Pete Belliveau gets right to the point on the importance of this weekend to his Dalhousie Tigers.
“It’s our biggest weekend in six years,” said the second-year head coach of Dalhousie’s men’s hockey team. “We control our own destiny … We can make the playoffs, and it’s a known fact, we haven’t made the playoffs in six years.”
The Tigers, 8-14-4, are sixth in Atlantic University Sport with 20 points, one point ahead of the Moncton Aigles Bleus and four points ahead of the St. Thomas Tommies. They don’t have tiebreakers over either of those teams, meaning they need victories and need them badly to make the cut.
The Tigers are on the road against the P.E.I. Panthers on Friday and the nationally top-ranked New Brunswick Varsity Reds — who are an astonishing 26-0 — on Saturday.
If Dal gets in, a playoff matchup with the third-place Saint Mary’s Huskies would likely be waiting for them. The two teams haven’t met in the playoffs since the 2002 AUS final.
“Honestly, I couldn’t care less about who we play,” Belliveau said bluntly.
“Just give us a playoff spot.”
