The Rundown - Week 5

It's a wee bit different on today's edition of The Rundown thanks to Canada West having a conference bye. with no hockey action to report on, I'm going to take you around the league and highlight some articles and players that deserve a little recognition. The women that play in Canada West women's hockey are involved in all sorts of extracurricular activities, and they never get enough recognition for those efforts. Today's article will have links that take you to all sorts of new places highlighting the amazing women who make up this conference, and I'm always happy to give those efforts a real push.

Missing Teams?

Here's your U SPORTS Top Ten as of this week, and there seems to be a glaring omission considering the Canada West standings.

I get that UBC leads Canada West and is the reigning U SPORTS bronze medalists, so having them as the top-ranked team is justifiable. Alberta is the reigning U SPORTS gold medalists and they're near the top of the standings in Canada West as well, so being the second-ranked team is also justifiable. Manitoba has a veteran-laden team and is near the top of the standings as well, so being the sixth-ranked team can also be justified.

However, I find it hard to justify McGill at number-seven when they're 0-3-0 and Guelph at number-eight when they're 1-3-0. The Regina Cougars split their series against UBC and took four of six points against Alberta, and they're not ranked with a 4-2-1-1 record? The Saskatchewan Huskies split their series with Manitoba and Regina this season to sit in third-place in Canada West with a 5-2-0-1 record, and they aren't ranked? I get that the Top Ten shouldn't have five Canada West teams, but an OUA team and an RSEQ team being ranked with a combined 1-6-0 record is pretty ridiculous. Who is voting on this?

From Thunderbird To Inferno

Nice to see former UBC Thunderbird Kelly Murray doing some promotion for her new team in the CWHL Calgary Inferno!

Kelly was a dynamo on the blue line for the T-Birds, so I'm looking forward to her being a major player for the Inferno this season. If there's one player who seems to rise to the occasion, it's Kelly Murray!

Skaters To Painters

What do you do when you have a week off and need a little team bonding? If you're the Saskatchewan Huskies, you do a little pottery painting!

I've gone pottery painting before, and it's really a fun time. I imagine there were a number of hockey-related images painted onto the various pottery pieces that the Huskies painted. Perhaps one day we'll get a peek at some of the creations that the ladies made this past week!

More Than Just Support

I want to bring a little light to a great story about Manitoba Bisons captain Caitlin Fyten and how a scholarship made possible by Bisons women's hockey donors and head coach Jon Rempel brought the Alberta-born Fyten to the Manitoba capital. There is some sadness to the story regarding her father, but Fyten has been everything and more that the Bisons could want in a captain, and I feel like you can see how important she is to the Bisons with every shift she's on the ice. Well done, Caitlin, on both your accomplishments on the ice and in the classroom!

Going International

Finnish Olympian Venla Hovi will be absent from the Manitoba lineup this upcoming weekend as she'll be in Tampa Bay with the Finnish national team as they play in the annual Four Nations Cup. Hovi, who is having an outstanding season as the leading scorer in Canada West, is looking to capture another medal at the tournament after winning the bronze medal a number of times. While the tournament isn't being broadcast on television, you can catch #9 in action on Tuesday at 7pm ET against the Americans, Wednesday at 3:30pm ET against Sweden, and Friday at 3pm ET against Canada.

Hockeytv.com will carry the action via webcast, but the cost of the monthly plans are rather ridiculous when you consider that this tournament is played over a week. It's simply astounding that TSN, who is a partner of Hockey Canada, isn't covering this event, but I guess we know where women's hockey ranks in TSN's eyes.

That's what went on over the last week while the players took a week off hockey. We'll be back next week with the normal edition of The Rundown as the teams get back at it. Regina visits Manitoba; Calgary and Mount Royal will play a home-and-home in the Crowchild Classic; Alberta and Lethbridge will also do a home-and-home; and Saskatchewan visits UBC. Every point counts from this point on as teams look to establish their positioning as we inch towards the Christmas break. It should be an outstanding month of hockey, so get settled in and enjoy the action!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!