The Rundown - Canada West Final

There was one series left in the Canada West season as the Catherwood Cup and the Canada West championship banner needed to be awarded to one team from the two left standing as the fourth-seeded Mount Royal Cougars traveled to Edmonton to meet the top-seeded Alberta Pandas. The three-game series would determine who held the higher seed at the U SPORTS National Championship in Charlottetown, PEI as well as both teams had already qualified for the tournament by way of making it to the Canada West Final. Let's see which team will have a new tapestry hanging in its rink next season on this edition of The Rundown!

Mount Royal found itself in the final after sweeping the fifth-seeded Regina Cougars in the quarterfinals and winning a tight three-game series over second-seeded Calgary Dinos that needed overtime in Game Three. Alberta received a bye in the quarterfinal for finishing as the first-seed in the conference, and dispatched the sixth-seeded UBC Thunderbirds in the semifinal in two games following a pair of overtime wins.

Alberta had Alex Poznikoff back in the lineup after she sat in the press box in Game Two against UBC as Regan Wright was out of the lineup in this game. Mount Royal made no changes from their lineup that got to the final. Kaitlyn Ross got the start for the Cougars while Kirsten Chamberlin was standing in the crease for the Pandas.

The opening period at Clare Drake Arena started off a little odd considering it was Mount Royal who came out shooting when it's normally Alberta who overwhelms their opposition. Despite the early shots, Chamberlin kept everything out as the game began to settle down in the Pandas' defensive zone. As we approached the midway point, the shots had began to even out. The Pandas would strike first as they got their legs under them as Madison Willan found room past Ross at 14:14 to make it a 1-0 game in favour of Alberta! The Cougars would get a power-play seconds after the goal was scored, but they would come up empty as they game went into the intermission with Alberta up 1-0 on the scoreboard and leading 7-6 in shots.

The second period felt more like a Pandas-at-home game as their offensive game really started to roll. An early power-play from a late penalty in the first period allowed Alberta to get their offence going, but they wouldn't score. A second advantage went unsuccessful as well, but a third opportunity seven minutes into the period saw the Pandas' lethal power-play solve the Cougars. Off a goalmouth scramble, Kennedy Ganser poked a puck under Ross from the left post back into the slot area, and Autumn MacDougall cleaned up the front of the net as she buried the puck at 8:07 to put the Pandas up 2-0! With the remainder of the period played at 5-on-5, there were no additional goals scored, but it was clear the ice had been tilted towards the MRU end. At the end of 40 minutes, Alberta held a 2-0 lead and was up 15-7 in shots.

Everything came unraveled for the Cougars in the early portion of the third period as Kelsey Tangjerd's shot from the slot over Ross' glove at 2:49 made it 3-0. Seconds after an Alberta power-play expired, Cayle Dillon's point shot was tipped in front by Kennedy Ganser as it got past Ross at 5:47, and Alberta was out in front by a 4-0 lead. That goal prompted Mount Royal head coach to make a goaltending change as Zoe de Beauville replaced Ross in the MRU net, but it didn't seem to slow Alberta's momentum as they went back to the power-play minutes later and found twine again. Alex Gowie's shot from the left face-off dot was stopped by de Beauville, but the rebound landed in the traffic in front where Abby Benning found the it and fired it past de Beauville at 9:32 for the power-play goal to make it 5-0 Alberta.

15 seconds after surrendering the fifth goal, the Cougars may have caught the Pandas taking their foot off the gas pedal. Jayden Thorpe curled off the half-boards to the top of the right circle, and her wrist shot found its way through traffic and past Chamberlin on the glove side to snap the shutout in making this a 5-1 game. That goal seemed to perk up the defensive game for the Pandas as they wanted to see zero semblance of a comeback, and they would shut down this game for the remainder of the period. When the final horn sounded, Alberta had earned the 5-1 victory over the Cougars. Kirsten Chamberlin won her third game of the playoffs with a 13-save effort while Kaitlyn Ross took the loss after making 15 saves in 45:47 of action. For the record, Zoe de Beauville made five stops in her 14:13 of action.

Alberta leads the best-of-three series 1-0!

Highlights of this game are below!

After falling behind in their semifinal series against Calgary, the Mount Royal Cougars has their backs against the wall once again as they needed a win to force Game Three. The Pandas were looking to close out the series and capture their 14th Canada West championship. With the storylines clearly established, Kaitlyn Ross and Kirsten Chamberlin took to their respective nets in Game Two.

