Box Score

Liam Brennan scored with less than three minutes left in the third to give the University of Regina's men's hockey team a 2-1 win over the Manitoba Bisons on Friday night at The Co-operators Centre.

Aaron Lewadniuk was the lone Bison to beat Cougar goalie Andrew Hayes, who stopped 27 shots while picking up his third win of the season. Tyler Penny scored the other goal for the U of R.

The first period opened with the Cougars taking a pair of early penalties. After Manitoba failed to capitalize on either opportunity, the Cougars took advantage of a power play of their own. With the Bisons' Jesse Paradis in the box for hooking, Penny picked up a loose puck in the slot and found the back of the net to open the scoring.

Manitoba struck back early in the second. Just over three minutes into the period, Lewadniuk pounced on a long flip pass, coming in on Hayes and beating him blocker side. After forty minutes the Cougars led in the shot department, 24-21.

The game remained tied until the dying minutes of the third. With just 2:43 left on the clock, Brennan shoveled another loose puck into the back of the net to give the Cougars a one-goal lead. Despite pulling goaltender Joe Caligiuri in the final minute, Manitoba could not beat Hayes and the Cougars held on for the 2-1 win.

The Cougars improve their record to 5-4-0 with the win, while the Bisons drop to 2-6-1 on the season. Meanwhile, Hayes continued his strong play in net and now sports a 3-2-0 record along with a 1.80 goals against average and a .936 save percentage.

Brody Luhning also had another strong game for the Cougars, creating a number of quality scoring chances and picking up an assist on Penny's goal in the first period.

The two teams will meet tomorrow in a rare afternoon game to wrap up the weekend series. Puck drop at The Co-operators Centre is set for 2:30 p.m.