The No. 10 nationally-ranked York University Lions men's hockey team wrapped up the regular season on Friday night with a 5-2 victory over the RMC Paladins at Canlan Ice Sports.
 
After a scoreless first period, the Lions scored two goals just eight seconds apart early in the second period to take a 2-0 lead. Trevor Petersen (Thornhill, Ont.) opened the scoring at 5:42 after Greg Milner (Watford, Ont.) passed the puck to the front of the net and he slapped it home.
 
Just moments later Petersen was at it again, assisting on Colton Vannucci's (High River, Alta.) tally. Team captain Shayne Rover (Newmarket, Ont.) assisted on both goals, and the Lions carried the 2-0 advantage into the final frame.
 
The Paladins made things interesting early in the third when John Livingston scored on a power play less than six minutes in to cut the lead to one. Less than one minute later, the Lions stretched their lead to two again on a goal by rookie Daniel Nikandrov (Richmond Hill, Ont.). That cushion was short-lived, however, as the Paladins responded again courtesy of Bruce Hornbrook, who scored at 7:22 to make the score 3-2 in favour of the home team.
 
The Lions held on to their lead for the next several minutes and finally got an insurance marker at 13:45 on a goal by Derek Sheppard (Ajax, Ont.), his 12^th of the season.
 
Rookie Scott Feser (Red Deer, Alta.) added another late in the contest to round out the scoring, and the Lions picked up their 18^th win of the season to finish 18-6-4 on the year and in second place in the OUA West Division.
 
Rover added another assist on Nikandrov's goal for a three-point night, while Petersen also had three points with a pair of assists to go with his goal.
 
First-year goaltender Mack Shields (Saskatoon, Sask.) was strong in net once again, recording 25 saves and allowing just two goals for his OUA-leading 13^th victory.
 
Next up for the Lions is a first-round playoff series against the seventh seed in the division. Their opponent and the schedule will be determined after the final day of the regular season on Saturday.