The Rundown - Week 9

The ninth week of play in Canada West brought some intriguing matchups as the top-two teams in the conference faced off, there was a battle of Alberta, there was a Canada West quarterfinals rematch from last season, and there were a couple of must-win games for the final two teams in action. That left the MacEwan Griffins without a dance partner this week as they were on the bye week and figuring out what they needed to do to stay in the playoff race. It was another solid weekend of hockey, so let's get thing started on The Rundown!

FRIDAY: We start in Calgary where the first-place UBC Thunderbirds were visiting the second-place Mount Royal Cougars with just a point separating the two teams. Having two of the best offensive and defensive teams go head-to-head usually means we should expect a track meet or shutdown hockey, and Canada West usually opts for the latter. We'll see how this one plays out as Elise Hugens was, surprisingly, starting for UBC on a Friday while Kaitlyn Ross was between the pipes for the Cougars.

Pinpoint passes, end-to-end rushes, and great scoring chances is what we all may have been expecting, but both teams seemed a little off in the opening period. Passes went unconnected, shots were few, and the scoring chances fell to the wayside with passing and opportunities not being realized. A couple of power-plays for MRU and one for UBC went unfulfilled as we hit the break tied at 0-0 with Mount Royal up 5-4 in shots.

The second period saw a parade of Thunderbirds head to the penalty box as they were assessed four-straight minor penalties, but the UBC penalty kill was solid in holding Mount Royal off the board despite the Cougars having a few glorious chances. It felt like it was going to take something special to break the stalemate between these two squads, and we'd see that late in the period. Cassidy Rhodes turned on the afterburners and split the MRU defence before deking Ross and finding twine for a shorthanded goal at 16:29, and the Thunderbirds owned the 1-0 lead! Despite a couple of late penalties to the Cougars, there would be no other goals as we hit the break with UBC up a goal despite being outshot 22-8! Not a typo, folks!

The third period saw UBC double their lead just 4:36 into the frame when Grace Elliott teed up a puck and blasted it past Ross for the 2-0 lead. UBC would settle into defending a little more, but they also continued their rotating occupation of the sin bin as Mount Royal looked for the equalizer. Despite four power-plays in the final twelve minutes of the game, the Cougars were denied on every attempt on this night as UBC prevailed over Mount Royal by that 2-0 score! Elise Hugens was spectacular in making 32 saves for her sixth win and second shutout of the season while Kaitlyn Ross stopped 13 shots in the loss.

If we're playing games at Flames Community Arena, you know there will be no highlights. Mount Royal just doesn't do that. That does mean, however, that we get to post more funny hockey commercials!


SATURDAY: It was hard to argue that Mount Royal likely deserved a better fate on Friday, but they had a chance to erase that game with a win on Saturday. UBC was looking to open up a sizable lead over MRU in the standings with a second-straight win, so there was a lot to play for when these two teams met in the second-half of the two-game set. Elise Hugens, not Kate Stuart, was in the crease for UBC for her first back-to-back starts of the season while Kaitlyn Ross occupied the other net in a rematch from one night earlier.

Both teams brought the energy right out of the gates on this night as both squads seemed focused on the tasks they wanted to accomplish. UBC ran into some penalty problems early on, but they weathered that storm. The teams traded short power-plays late in the period, but the lack of goals may have both coaches setting aside some practice time this week. Either way, it was a perfect period from the goalies as the game hit the intermission tied 0-0 with Mount Royal leading 13-8 in shots.

There had been some physical play in the previous four period, but it seemed to boil over in the middle frame of Saturday's game. Nine minor penalties were assessed to the two teams, and UBC's Joelle Fiala was given a game misconduct at 16:10 after the UBC bench was given a penalty. That minor penalty proved costly as Aliya Johma spotted the puck in a goalmouth scramble and jammed it home as the power-play expired to put the Cougars up for the first time on the weekend at 18:10! The finla 1:50 would see no other goals scored, so Mount Royal was up 1-0 after 40 minutes while holding a 22-18 edge in shots.

