VOYAGEURS REPEL VIKINGS FOR SECOND NIGHT IN A ROW

CAMROSE – Same opponent. Different Rink. Same result. The Portage College Voyageurs followed up an impressive 5-2 home win against Augustana on Friday night to open the regular season with an equally impressive road win against the same opponent 24 hours later. Stavros Koutsantonis, Xavier Halterman, Aidan Taylor, Tye Evens and Jake Parker scored, and Jackson Miller made 29 saves as the Voyageurs bested the Vikings by an identical 5-2 score. 

"The guys came out real hard," said Head Coach Kevin McClelland. "We were ready for them and we played a solid game."

The victory was particularly impressive given the disparity in penalties. The Voyageurs found themselves shorthanded eight times during the game but managed to kill off seven of the man advantages. Conversely, while they only had two powerplays on the night, they managed to score on one of them, the eventual game winner by Halterman early in the second period. The bench boss pointed to Miller as one of the main reasons the Vikings weren't able to pot more powerplay markers.

"Our penalty killers did a great job but you know, you've got to give a lot of credit to the goaltender in that situation," said McClelland. "He played well."

With the win, the Voyageurs are tied at the top of the ACAC standings with two other teams at 2-0. Despite the strong start, McClelland knows that his players will need to remain focused and disciplined if they want to keep rolling. He only has to point to last season, when his squad got off to the same start, only to follow it with a 15-game losing streak. After only playing Augustana in exhibition and league play so far this year, the Voyageurs now host perennial contenders SAIT back to back at the Bold Centre October 24 and 25.

"We're gonna see a different animal so hopefully these guys understand and know that we've got a lot of work to do," said McClelland.