The AQ men's hockey team took the ice for the first time in 18 days tonight (Dec. 1) at Southside Ice Arena. The Saints looked like they never missed a beat, picking up a 5-1 victory at home. Darren Johnson had a huge game, scoring two goals and an assist. Max Johnston took his place in the net, picking up the win with 36 saves.

The Saints started off the game with a bang, scoring a goal four minutes and 41 seconds into the first period. Alex Klekotka tucked the puck away, scoring his fourth goal of the season. The goal was assisted by Brandon Rozema and Luke Richesin. The scoring in the first period didn't stop there, with Johnson scoring an unassisted goal just two and a half minutes later at 12:41 in the period. 32 seconds later, the Knights got in trouble, giving Aquinas a powerplay with a two-goal lead. That lead became three goals just over a minute later, with Johnson putting another shot into the back of the net, giving him a team-leading seventh goal of the season. The goal was assisted by Christian Look, his sixth of the year.

The excitement of the first period didn't end there, as Calvin pulled a goal back at 6:46 in the first period. David Elford got called for a hooking call at the end of the first, giving Calvin the opportunity to bring the game within a goal. However, AQ killed off the powerplay opportunity to enter the locker room with a two-goal advantage.

Elford made up for his penalty at the end of the first period by scoring a goal early in the second. The goal was assisted by Johnson, giving Aquinas a commanding three goal lead. Neither team would score for the remainder of the second, but both teams had their fair share of penalties. A total of nine penalties were committed between the teams in the second period.

Aquinas would put an exclamation mark on their lead late in the third period, putting one last shot into the back of the net for a 5-1 lead. The goal was scored by Dylan Rumpke, assisted again by Look and Mike Curran.

Aquinas is now 9-4 on the season with a 7-3 WHAC conference record.

Aquinas was more efficient with its shots, as both teams had 37 shots on goal. Johnston ended the game with a 97.3% save percentage.

The Saints have a quick turnaround with another game at Southside Ice Arena on Friday (Dec. 3) against Concordia.