Just 7:49 into the game, Alberta would strike first as rookie Madison Willan took an Abby Benning pass on the right side, stepped across the blue line, and ripped one high past Micklash on the blocker side to put the Pandas up 1-0! The Pandas continued to press, and they drew a penalty as Mikayla Ogrodniczuk played the body a little to aggressively at 12:50. On the ensuing power-play, Autumn MacDougall was in the right spot to bat home an Alex Poznikoff rebound at 14:06 to put Alberta up 2-0!
UBC would answer that goal, however, as a long shot from Tiffany Chiu was deflected in front by Hannah Koroll at 17:01, and UBC was down just a goal. Instead of firing up UBC, all UBC's goal did was awaken the giant as Alex Poznikoff would add another power-play goal before the end of the first period as she tipped a Kennedy Ganser shot past Micklash at 18:23 to restore the two-goal Alberta lead at 3-1.
In the second period, it was all Pandas as they dominated play. 4:10 into the frame, Regan Wright picked up the puck on the left side, skated into the zone where Kiana Machry, after escaping the penalty box, turned it into a 2-on-1 and a 4-1 game after firing home the Wright feed. Poznikoff would score another power-play goal after shoveling her own rebound past Micklash at 9:54, and Regan Wright would make it 6-1 as her backhander found its way through traffic and past Micklash at 12:44. Mercifully, UBC head coach Graeme Thomas would remove Micklash from the shooting gallery, sending Danielle Wierenga to her first Canada West action against arguably the best team in Canadian university women's hockey. Wierenga withstood the onslaught, however, and this game would remain as a 6-1 score as the teams went into the second intermission.
There would only be one goal in the third period as Kennedy Ganser's long wrist shot from the point eluded Wierenga on the right side as Alberta added another power-play marker to make it a 7-1 game. That's how this one would end as the Alberta Pandas continued their dominance within the conference with a converted touchdown against the UBC Thunderbirds. Kirsten Chamberlin recorded the win while stopping 20 shots while Tory Micklash suffered the loss after making 10 stops in 34:44 of action. For the record, Danielle Wierenga stopped eight shots in her 25:16 of action.
Highlights of this game are below!
SATURDAY: The easiest way to erase the bad taste in UBC's mouth after the Friday night hammering is to forget about it and go win on Saturday. They'd need a big effort from their defence and goaltending, but Alberta did surrender a goal on a tipped shot the night before. Could UBC use that as a way to find a weakness in this unstoppable force known as the Pandas? Tory Micklash was handed the task for UBC while Alberta came back with Halle Oswald in this game.
Unfortunately, no. They weren't even remotely close to breaking the Pandas. Just as she did on Friday, Madison Willan opened the scoring - this time on a two-player advantage - as the rookie was left wide-open at bottom of the left circle to one-time home the Alex Poznikoff feed at 9:16 to make it 1-0 Alberta. Just 41 seconds later, the extended power-play ended when Danielle Hardy's long wrist shot beat Micklash up high with traffic in front for the 2-0 lead. Alex Poznikoff made it 3-0 at 11:49 when she was left unchecked for a backdoor feed from Willan as the rookie and the sniper showed some real chemistry just four periods into the season. UBC would escape the period down three goals, but it was far from over.
Off the opening face-off of the second period, Willan and Brooklyn Tews broke into the UBC zone with Tews drawing the defender her way before feeding Willan who undressed a scrambling Micklash to make it 4-0 just eight seconds into the frame for another Pandas power-play goal. With 6:20 to play in the period, Chelsea Dearsley forced a turnover in the slot as UBC was trying to break out of their zone, and her quick wrist shot went high glove-side on Micklash to make it 5-0. That score would hold through to the intermission as UBC needed something to build upon for the final frame.
At 3:28 of the third period off a scramble in front, Autumn MacDougall's shot was tipped by Kennedy Ganser to make it 6-0, and Autumn MacDougall added another goal at 9:50 after some great passing and puck movement from the Pandas. The final score at the horn saw Alberta win by a 7-0 score. Oswald made just nine saves in recording her first shutout of the season while Micklash was under siege all night, stopping 20 shots in the loss.
Highlights of Saturday's game are below!