The third period saw Mount Royal push for the insurance marker whil defending the lead as UBC ramped up their attack in hunting for the equalizer. The Cougars didn't do themselves any favours by taking a couple of minor penalties in the final frame, but Ross was stellar between the pipes on this night as she helped the Cougars out of a few jams. When the final horn sounded, the Mount Royal Cougars went home victorious by that 1-0 score over the UBC Thunderbirds! Kaitlyn Ross made 30 stops for her second clean sheet and ninth win of the season while Elise Hugens suffered her first regulation loss of the season despite making 29 saves.

Because the Sabres brought back the black-and-red Sabres jerseys, I had to post this one with Rob Ray in the original jersey when it was worn. And there's a Barry Melrose appearance in this one!

FRIDAY: Saskatchewan headed east to Winnipeg for a series with the Fluffy Cows where they could really help themselves with a couple of wins while hurting the Fluffy Cows' chances at hosting or even playing in the playoffs. Camryn Drever got the nod for the start on Friday for the Huskies.

Saskatchewan certainly didn't help themselves by coming out flat in the opening period, and they fell behind 1-0 late in the frame. That would become a two-goal deficit when they gave up a penalty shot goal, but Sophie Lalor got one back on the power-play with 55 seconds in the middle frame to make it 2-1 game heading into the third period.

The Huskies would fall behind by a pair of goals once again just 6:36 in, but Jasper Desmarais brought them back within a goal 30 seconds later to make it 3-2. Despite throwing everything they had at the Fluffy Cows' net, the Huskies could not find the equalizer before the horn as they fell 3-2 in this game. Camryn Drever stopped 21 shots in the setback.

The Huskies might be howling about how this one got away later in the season if they don't finish as a top-four team.

SATURDAY: One had to believe that the Huskies wouldn't let a second game slip away from them on this road trip. I would also have been expecting a better start to the game yesterday, so let's see what Saturday brings for Saskatchewan as they looked to split the series. Colby Wilson was in the Huskies' crease to start this game.

It wasn't hard to see that the Huskies made changes to come out better in this game, but the issue was that the FLuffy Cows did as well. The only problem was the Huskies had Wilson in net, and she got her mojo going early in the crease as she denied shot after shot in the opening frame. The Huskies gave her a little support as well when Sophie Lalor cashed in a goal from in tight at 5:56 to make it a 1-0 game. Despite being pinned in their zone for a lot of the period, the Huskies emerged with the one-goal lead at the break compliments of that goal after being outshot 20-9.

Saskatchewan took advantage of the Fluffy Cows' porous power-play defence early in the middle frame when Kennedy Brown knocked home a rebound for a shorthanded marker at 1:14 to make it 2-0. They'd increase the lead at 8:09 when Kelsey Hall fed Taylor Wilkinson for the easy tap-in to make it 3-0, prompting the Fluffy Cows to change goalies. It was a 3-1 game when Sophie Lalor added her second goal while on a power-play at 17:37, and the Huskies carried the 4-1 lead into the break despite being down 31-17 in shots.

Brown struck early in the third period as well as she notched her second goal just 32 seconds into the frame. The Huskies would surrender a goal with less than five minutes to play, but Sophie Lalor scored her hat trick goal with 3:46 to go as the Huskies responded in a big way with a 6-2 victory. Colby Wilson was incredible on this night in making 45 stops for her fourth win of the season.

As Rudyard Kipling wrote in The Jungle Book, "For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack." That was on display in this game as ten Huskies had points.

FRIDAY: The only home-and-home series between these two long-time rivals goes this weekend as the Dinos made their way to Edmonton for the first game of the two-game set. Alberta was looking to get back to their winning ways against Calgary while the Dinos were looking to climb the standings at the Pandas' expense. There's always a battle between these two teams, and it was Gabriella Durante defending the Dinos' net while Halle Oswald was backstopping the Pandas.

The Pandas are always tough at Clare Drake Arena, but it was the Dinos who showed they weren't going to let the Pandas dictate the pace of the game in the opening frame. Both teams had chances, but Calgary found more ways to get pucks to the net. A late penalty by the Dinos seemed to relieve some of the pressure on the Pandas, but the game remained tied 0-0 through 20 minutes despite Calgary leading 13-8 in shots.