Mount Royal looked a lot tighter defensively as they looked to slow down the potent Alberta offence in the early goings of this period by clearing rebounds and tying up sticks. The Pandas were looking to score early and put the pressure on the Cougars as they had early chances, and they'd find their pay day eight minutes in on the power-play. Lindsay Weech's low shot from the point was tipped in front by Alex Poznikoff, and the puck got by Ross with the deflection at 9:59 for the power-play goal as Alberta took the 1-0 lead! Alberta would get a second power-play chance in the frame, but the Cougars were able to kill that opportunity. The few shots that Mount Royal put on Chamberlin were turned aside by the netminder, and we'd go into the intermission with Alberta up a goal and leading 9-5 in shots.

The second period saw Alberta run into some penalty trouble in the top half of the second period, but their penalty-killing units were sharp in killing off both MRU advantages. The bottom half of the period saw Mount Royal return the favour of a couple of power-plays, but they too were efficient in killing off the pair of Alberta advantages. With no goals in the frame, Alberta took the one-goal lead into the third period with a 15-10 lead in shots.

With 20 minutes left on their championship dreams, you knew Mount Royal was going to bring every ounce of effort they had in the third period. Comparably, Alberta was likely going to play full shutdown mode for the final 20 minutes as they looked to celebrate another championship. Mount Royal did bring the heat, but it was Chamberlin and the Alberta defence who withstood the early storm. MRU was whistled for a penalty with nine minutes to play, and Willan found room between the post and Ross at 12:42 for the power-play goal and a 2-0 lead for the Pandas. The final seven minutes were desperation hockey for the Cougars, but the Pandas' defensive play was suffocating on all attempts. When the final horn sounded, the Pandas earned their 14th Canada West with the 2-0 victory over the Mount Royal Cougars. Kirsten Chamberlin was perfect on the 17 shots she faced for her fourth win and third shutout of these playoffs while Kaitlyn Ross was on the losing end of a 15-save effort.

Alberta wins the series 2-0 and wins their 14th Canada West Championship!

Highlights of this game are below!

There are no more games in Canada West, but there will be more games for both Alberta and Mount Royal as they'll head to Charlottetown, PEI as the Canada West representatives at the U SPORTS National Women's Hockey Championship that can be seen on the CBC Streaming Apps. As it stands, six teams have already qualified, so here's how the field looks at this moment.

We'll know who the second OUA team will be after today as Ryerson and Toronto play tonight with Toronto looking for a second-straight trip to Charlottetown while Ryerson is looking to book first date at Nationals in the program's history. In the AUS, the SMU-StFX series starts on Tuesday, and we could know who the eighth and final team is by Thursday in terms of who will round out the field. If a third game is needed in the AUS Final, we would know by next Saturday who the final team is.

The Last Word

Based on the rankings that were published by U SPORTS on February 25, there seems to be a few configurations available depending on who wins the OUA and who wins the AUS. What is certain is that it seems like Alberta will either be the second-seed or third-seed depending on how Toronto finishes their season. If they win, Alberta is third; if Toronto loses, Alberta is likely second.

If Saint Mary's beats StFX in the AUS Final, it's likely they will be the top-seeded team in the tournament after they were ranked as the top team in U SPORTS women's hockey on Tuesday. There's a cautionary tale to be told here, though, as the AUS has struggled at the National Championship with St. Thomas, UPEI, Saint Mary's, and StFX going a combined 2-8 in quarterfinal games since the format changed to eight teams in 2015, so having the top-ranked team at the tournament could be a double-edged sword in that they come in as the best team, but still need to play like they are the best team. At the last three nationals, AUS teams are 0-for-6 in quarterfinal games, so they've been out of medal contention before the weekend even starts.

As for everything else, McGill will likely end up as the third- or fourth-seeded team after sweeping Montreal to win the RSEQ championship. The OUA champion outside of Toronto - either York or Ryerson - would be slotted in as the fourth-seeded team if the Varsity Blues lose tonight, or possibly as the third-seeded team depending on how the AUS Final ends. However, I see the two AUS teams ranked higher than both York and Ryerson regardless of who wins, so the OUA winner that isn't named Toronto would almost assuredly be the fourth-ranked team.

What matters here is that four teams will head back to Charlottetown after playing there last season as Alberta, McGill, and Montreal all competed there with the host team from UPEI. If Toronto wins tonight, they'd be the fifth team to return to Charlottetown in back-to-back years. Having York replace Guelph, Mount Royal replace Manitoba, and one of StFX or Saint Mary's replace St. Thomas means that there will be an element of unknown heading into this tournament with none of the six confirmed teams nor any of the four teams still in the hunt being an obvious powerhouse.

Congratulations to the six teams who have already qualified, and a big congrats to the Alberta Pandas on their 14th Catherwood Cup! To the Mount Royal Cougars, your journey on this magical season doesn't end here, so make sure you regroup, get yourself set for what will be a whirlwind tournament, and get out to PEI and break some hearts! The Rundown will be back next weekend with a full U SPORTS National Championship preview and predictions, so make sure you tune in for that!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!