It would be Lethbridge who would strike first in this one as Kyra Greig fed a wide-open Tricia Van Vaerenbergh in front of Schubert who buried her first of the season at 4:27 to give the Pronghorns a 1-0 lead. Manitoba would answer back 1:03 later when Lethbridge turned the puck over to Jenai Buchanan in the slot, and her low shot beat Anderson to tie the game at 1-1. Later in the period, Manitoba would find the lead when Émilie Massé stripped a Pronghorns defender of the puck, skated into the slot, and went glove-side on Anderson at 17:47 to send Manitoba to the break with the 2-1 lead.
Lethbridge would come out of the intermission hungry once more, and they'd get their equalizer when Kirana Stocker's point shot somehow found space through traffic and past Schubert at 4:16 to tie the game at 2-2. The Pronghorns would continue to press, and they'd be rewarded minutes later when Mattie Apperson stopped a Bisons clearing attempt, and fed Madison Porter who stood all alone in front of Schubert.
An amazing goal for the Pronghorns by Madison Porter!!!!!! #gohornsgo pic.twitter.com/S42ttnpLic
— Pronghorn Athletics (@UofLPronghorns) October 5, 2019
Manitoba couldn't convert on multiple power-play opportunities in the third period, and it seemed like this may come back to haunt them. As time wound down in this game, Lethbridge had the puck deep in Manitoba's zone only to turn the puck over behind the net. The puck was wound around the boards where Massé, looking to break pressure, threw the puck towards a teammate. Unfortunately, the puck slid by the Bisons player, allowing Mikaela Reay to step up, pick up the errant pass, and deliver some heartbreak to Manitoba.
With only seconds left in the third period Mikaela Reay scores a winning goal for the Horns bringing the final score to 4-3!!!!!!!!!! #gohornsgo pic.twitter.com/UK1I3Nxmml
— Pronghorn Athletics (@UofLPronghorns) October 5, 2019
SATURDAY: After a spirited battle on Friday that was capped off by possibly the biggest goal of Mikaela Reay's career, the Pronghorns and Bisons met again on Saturday as Lethbridge looked for an opening-weekend, two-game sweep for the first time since 2015 while the Bisons looked to even their record at .500. Alicia Anderson was back in the Lethbridge net while rookie Kaitlyn Nault got the assignment for Manitoba.
The Pronghorns followed the same game plan as they did one night earlier, scoring early on the Bisons. Off a scramble in front of the Manitoba net with bodies all over the place, it would be Kianna Dietz who found the loose puck and fired it high past a sprawling Nault at 5:54 to put the Pronghorns up 1-0! Dietz was on a mission on Saturday as she came back for more at the 9:27 mark when Mila Verbicky's shot hit a body in front, and Dietz was in the right place as Nault couldn't recover in time to put Lethbridge up 2-0! Lethbridge would continue to push in the opening frame as Nault lost track of the puck among a number of players behind the net late in the period, allowing rookie Sage Sansregret to score on the wraparound at 18:54 to make it a 3-0 Pronghorns lead.
Amanda Schubert was back in the Manitoba net to start the second period as head coach Jon Rempel went with the goalie change to try and spark his team. Early in the second period, Manitoba would get one of those goals back on the power-play when Jenai Buchanan's shot deflected past Alicia Anderson, who was way out of the net, and off the end-boards right to Jordyn Zacharias who tapped the puck into the unguarded net at 1:25 to make it a 3-1 game. Lethbridge, though, would restore the three-goal lead late in the period when Eryn Johansen's low shot was picked off by Kyra Greig as she skated across the crease, and she would beat a surprised Schubert with the backhander at 16:22 to make it 4-1.
The third period saw the two netminders repel all attacks as the offence dried up between these two teams, but the damage had already been done as Lethbridge skated to the 4-1 victory! Alicia Anderson recorded her second-straight win in a 29-save effort while Kaitlyn Nault opens her Canada West career with a loss after stopping 12 shots. For the record, Amanda Schubert stopped 17 shots in 29:59 of relief.
Highlights of this game are below!
The first goal would come just six minutes in as Sophie Lalor skated off the half-boards before backhanding a pass Abby Shirley who went high over the blocker and shoulder of de Beauville to put the Huskies up 1-0 at 5:58! Cassidy Trotter would be sent off midway through the period for roughing, but Saskatchewan was unable to convert on the power-play. Through one period of play, the Huskies clung to the one-goal lead.
The second period saw the teams trade power-play chances, but neither team could solve the other's netminder. Vance and de Beauville stopped everything sent their way in the second frame, so it was off to the third period with the Huskies still leading 1-0!
