOAL��
— MacEwan Griffins Men's Hockey (@GriffinsMHKY) February 24, 2025
Liam Ryan Times Two!
The graduating senior has his second of the game, tipping Hunter Donohoe's point shot past Cole Schwebius with 14:28 left.
Buckle up, it's now 4-2 for @ubctbirds.#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/zwmfEsi1xW
Ryan himself kept the comeback attempt going when he tipped in Donohoe's point shot with 14:28 left in the third period.
An incredible Epp save with 8:02 left kept the Griffins' rally rolling as Williams found himself in alone and fired a hot point-blank shot that was denied.
What a stop by Brett Epp!
— MacEwan Griffins Men's Hockey (@GriffinsMHKY) February 24, 2025
Huge breakaway save from the @MacEwanGriffins netminder keeps them in it, down two as we head down the stretch in Game 3.#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/5eivTyVxIc
That would prove to be huge for MacEwan's efforts as Marc Pasemko brought them within one with 3:25 remaining, plucking the puck out of a powerplay scramble in front, circling the net and squeaking it past Schwebius.
GOAL��
— MacEwan Griffins Men's Hockey (@GriffinsMHKY) February 24, 2025
Griffins are within one late!
Marc Pasemko squeaks it in out of a scramble and it's 4-3 for @ubctbirds. #GriffNation pic.twitter.com/8ZhmtaXwMy
But with Epp out of the net for an extra attacker at the 1:59 mark, the Griffins couldn't find a way to break down a solid UBC defensive front and the game hit zeroes with the puck tied up in a scramble on the left faceoff dot.
Epp finished with 40 saves in his final game as a Griffin and was their best player in the series, posting a 2.65 GAA and .927 save percentage.
"He was great," said Dailey. "Things didn't go his way in the first period and it's easy to let things unravel. It just showed his mental toughness that maybe things didn't go the way he wanted them to, but he's still going to compete, he's still going to stay in there and give his team a chance to win. He shut the door there for the last two periods and did give us a chance to win.
"Without him, I don't think we would be where we're at, just in terms of closeness in the series. His play was very important for our group in our success this weekend."
Brett Epp and Cole Schwebius shake hands after the game (Jacob Mallari photo).
Along with Epp, it was the final contest of their Griffins careers for Ryan, Schaufler, Comrie, Pasemko, Donohoe, Spencer McLean and Ryley Appelt. All played a big part in the series and, although it didn't end in a win, they were the group that led the charge to the best post-season result to date for the program.
"We're going to miss them," said Dailey. "Really good people, first and foremost. They're the epitome of what it means to be a Griffins with how they treat people. A lot of those guys were the first group to take a chance on MacEwan. They were the first recruiting class that had options to go elsewhere, and they came here. They left the program in a much better spot than when they got here.
"Those guys should be very proud of the legacy they've left here and where they've left the program. Now, it's our job to continue to push the program (forward), continue to get better and make sure those guys are proud of us in the coming years."
