Axemen fall short in 2-1 loss to Dal in exhibition

WOLFVILLE, N.S. – The Axemen opened their exhibition season with a 2-1 loss to the visiting Dalhousie Tigers.

Andrew Shewfelt, who was named the Subway First Star of the Game, scored 1:51 into the opening period on a high innocent shot that beat starting goaltender Dawson Carty over the shoulder for the early lead.

The Axemen responded at 11:14 in the first frame on a powerplay goal by Jackson Houck only eight seconds into the man advantage.

The Tigers and Axemen remained deadlocked at one through the second period. After two periods of play, the Axemen held a 24-21 shots on goal advantage.

Not until less than five minutes remaining in the period, did the Tigers score the eventual game winner. An easy feed from Mike Evelyn to Ashton Anderson gave Dalhousie the game-winning goal past Logan Fodell who split the game with Carty.

Outshooting the Tigers 36-28, the Axemen couldn't score the tying goal against Reilly Picard in the closing minute with the man advantage on the pulled goalie.

The Axemen showcased 10 new faces tonight in their exhibition season debut. Newly minted team captain Liam Maaskant was optimistic on the season to come.

"We definitely have a lot more speed and we are going to win games from pure work ethic. In years past we have had a lot of skill up front. This year we still have that skill but have that drive. I am excited about this year and it's exciting coming in," said Maaskant following the game.

The Axemen open the regular season this coming Wednesday night in Halifax against the host Dalhousie Tigers and then return home for the Friday night home opener against the StFX X-Men starting at 7 pm.

Following the home opener vs StFX, the Axemen head to the US for two exhibition games against Boston University and UMass-Lowell.