The Dinos and T-Birds started off by trading chances in the opening frame as both teams decided to test the other's goaltender, but both Roberts and Micklash were having none of that in the first period. Despite a pair of power-play opportunities for the Dinos, no goals were recorded in the opening frame that saw UBC hold a slight edge in shots at 9-8.
The second period saw UBC come out firing on all cylinders as they peppered Kelsey Roberts with shots only to be denied on all opportunities. While the Dinos only managed a handful of shots, Micklash was perfect on those as well. Despite seeing UBC outshoot Calgary 10-4 in the period, the score remained 0-0 through 40 minutes.
In the third period, Delaney Frey was sent to the penalty box for interference, and that's where UBC would strike! Chanreet Bassi would fire the puck on net of which Roberts only got a piece, and the puck slid into the net behind her as Bassi scored her first goal as a Thunderbird on the power-play at 7:30 to put UBC up 1-0! Things were looking good for the T-Birds as time wound down, and the Dinos would press late with the extra attacker on the ice. That pressure would turn out well for the Dinos as they forced a turnover behind the net and Delaney Frey made up for her earlier miscue as she wrapped the puck around the net and under Micklash with eight seconds to play to tie the game at 1-1! It was off to overtime to try and settle this game!
Things didn't start well for the Dinos as Paige Michalenko was whistled for hooking just 26 seconds into the extra period, but the Dinos would survive the scare. The four-on-four overtime period would end without a goal, so we'd move to the second overtime period!
The Dinos would follow their game plan as they put the puck in deep, won a puck battle along the boards that allowed Elizabeth Lang to corral the loose biscuit, and she stepped out in front of Micklash and went high over the stick-side shoulder of Micklash at 3:14 to pick up the second point as the Calgary Dinos downed the UBC Thunderbirds 2-1 in double-overtime! Roberts picked up the extra-time win after making 36 saves while Micklash suffered the OT loss in a 22-save effort.
Highlights of this game are below!
SATURDAY:While UBC gained their first point this season, they still stood winless on the season so Saturday's game on home ice was a big one for the T-Birds. Calgary, meanwhile, looked to continue their winning streak as they still hadn't lost this season. Kelsey Roberts started this game for the Dinos while Tory Micklash started her fourth-straight game for the T-Birds.
Like the game on Friday, the first period had chances, but none found the twine inside the net. Roberts was busy as UBC came out shooting in this one, but she held the fort for the Dinos. Through one period of play that saw UBC lead 10-4 in shots, the score remained 0-0.
The second period would open with a quick goal as the Dinos couldn't clear the zone, and Tiffany Chiu picked up the loose puck and fired a long wrister that eluded Roberts just 21 seconds into the frame as UBC jumped ahead 1-0! With five minutes left in the period, the Dinos were on the power-play when Mikayla Ogrodniczuk escape the sin bin, took a long stretch pass from Ashley McFadden, and broke in alone on Roberts before going top-corner on the glove side to make it a 2-0 game in favour of the T-Birds! Through 40 minutes, the two-goal lead would stand with UBC holding a 19-14 edge in shots.
The third period was played without much incident as UBC had a pair of power-plays to Calgary's lone power-play opportunity in the frame. Hannah Koroll would find the open net with Roberts on the bench for the extra attacker with 1:23 to play, and UBC would record their first regulation win of the season in the 3-0 victory over Calgary. Tory Micklash was sensational in posting her first win and shutout on a 22-save effort while Kelsey Roberts suffered her first loss of the season despite stopping 25 shots.
Highlights of this game are below!
In the opening period, the home side was energized by their crowd and by playing their first game at home as Regina peppered Anderson with shots, but the Lethbridge netminder denied all chances. Just past the midway point of the period, however, Morgan Baker misplayed a puck behind her net that allowed Mikaela Reay to wrap it around the post before Baker to recover, and the Pronghorns grabbed the 1-0 lead. No other pucks would find twine before the horn, so Lethbridge took that lead into the middle frame.
In the second period, a penalty to Lethbridge would give the Cougars the opportunity they needed as Jaycee Magwood used her body to protect the puck as she skated it to the top of the zone before dropping it to Tamara McVannel. McVannel's long wrist shot was tipped in front of Anderson by Melissa Zerr, and that puck would find the back of the net for the power-play marker to make it a 1-1 game at 8:58. Three minutes later off a dump-in by Lethbridge, a turnover behind the Regina net would be centered by Alli Borrow, and Eryn Johansen's one-timer found room past Baker at 12:45 to put Lethbridge back up by a goal. 1:21 after that, a weak clearing attempt by Lethbridge landed on the stick of Martina Maskova, and her initial shot was stopped but Lilla Carpenter-Boesch was in the right place for the rebound, and we were tied 2-2 with 5:54 to play in the frame.
