It wasn’t in the plan, and it wasn’t prefaced with countless interviews or polished hockey history.

But when Rick Osborne stepped behind the Wilfrid Laurier University women’s hockey bench, it was evident that there was an immediate impact on an already burdened squad.

“I had a job with guy’s hockey lined up; kind of an early retirement job and this one came up,” Osborne said, reflecting on nine years previous. “It was advertised in the Globe [and Mail] and my... Read more

It was a team they were chomping at the bit to play, but a game they wanted nothing to do with.

And it all equated to the finest display of moxie that the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks could muster. Though, the end result was tragically the same as last year’s.

A fourth-place finish in the bronze-medal game against McGill at the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) women’s hockey championships concluded one of the most dominant seasons Laurier’s women on ice have... Read more

EDMONTON, Alta - The effort, the spunk and the moxie were all present, but for the second year in a row, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks' women's hockey team just missed the podium, finishing in fourth at the national championships.

Their opponent, probably the strongest to ever play in a bronze medal match up; McGill Martlets, felled the Hawks 4-0 in Sunday's Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) bronze medal game which many speculated would be the gold medal final.

Backstopped by... Read more

EDMONTON, Alta – The No. 4 University of Prince Edward Island Panthers had the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks scoreboard watching from their phones at West Edmonton Mall on Saturday, but even the moral support offered by the number-one team in the nation wasn’t enough for the Panthers to overcome the Montreal Carabins.

The No. 6 Carabins defeated the Panthers, 4-1, on Saturday and had previously conquered the Laurier shoppers on Thursday, 6-5, to elevate the upstart Montreal team to the... Read more

EDMONTON, Alta - Rick Osborne had a choice to make after yesterday’s 6-5 upset loss to Montreal.

The head coach of the No. 1 Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks women’s hockey team could either return with starter Erika Thunder after she surrendered six goals on Thursday, or throw in Rachel Hamilton – the capable backup but one who had yet to see any Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) championship action.

Osborne chose his starter Thunder, and the Winnipeg native chose to reward... Read more

EDMONTON, Alta. - Wilfrid Laurier women's hockey goaltender Erika Thunder's return from a knee sprain wasn't as triumphant as her squad had hoped it would be.

In a shocking Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) tournament-opening loss, the No. 1 Golden Hawks suffered a devastating 6-5 collapse to the No. 6 University of Montreal Carabins.

Thunder went down during game one of the Ontario University Athletics' (OUA) final against the Western Mustangs and her first game back was as tumultuous as they... Read more

His voice has already been heard, and his debut game behind the bench was a solid 3-1 win.

But will the coaching change to bring in Randy Carlyle of the Toronto Maple Leafs be enough?

General manager Brian Burke announced early Friday morning that Ron Wilson was fired as head coach of the Leafs. His successor would be the former Anaheim Ducks coach, Carlyle.

When Wilson was fired, the Leafs sat in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, out of... Read more

“Fight on my men,” Sir Andrew said. “A little I am hurt, but not yet slain. I’ll just lie down and bleed awhile, and then I’ll rise to fight again.”

These lines from the Ballad of Sir Andrew Barton are often used as inspiration to pick your self up and continue to battle no matter how bad things get. In the case of the Toronto Maple Leafs, I really hope they have never read that poem.

It is time for... Read more

LONDON, Ont. – With yesteryear’s wringing of hands a thing of the past and after the rare taste of failure had washed out of their mouths, this had to feel good.

Perched back atop the throne they’ve so mightily kept warm for the past nine years before they were thrown off by the Queen’s Gaels in 2011, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks women’s hockey powerhouse once again rule the roost.

With a resounding, convincing and resolutely dominating 5-1 victory over... Read more

The Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks are one win away from their first Ontario University Athletics' (OUA) title since 2010 and their ninth in 11 seasons, but for the first time all year, they may have to get it done without their starting netminder.

A 4-1 win on Wednesday night allows the women's hockey Hawks to clinch the OUA banner on Saturday night in Western in the best-of-three championship series, but the Hawks to this point, are uncertain over who will... Read more

Wilfrid Laurier men’s hockey coach Greg Puhalski knew he was going to have to swallow some bitter pills this season.