No penalties were committed, but there were also no goals scored as de Beauville and Vance went save for save in the final period. The early marker scored by Shirley would hold up as the game-winner as the Saskatchewan Huskies earned the 1-0 victory! Jessica Vance earned her first win of the season with a 22-save shutout while Zoe de Beauville took the loss after stopping 21 of 22 shots she faced.
Highlights of this game are below!
SATURDAY: The Cougars looked to even their record at 1-1 after failing to score a goal the night before while Saskatchewan was trying to extend their shutout to start the season as far as possible. Both teams went with their backups as Camryn Drever got the start for the Huskies while rookie Kaitlyn Ross took the net for the Cougars!
The teams traded chances early, but it wouldn't be until late in the period that we'd see our first goal. Emma Bergesen's initial shot was stopped by Drever, but the bouncing puck was loose behind her. A mad scramble around the crease saw Anna Purschke poke the puck into the net on the right post, and Mount Royal had their first lead of the season at 15:44! The two teams would go into the break by that same 1-0 score as things settled down for the remaining four minutes of play in the period.
The second period saw one of those goals that no team ever wants to admit they did, but it happened. With a delayed penalty waiting to be called on Mount Royal, Drever headed to the bench for the extra attacker. As Saskatchewan worked the puck around the MRU zone, Morgan Willoughby fed Abby Shirley along the right half-boards before pinching into the slot area. Shirley, pressured by a couple of Cougars, went to return the pass and there was no one there to receive it! The angle that she sent the back back to the point at allowed the puck to slide all the way down the ice and into the unguarded Huskies net before defender Chelsea DeBusschere could recover as Mount Royal took a 2-0 lead on a goal credited to Daria O'Neill at 7:39! On the ensuring power-play once everything had been sorted out, Bailee Bourassa showed why she's one of the most dangerous snipers in Canada West when her half-slap shot from the top of the circle beat a screened Ross at 8:10 to make it a 2-1 game! The final ten minutes saw no additional scoring as the teams went to the second intermission with Mount Royal holding the one-goal lead!
The third period was more defensive from the Cougars' side as they looked to maintain that lead while Saskatchewan looked to tie the game. A late power-play after Tori Williams was sent off for boarding looked like the spark that Saskatchewan may need, but Anna Purschke found room behind the defence, picked up a loose puck, walked in on the breakaway, and deked forehand-backhand to beat Drever shorthanded to make it a 3-1 game! Despite pulling Drever for the final 1:08, Saskatchewan could get no closer as Mount Royal skated to the 3-1 victory! Kaitlyn Ross was solid in her first start, earning her first win by stopping 23 of 24 shots while Camryn Drever took the loss in an 18-save effort.
Highlights of this game are below!
The two teams battled through a first period where you could see players getting their legs under them. The back-and-forth action didn't yield any goals as both Roberts and Baker were good on all attmepts, but the Dinos led the way in shots with an 11-6 advantage.
The second period saw the Dinos pour on the pressure, clanking a puck off the goal post at one point, but Baker wouldn't let anything hit twine. At the other end, Roberts was less busy, but she was good when called upon as the scoreless tie continued through the second intermission with the Dinos holding a big edge in shots at 27-10!
It would be the third period where we'd lamps lit. It looked like Sara Craven had broken the deadlock early in the third, but a quick whistle kept the goose eggs intact as the two teams looked for goals. Midway though the frame, though, Craven would get another chance only to be stopped by Baker, but the rebound was swept by the netminder and into the net by Elizabeth Lang at 8:12 to put the Calgary Dinos up 1-0! That seemed to get the Dinos going as they continued to pepper Baker with shots through the final half of the frame. Sara Craven, for all of her hard work on this night, would be rewarded with a goal as she walked out of the corner and went short-side on Baker with the backhand that got past the goalkeeper to make it 2-0 with 59 seconds to play! When the horn sounded, the Dinos captured victory over the Cougars with the 2-0 score! Roberts earned her first win and first shutout of the season in a 17-save effort while Baker likely deserved a better fate than a loss after stopping 34 of 36 shots she faced.
Highlights of this game are below!
SATURDAY: The Dinos, who won just four times in regulation time last season, were looking to make up half of that number in the first weekend with a second win over the Cougars on home ice and start 2-0 for the first time since 2012! The Cougars were looking to erase the loss and even their record with a win on Saturday as they needed to break the goose egg on the scoreboard. The same two goalies we saw Friday would square off again as Calgary went with Kelsey Roberts while Regina responded with Morgan Baker.