We weren't done with the goals just yet because Lethbridge would strike twice before the close of the middle stanza. Madison Porter's circle of the net saw her throw the puck through the crease where it was tapped home by Kianna Dietz on the far post at 17:41 to make it 3-2 for Lethbridge. Just 1:57 after that goal and with 22 seconds left in the period, a face-off was won in the defensive zone by Regina, but Alli Borrow beat everyone to the puck in the corner and centered it to a wide-open Kyra Greig who beat Baker up high on the stick side for the 4-2 Pronghorns lead through 40 minutes.
The third period would feature far less scoring, although Sage Sansregret would record her second goal of the season with 1:14 to play into the empty net as Lethrbidge skated to the 5-2 victory over the Regina Cougars! Alicia Anderson records her third win of the season on a 23-save night while Baker made 16 stops in the loss.
Highlights are below!
SATURDAY: With Lethbridge and Regina sitting nine points apart in the standings, there was some concern that a fourth loss for Regina couple with a fourth win for Lethbridge could be trouble for the Cougars, even this early in the season, when it comes to competing for playoff spots. Regina needed a win while Lethbridge looked to continue their amazing start to this 2019-20 season. Alicia Anderson was back in the nets for the the Pronghorns in her fourth-straight start while Morgan Baker got the call for Regina once again.
The opening goal in this game would come thanks to two Cougars sitting in the penalty box as the Pronghorns went to work on the power-play. With the Cougars playing a tight triangle, Mattie Apperson fed Erin Johansen, and her shot eluded the crowd in front of Baker to find the net at 8:49 for the power-play goal that put Lethbridge up 1-0. The Cougars, however, would respond with a power-goal late in the period of their own when Tamara McVannel's point shot was tipped by Jaycee Magwood standing in front of Anderson with 1:37 to play in the frame, and the Cougars and Pronghorns went to the intermission squared up at 1-1.
The second period tightened up defensively, but special teams would pay a factor at the end of the period once more for Regina. On what looked like a rather harmless wrist shot from the point, Shaelyn Vallotton's seeing-eye biscuit would elude everyone including Anderson with 16 seconds to play in the period for the power-play goal and, more importantly, a 2-1 lead for the Cougars after 40 minutes!
The third period would see that tighter defence continued to be played as the teams went up and down the ice, but very few shots were directed towards the net. With Lethbridge pressing late, they looked to tie the game, but the Cougars would stand tall on this night to capture their first win of the season with the 2-1 victory! Morgan Baker stopped 19 shots for her first win of the season while Alicia Anderson suffered her first loss of the season in a 18-save effort.
Highlights of this game are below!
The home crowd barely had time to get to their seats before their team was on the scoreboard in this one. Shyan Elias deflected a Morgan Willoughby shot from the point past Oswald just 1:01 into the game, and the Huskies had the early 1-0 lead! However, Alberta's dominance on the power-play continued when Autumn MacDougall found room past Vance for a power-play marker at 5:48, and the game was tied at 1-1. The teams settled down after that as scoring chances slowed, but chances that were found were denied by the netminders. At the first break, the 1-1 game was still intact despite Alberta holding an 8-6 edge in shots.
The second period saw the Pandas continue to play well, drawing penalties throughout the frame. Twice, the Pandas found themselves playing five-on-three, and there are only so many of those opportunities one can give the reigning Canada West champions. On the second two-player advantage, Madison Willan was in the right spot to the left of Vance where the rebound off the Kennedy Ganser shot went, and Willan made no mistake as she buried it past a prone Vance to make it 2-1 for Alberta with 4:05 remaining in the period. That score would carry through the break as the teams reconvened for the third period!
Special teams would play a factor in the third period, but it would be Saskatchewan who flipped the script on Alberta! Emily Upgang got a stick in the passing lane on a cross-ice pass while penalty-killing, sending Kennedy Brown off to the races. She beat Jaslin Sawatzky down the ice, opted for the shot, and went high on Oswald's stick side for the shorthanded marker at 9:10 and we had a tie game at 2-2! Neither side would give up another goal in the period, so it was off to overtime to find a winner!