The back-and-forth game continued in the second period. Calgary killed off an early power-play, and Alberta looked to do the same late in the period, but the Dinos would strike with their hottest scorer finding the puck. Elizabeth Lang's shot was redirected by Alli Borrow as it appeared to go off her leg, but the puck found the back of the net with 3:18 to play in the period as the power-play put Calgary up 1-0! That score would hold into the second break with Calgary leading in shots by a 22-17 count.

6:41 into the third period, Lang would strike against as the helper when she fed Jordyn Burgar who made no mistake in beating Oswald to make it 2-0. Cassidy Maplethorpe would get Alberta on the board with 3:58 to play, but time ran out on the comeback attempt as the Calgary Dinos emerged victorious with the 2-1 win over Alberta. Gabriella Durante was good on 25 shots for her fifth win of the season while Halle Oswald was on the wrong end of a 28-save night.

Alberta hasn't done a women's hockey highlight package since October 28. I'm not quite sure what's happening out in Edmonton, but this is very un-Alberta-like as they're always promoting their student-athletes. Because the Dinos won, though, they get the highlight spot.

SATURDAY: The series shifted south to Calgary for the second half of the weekend set. Alberta was looking to erase a three-game losing streak while the Dinos were hunting for more points in their quest for the playoffs. Halle Oswald was back in the Pandas' net while Gabriella Durante stood in the Dinos' crease in the rematch.

Alberta wasn't waiting around for anyone on this night as the pressure began early and continued throughout the opening frame. It paid off when Jadynn Morden's quick shot when far-side over the glove of Durante at 5:33 to put the Pandas up 1-0. A late bench minor to the Dinos was the catalyst for the second Alberta goal in the period when Madison Willan won the draw to the middle of the ice where Natalie Kieser one-timed the puck past Durante for the 2-0 lead with jkust six seconds left in the period. That score carried into the break as the Pandas held a 13-4 edge in shots to go along with their 2-0 advantage.

The second period saw penalties break up the momentum either team tried to build, but Calgary was sending the puck to the net more often. The goaltenders were sharp in this period and their defence swept away rebound chances when necessary as the 2-0 score remained intact at the end of 40 minutes with Alberta holding a 20-16 margin in shots.

A late second-period Calgary penalty hurt the Dinos once again as a loose puck came out to Taylor Kezama who teed it up and blasted it through traffic to the back of the net at 2:14 to make it a 3-0 game for the Pandas. Alberta did a good job from there in preventing scoring chances, but you could feel Calgary building some momentum which they'd make count late in the game. An Alberta infraction saw Alli Borrow strike on the power-play from the fight face-off dot with an excellent shot at 17:42 to make it 3-1. 1:12 later, Rebecca Clark's quick shot off a pass from Dana Wood in the corner brought the Dinos within one goal as Durante watched from the bench, but the late pressure would be repelled by the Pandas as Alberta captured the 3-2 victory over Calgary! Halle Oswald picked up her eighth win of the season with a 27-save night while Gabriella Durante took the loss after making 23 stops.

Calgary's Athletics Department is a beauty with their consistent highlight packages. Keep it up, Dinos. You're awesome!

FRIDAY: Rarely do I ever say that games in Week Nine are must-win, but the Regina Cougars went to Langley to play the Trinity Western Spartans in a case where every game and every point matters now. The Spartans, meanwhile, were looking for points as they're trying to make a case to host a playoff game this season. In other words, the points mattered this weekend for both teams as Arden Kliewer got the start for the Cougars while Kate Fawcett was in the net for the Spartans.

It wasn't hard to see that both teams were ready to defend as the action seemed to be kept to the outside in the offensive zone with a lot of blocks and checks. A couple of penalties by Regina allowed Trinity Western some offensive chances, but there wasn't much to write home about in the opening frame as the game remained 0-0 at the horn with the Spartans up 7-4 in shots.

