Panthers defeat Huskies 3-2, move on to semifinals

• CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. – The UPEI Panthers are moving on to the semifinals, after defeating the Saint Mary's Huskies 3-2 to sweep the best-of-three Atlantic University Sport men's hockey quarterfinal series on Friday night at MacLauchlan Arena.

UPEI opened the scoring with a powerplay goal with just over five minutes remaining in the frame, as forward Ben McFarlane (Ayr, ON) faked a shot and slid a cross-crease pass to Brett Bressette (Penetanguishene, ON) who continued his hot play, scoring his third goal of the series.

Saint Mary's nearly equalized on a two-on-one opportunity, but forward Will Chisholm (Lunenburg, NS) fired a shot off the post.

Both teams registered 10 shots in the period, and the Panthers took a 1-0 lead into first intermission.

Just over three minutes into the second period, UPEI doubled their lead with Brett Bressette scoring his second of the night and fourth of the series, giving the Panthers a 2-0 lead, 3:46 into the second.

Saint Mary's was able to answer midway through the period, as defenceman Ethan Ritchie (Oakville, ON) crashed the net, and forward Davis Cooper (Hammonds Plains, NS) capitalized on the rebound to cut the lead to 2-1, 8:29 into the second.

HUSKIES HIGHLIGHTS ��

Davis Cooper scores to cut the Panthers lead to 2-1 midway through the second period.

��D. Cooper (1)
��C. Trenholm pic.twitter.com/J76eOIVQV3

— Saint Mary's Huskies (@SMUHuskies) February 21, 2026

But with under a minute remaining in the period, the Panthers were on the powerplay when forward Donovan Arsenault (Richmond, PEI) threw a backhand on goal from an awkward angle, that snuck past Vandenberg to extend UPEI's lead to 3-1.

The Huskies outshot the Panthers 16-13 in the second period, but UPEI took a 3-1 lead into second intermission.

HUSKIES HIGHLIGHTS ��

Marcus Vandenberg with a couple great saves to shut down the Panthers powerplay! pic.twitter.com/7wwNrelg4N

— Saint Mary's Huskies (@SMUHuskies) February 21, 2026

Saint Mary's pushed to cut into the Panthers lead in the third period, outshooting the hosts 16-5, but Jakob Robillard made several fantastic saves.

The Huskies finally got one back with just over six minutes remaining, as forward Connor Trenholm (Cole Harbour, NS) received the puck behind the net and fed a great pass to Dylan Andrews (Cole Harbour, NS) who beat Robillard for his second goal of the series, cutting the lead to 3-2, 13:53 into the third period.

HUSKIES HIGHLIGHTS ��

Dylan Andrews scores to cut the Panthers lead to 3-2 late in the third period.

��D. Andrews (2)
��C. Trenholm
��L. Arnsby pic.twitter.com/vh9NbSIT5N

— Saint Mary's Huskies (@SMUHuskies) February 21, 2026

But Robillard stood tall down the stretch, turning away all of the Huskies attempts, and the Panthers held on for the series clinching 3-2 victory.

The Huskies outshot the Panthers 42-28 on the night, but UPEI goaltender Jakob Robillard was outstanding, turning away 40/42 shots faced on his way to Boston Pizza Player of the Game honours, while Marcus Vandenberg made 25 saves in defeat.

With the win, the Panthers advance to the AUS semifinal, where they will face either the #1 seed UNB REDS or #2 seed Moncton Aigles Bleus.

The Huskies season isn't over as they'll host the 2026 U SPORTS University Cup Championships, which will be played March 19-22 at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax. GET TICKETS

Recap by Allan April / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics
Photos by Janessa Vanden Broek / UPEI Panthers Athletics