The four-on-four overtime period saw Alberta establish their dominance, outshooting Saskatchewan 8-2 in the five-minute frame, but we'd need the three-on-three overtime period as no goals were scored. In the three-on-three extra frame, Cayle Dillon made a nice move at the line to create separation, skated in, and spotted Alex Poznikoff on the doorstep for the redirect and the game-winning goal just 29 seconds into the fifth period as Alberta claimed the double-overtime victory by a 3-2 score! Halle Oswald earned the win with an 18-save effort while Jessica Vance took the overtime loss despite making 31 stops on the night.
Highlights are below!
SATURDAY:After shaving a point off Alberta, Saskatchewan had to feel pretty good about their efforts one night before and looked to build off those efforts. Alberta, while still picking up the win, found itself behind the Lethbridge Pronghorns in the standings after three games - an unlikely set of results - so they came back to Merlis Belsher Place looking to pick up three more points. Kirsten Chamberlin was in net for the Pandas while Jessica Vance got the call for the Huskies.
With two of the best netminders in Canada West hockey standing in their respective creases, you knew this game had all the makings of a goaltending duel as Chamberlin and Vance stood 200-feet from one another. The first period saw the teams play a little more defensively-minded as neither gave up great scoring chances, but shots that did get through were stopped at either end of the ice. Alberta ramped up their efforts as the period went on, but Vance was dynamite again in this period as she turned away all Alberta attempts. Through one period, Alberta held an 11-4 advantage in shots, but the score remained 0-0.
The second period saw Saskatchewan push back as they brought the offensive chances in this period. Chamberlin, however, did her part in keeping the score even on the scoreboard as she denied all chances. Equal to the task was Vance as well, and this game would go to the third period with the 0-0 tie still intact despite Saskatchewan outshooting the Pandas 9-8 in the frame.
The third period saw the home crowd cheer early as Shyan Elias found the puck in a scramble in front of Chamberlin, and her shot found the back of the net as Chamberlin couldn't find it through the crowd at 1:44 to put the Huskies up 1-0! Midway through the period, Alberta would answer when Regan Wright's shot from the right side found enough room past Vance as she caught the Saskatchewan netminder a little flat-footed in her crease, squaring the game at 1-1 at 8:30. Sasaktchewan, however, would respond on the power-play just 56 seconds later when Abby Shirley's snipe from the left face-off dot went up and over the stick-side shoulder of Chamberlin to put the Huskies ahead 2-1 on what is surely an early-season highlight-reel goal! From there, Jessica Vance stood tall as she withstood the Alberta attack including a six-on-four power-play for the remaining 34 seconds of the game. Thanks to that effort, the Huskies downed the Alberta Pandas by the 2-1 score! Jessica Vance picked up her second win of the season by stopping 32 shots while Kirsten Chamberlin was on the losing end of a 20-save effort.
Highlights of this game are below!
In the first period, the veteran Cougars squad asserted their will on the Bisons, controlling the game through the opening-half of the period. Manitoba seemed to find their legs in second-half of the period as they generated some good chances on the Mount Royal net. Building off that momentum, Manitoba would strike first when Emilie Massé found room on the short side for her third goal of the season past de Beauville on a great rush at 18:03, and Manitoba would take the 1-0 lead to the intermission.
The second period was played a little more cautiously, but there were still opportunities at both ends of the ice. The goaltenders seemed to be pretty happy keeping their goals-against averages down, though, and neither team was able to dent twine. Despite the shots being even after two periods at 16-16, the score remained 1-0 in favour of the Bisons.
The third period saw Manitoba open the frame with a power-play as Mackenzie Butz returned to the sin bin, and they'd make Mount Royal pay for that indiscretion. Jenai Buchanan skated in from the point into the slot while protecting the puck, and she wired home a wrist shot over the left pad of de Beauville for the power-play marker just 37 seconds into the frame, putting Manitoba up 2-0! From there, Manitoba's inexperienced squad played some solid defensive hockey as they sat back and picked up puck carriers as they skated across center, kept shots to the outside, and cleared rebounds and held up oncoming attackers for Schubert. Despite some furious pressure late with the extra attacker on, the Manitoba fifth-year netminder was able to hold the fort as the horn sounded on a 2-0 victory for the Bisons! Amanda Schubert made 23 saves for her first shutout and first win of the season while Zoe de Beauville made 17 saves in the loss.
No highlights anywhere to be found for this game!
SUNDAY: With a rare Sunday game on the schedule, the Bisons were looking to climb back to .500 with a second-straight win over Mount Royal. The Cougars, seeing Manitoba pull even with them at 1-2-0-0, were looking to keep pace with the teams above them in standings with a win while creating a little separation between themselves and the Bisons. Cassie Shokar got her first Canada West start for the Cougars while Amanda Schubert was back between the pipes for the Bisons.