Whatever was said in the rooms during the intermission seemed to change the entire nature of the game because the second period looked like a completely different game. Trinity Western certainly gave Regina numerous opportunities to capitalize thanks to the number of penalties they took, but game was played with more speed and passing, and the shots reflected that. The score didn't, though, as the 0-0 deadlock held through the middle frame despite the teams combining for 29 shots as Regina held a 21-19 edge.

The third period felt more like the first period once again as both teams were looking to hold the other at bay. Despite trading power-play opportunities, it appeared we may have been headed for overtime, but Olivia Leier dug a puck out from behind the net and centered to Brooklyn Anderson who went five-hole with the quick shot, and that would be your game-winner with 25 seconds remaining in regulation time as the Trinity Western Spartans outduelled the Regina Cougars by a 1-0 score! Kate Fawcett stopped all 27 shots she faced for her fourth win and first Canada West shutout in her career while Arden Kliewer stopped 29 shots in the setback.

This highlight package is longer than it should be, but when there's only one goal scored you make the highlight package count, I guess.


SATURDAY: Regina came into Saturday's game desperately needing a split for the weekend series while Trinity Western was joping to build on their win from one night earlier. Fans who were in attendance and who tuned in to the game were hoping for a little more offence than what was seen in Friday's contest. Arden Kliewer was back in the Regina net as she stood 200-feet from Kate Fawcett who started for the Spartans in a rematch of of the goalies from one night earlier.

The first period was played fairly evenly despite Trinity Western giving Regina an opportunity on the power-play. That power-play went for naught, though, as the teams looked for opportunities at both ends of the ice. The goaltenders were having none of that idea as they kept the goose eggs intact through 20 minutes with Trinity Western leading in shots by an 8-6 count.

The second period was a far different story. Chelsea Debusschere's rush down the right wing ended with her hitting the side of the net before Neisha Germann jumped on the rebound and put it home at 2:23 to give the Spartans the lead. They'd double that score when Amy Potomak's shot from the right circle found room through traffic to dent twine at 9:18, and it was a 2-0 game. Regina wasn't about to go away quietly, though, as Heather Fiske scored on the power-play when her initial shot was stopped in the slot, but she followed the puck and chipped the rebound home at 12:49 to make it 2-1. Minutes later, a goalmouth scramble saw Shaylee Scraba on one knee in the crease where she got a couple of whacks at the loose puck before it crossed the line at 15:03, tying the game up at 2-2! That score would carry into the break as these two teams looked for a winner in the third period again with Trinity Western holding a 17-15 edge in shots.

Regina brought everything they had in the third period as they threw a ton of pucks at Fawcett with no early success. Trinity Western would find some when they broke in 3-on-2, and Brooklyn Anderson hit a wide-open Potomak in the right circle. Potomak went top shelf on Kliewer as she got into her butterfly, and Spartans regained the lead at 8:46 on Potomak's 11th goal of the season. Regina continued to pepper the Spartans' net, but Fawcett stood tall as she stopped all 17 shots she faced in the third period to help Trinity Western to the 3-2 victory over Regina! Fawcett made 30 stops in total for her fifth win of the campaign while Arden Kliewer made 22 stops in the loss.

If you just want Spartans highlights, that's what Trinity Western delivers!

CANADA WEST WOMEN'S HOCKEY

School	Record	Points	GF	GA	Streak	Next
UBC	9-2-3-2	26	49	25	L1	vs REG
Mount Royal	12-3-0-1	25	43	23	W1	@ TWU
Alberta	9-5-1-1	21	40	27	W1	vs MAC
Saskatchewan	7-5-2-2	20	32	23	W1	@ CAL
Trinity Western	7-6-2-1	19	39	37	W2	vs MRU
Manitoba	6-9-1-0	14	38	55	L1	JANUARY
Calgary	5-8-2-1	14	31	40	L1	vs SAS
MacEwan	2-10-1-1	7	19	41	L5	@ ALB
Regina	2-11-0-1	5	19	39	L9	@ UBC

The Playoff Picture

Officially, there's one week left in the Canada West schedule before the December break before the teams resume games in January after exams and holidays. The Fluffy Cows hold the final playoff spot at this point due to tie-breaking rules over the Calgary Dinos, but the Dinos could pull ahead next week before the break while the Fluffy Cows sit idle. The schedule will even out, but it's the schedule that matters for these two teams moving forward.