Coaching a team full of rookies, having players quit the program, as well as survive a multitude of injuries, Puhalski navigated the waters of a dreadful season with patience and dignity.

But in game two of the Hawks’ series versus the hockey goliath that is the Western Mustangs, Puhalski snapped.

On what should have been a clear offside call (claim... Read more

With their varsity cohorts dropping like flies, Wilfrid Laurier women’s hockey has found themselves the last team standing (with the exception of women’s curling) in the 2012 Ontario University Athletics’ (OUA) playoffs.

They’ve already pushed themselves farther than last year’s semi-finals loss to Queen’s.

But not without their scares.

A 1-0 loss in game one of their semi-finals matchup versus Windsor had the Hawks reeling after posting 43 shots on Windsor goaltender Julia Ouroumis.

But a convincing 4-1 victory in... Read more

Julia Ouroumis had the game of her life, making 43 saves for the Ontario University Athletics' (OUA) post-season shutout for the Windsor Lancers and her squad walked out of the Waterloo Recreational Complex with a 1-0 victory on Wednesday night.

The No. 1 Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks relinquished the lead just over 18 minutes into the OUA semi-finals game when Kayla Dodson of the Lancers blasted a shot from the blueline that found its way past Laurier goaltender Erika Thunder.

St. CATHARINES, Ont. - The road is set as the Wilfrid Laurier women’s hockey team clinched their Ontario University Athletics' (OUA) quarterfinal series against the Brock Badgers Saturday night.

In a physical meeting between the eighth-seeded Badgers and the No.1 ranked Golden Hawks, Laurier swept the series two games to none in a 5-1 contest.

Blair Connelly would score two goals including the game winner in the match while Erika Thunder recorded the victory with 16 saves.

With the win,... Read more

It’s been a roller coaster season for the Wilfrid Laurier men’s hockey team, and on Saturday it came to an end in the exact same fashion.

In a tightly contested affair between the eighth-seeded Golden Hawks and the number one seeded Western Mustangs, the Hawks fell 2-1 in a controversial ending.

“I think we deserved a better fate,” said Hawks captain Kyle Van De Bospoort. “A couple calls one way or the other way, a post here a post there... Read more

She's not the most unlikely player to notch the team's first marker of the post-season with eight goals on her campaign this year, but Devon Skeats' tally might have just saved the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks from an opening night scare.

The third-year Whitby native and team jokester got the Hawks rolling in a 4-2 win over the Brock Badgers to open the Ontario University Athletics' conference quarterfinals with a gorgeous if not inspirational goal just nine minutes into the... Read more

In their third-best ever season, the No.1 Wilfrid Laurier University women’s hockey team proved why they were a force to be reckoned with.

With back-to-back wins against the Brock Badgers and Guelph Gryphons, the Golden Hawks closed out their season on the weekend, finishing with a near-perfect record of 25-0-1.

Finishing on a 14-game winning streak, the Hawks clinched first-place overall in the Ontario University Athletics’ (OUA) standings with 51 points, 13 points ahead of the second place Gryphons.

As... Read more

The Western Mustangs don’t scare the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks.

The big bad hockey team from London, ranked third in Canada, have proven themselves to be mere mortals in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) circuit with two uncharacteristic losses to end the season.

The Mustangs’ 2-1 loss versus York and a 9-5 shootout defeat at the hands of the bottom-ranked University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks are two more signs that the Hawks can use to signal the... Read more

Although the men’s hockey team may not have had their best season (9-17-2), that’s not to say there haven’t been some standout players on the rink.

When people think of the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks, the defence can sometimes be overlooked, but that is exactly where you’ll find veteran Zack Shepley.

Currently in his third year with the team, Shepley brings some much needed experience to the blue-line for the struggling team, largely aided by his four years in the... Read more

Mitchell Good has a reserve of talent that he likes to use.

There are just certain moments that are more appropriate than others.

"When you get up 2-0 like that, you have a little bit of confidence in yourself to maybe do some of the plays that you wouldn't do against Western or maybe Lakehead," said the third-year Wellesley native.

Good had a goal and an assist in the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks' latest 3-1 victory over the York Lions.