The two teams opened this game much like the played one night earlier as neither side seemed very interested in letting the other try to gain the lead in the game. The stalemate went back and forth, but Mount Royal seemed to be finding their legs as the ice slanted towards the Manitoba zone. Late in the period, Breanne Trotter threw a puck towards the Manitoba net that Tatum Amy got her stick on, and the deflection got past Schubert and into the net with 11 seconds to play as Mount Royal went into the break with their first lead of the weekend!
It seemed that whatever head coach Scott Rivett told the Cougars in the intermissions changed how they approached the second period as they came out and threw everything at Schubert. A rebound on a Kate Hufnagel shot that Schubert couldn't cover ended up behind her off the stick of Kate Scidmore at 5:19 as Mount Royal went up 2-0. The barrage continued throughout the period with shots coming from all directions and Cougars crashing into the slot and goalmouth area to look for rebounds. Despite the one-sided nature of the second period, the Cougars only led 2-0 through 40 minutes of play.
The persistent play of the Cougars launching pucks from all angles followed by mass chaos as they drove the net for rebounds paid off for Mount Royal early in the third period. Maddison Toppe, who red-shirted last season following a transfer from Lethbridge, scored her first goal as a Cougar when chipped home a gorgeous feed from Morgan Ramsey as she drove the net at 1:20, and Mount Royal went up 3-0. 1:25 later, Mackenzie Butz's shot was stopped by Schubert, but Tianna Ko was unchecked at the far post as she buried her first goal of the season to put MRU up 4-0. Head coach Jon Rempel opted to swap the netminders as Erin Fargey relieved Amanda Schubert, but the goalie change didn't spark his team as he may have hoped. Despite a good showing for Fargey, the Bisons couldn't muster any offence as Mount Royal claimed victory in splitting another weekend thanks to their 4-0 victory! Cassie Shokar earned her first Canada West win and shutout as she stopped all 15 shots she faced while Amanda Schubert took the loss despite making 13 stops. For the record, Erin Fargey was good on all nine shots she saw in her 17:15 of play.
Once again, no highlights to speak of on this day. What gives, Bisons? Get those highlights posted!
| School | Record | Points | GF | GA | Streak | Next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lethbridge | 3-1-0-0 | 9 | 14 | 8 | L1 | vs SAS |
| Alberta | 2-1-1-0 | 8 | 18 | 5 | L1 | @ MRU |
| Calgary | 2-1-1-0 | 8 | 8 | 6 | L1 | vs MAN |
| Saskatchewan | 2-1-0-1 | 7 | 6 | 7 | W1 | @ LET |
| Mount Royal | 2-2-0-0 | 6 | 7 | 4 | W1 | vs ALB |
| British Columbia | 1-2-0-1 | 4 | 5 | 16 | W1 | @ REG |
| Manitoba | 1-3-0-0 | 3 | 6 | 12 | L1 | @ CAL |
| Regina | 1-3-0-0 | 3 | 6 | 12 | W1 | vs UBC |
The Last Word
For the first time in recent memory, there is parity in the Canada West Conference. There are still teams that have a distinct edge in talent and experience, but it's the first time in a few seasons where all teams have a regulation win in the two weeks of action. I've been saying for a long time that this conference is the hardest to advance to the National Championship from, and it seems that proclamation is getting more and more true each year.In recent years, it took a number of weeks to see teams such as Lethbridge, Calgary, and Regina to find their first regulation wins as teams such as Alberta, UBC, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba beat up on the less experienced squads. With players having graduated and some of the stronger teams turning to their rookie classes to fill the gaps, the experience factor sees the teams who struggled in the last number of years as we see Lethbridge and Calgary near the top of the standings while UBC and Manitoba go with younger players in trying to rebuild those experienced teams and restore their spots atop the standings. That's not to say they aren't competitive, but rather that they are literally learning on the fly this season as these rookies navigate the waters of Canada West just as the younger squads of Calgary and Lethbridge did over the last few seasons.
With the introduction of two more teams next season - MacEwan and Trinity Western - this ultra-competitive conference is only going to get harder to win, so seeing eight teams with wins this early in the season is good not only for Canada West, but for women's hockey in general as Canada West sends its best two teams to the National Championship each season. It's an exciting time for women's hockey in western Canada, so make sure you go and see the best women's hockey the left side of the country has to offer by getting tickets to the next home game at your local campus!
Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!
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