Not counting Saskatchewan next weekend for the Dinos, Calgary's final ten games over six weeks look like this: home-and-home with MacEwan, bye, at home against Regina, home-and-home with Mount Royal, in Manitoba, and home-and-home with MacEwan. Calgary is 3-4-1 at home this season, but still have four games at Father David Bauer Arena against the bottom two teams. The scary part is that those games against MacEwan could make or break Calgary's season as they're 1-5 against the other three non-MacEwan teams.

Manitoba's final twelve games starting in January looks like this: in Regina, at home against Mount Royal, at home against UBC, in Langley against Trinity Western, at home against Calgary, in Edmonton against Alberta. The Fluffy Cows have back-to-back series against the top-two teams in the conference at home where they're 4-4-0 before they welcome Calgary to Wayne Fleming Arena. The problem is that Manitoba is a collective 3-7-0 against the final five teams this season.

I'm not saying that the Dinos have the easier path, but it would seem they have a much more favorable schedule down the stretch. That series in Manitoba in the second-last week could have huge playoff implications based on what these two teams do in January.

Shorthanded Excellence

I had mentioned all the shorthanded goals being scored this season, and we saw another couple of shorties scored this weekend. There have been 13 shorthanded goals scored so far, but seven of those have come from teams that call British Columbia home! That's a little crazy!

Brooklyn Anderson and Amy Potomak have two apiece for the Spartans which accounts for all four that they've scored while playing short, and UBC has seen Mia Bierd, Jacquelyn Fleming, and Cassidy Rhodes all score shorthanded markers. Two of those UBC players, it should be noted, are rookies who have earned the trust to be on the ice during shorthanded situations thanks to their play.

I've warned everyone about not giving Alberta power-plays because of their lethal efficiency, but it's pretty clear that taking risks on the power-play against both UBC and TWU could result in goals-against. My utter disbelief in seeing teams not working on their power-play formations at the Canada West level so that there aren't scoring chances against cannot be understated. If you win the special teams battle in Canada West, you're likely winning the game.

Top Ten Watch

UBC checked in at #3 on Tuesday. Mount Royal was #6. Alberta was #9. Things could move this week after all three teams split their weekend contests, but there likely won't be a ton of change because the ELO scoring system is as flawed as Elon Musk's deal to buy Twitter. What should be noted is that there are three Canada West teams in the Top Ten which shows the strength of the conference and its teams. The only other conference with three teams is the OUA, and I'm not sure all three of those teams belong in the Top Ten.

It's nice to be recognized as a good team, but the only rankings that matter are the final eight teams who play at Nationals. If you don't make Nationals, did it matter where you were ranked nine weeks into the season? 'Nuff said.

The Last Word

I think it's pretty clear that there are four distinct groups of teams in Canada West after nine weeks. UBC and Mount Royal are going to battle for the top-two playoff spots and both will have byes in the opening round of the playoffs. Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Trinity Western will make things interesting in terms of who gets to host a playoff quarterfinal game, and I don't think any of them want to travel in the opening round if they can prevent it. Manitoba and Calgary will likely battle for the final spot to determine the six teams who will play in late February.

It's hard to write two teams off at this point in the season, but neither MacEwan nor Regina have scored 20 goals this season - they both have 19 - while the teams competing for playoff spots have not scored less than 32 goals (Saskatchewan). Defence may win championships, but you have to score to win games to get there. That just hasn't happened for the Cougars and Griffins, so there's a better-than-good chance they'll play the roles of spoiler if they continue to score at the low rate they've shown thus far.

The two lowest scoring teams through 20 games last season were MacEwan (23) and Trinity Western (24). UBC made the playoffs in 2019-20 as the second-lowest scoring team in Canada with 41 goals, but they're the lone exception to the rule: since 2015-16, the two teams with the fewest goals scored have missed the playoffs every year. If their fates are going to change, they better fill nets in a hurry from this week moving forward.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!