It seemed Regina came out with a little fire under them as they generated some good chances early on, but Roberts made the saves. Just past the midway point of the game, Jaycee Magwood used a Calgary defender as a partial screen as she fired a laser of a wrist shot up and over the left shoulder of Roberts to open the scoring at 13:40 and give the Cougars their first lead of the season. That seemed to awaken the Dinos who poured on the pressure, but Baker would Help Regina take that 1-0 lead into the dressing room for the first intermission.
That Sara Craven-Elizabeth Lang combo seems to be working for Calgary because it took them 22 seconds to tie the game from the opening face-off in the second period. Craven fed Lang on a partial breakaway who went to the backhand and slid the puck by a sprawling Baker to tie the game at 1-1! Lang, it seems, likes scoring goals because she used her frame to get in front of Baker later in the period to bang home a rebound off a Chelsea Court shot that Baker couldn't smother at 7:29 for a power-play goal, and the Dinos went up 2-1. 1:06 later, Holly Reuther tore up the ice, cut to the right, and wired a wrister past Baker to the far post to make it 3-1! Regina, sensing this game slipping away, got their engines going as Paige Hubbard's breakaway chance was thwarted by Roberts, but she collected the loose puck behind the Clagary net and fed Lilla Carpenter-Boesch who found room past Roberts to make it 3-2 at 9:16! Calgary, not letting up, roared right back as Delaney Frey got loose behind the defence, took a pass, and whiffed on the backhand shot, but Sara Craven followed up and poked the puck under Baker and into the net at 9:47 to make it a 4-2 game for the Dinos! If you're doing the math, that's four goals scored in 2:18 of play!
If you're a fan of goaltending, the final ten minutes of the middle frame featured no more goals as the defensive units and netminders worked in tandem to keep the puck from finding twine. However, the four-goal outburst by the Dinos had them leading 4-2 after 40 minutes of play!
The third period was a lot like the second-half of the second period as the teams found chances, but the netminders and defensive corps did their parts in keeping the scores from increasing. After a relatively quiet 20 minutes in which there were only tow penalties called, the Dinos skated off with a second-straight victory by a 4-2 score! Roberts was solid once again in making 19 saves for the win while Baker suffered her second-straight loss in a 21-save effort.
Highlights of this game are below!
| School | Record | Points | GF | GA | Streak | Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alberta | 2-0-0-0 | 6 | 14 | 1 | W2 | @ SAS |
| Lethbridge | 2-0-0-0 | 6 | 8 | 4 | W2 | @ REG |
| Calgary | 2-0-0-0 | 6 | 6 | 2 | W2 | @ UBC |
| Mount Royal | 1-1-0-0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | W1 | @ MAN |
| Saskatchewan | 1-1-0-0 | 3 | 2 | 3 | L1 | vs ALB |
| Manitoba | 0-2-0-0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | L2 | vs MRU |
| Regina | 0-2-0-0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | L2 | vs LET |
| British Columbia | 0-2-0-0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | L2 | vs CAL |
The Last Word
It was an interesting opening weekend as the team everyone thought would dominate the conference showed just how good they are against UBC, two teams who missed the playoffs are 2-0, two teams who hosted playoff games are 0-2, and the two teams who might be the most similar in terms of how they're built played to 1-1 records against one another.Alberta can almost wrap up first-place in the conference this week if they can take two from the Huskies in Saskatchewan. Mount Royal, who I picked to host a playoff game this season as a top-four team, can really put Manitoba in jeopardy by taking a pair of games in Manitoba, and we'll see if Calgary is for real as they travel to Vancouver to play a team who wants to erase the embarrassment of consecutive games where a converted touchdown was scored on them in UBC. Lethbridge, who didn't fare well on the road, gets a chance to keep up with the favorites if they can win in Regina, so this week has all the makings of a dramatic week in Canada West women's hockey!
Make sure you get down to your local campus and support these teams - both the men and women. If you can't, tune in on Canada West TV where Kyleigh Palmer and I will feature a full 30-minute pregame show this week as we set you up for the action between Mount Royal and Manitoba from Wayne Fleming Arena. We're only one week into the season, and it's already looking like it's going to be a good one!
Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!
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