Goalie Showdown In North Bay

People know I am dedicated to covering the action in Canada West women's hockey as I talk about it a lot and certainly write about every Sunday here on HBIC. What some may not realize is that I do watch the other conferences when I can because there are a number of good players and teams in each of the three conferences, and there's a guarantee that some of those teams will end up at the U SPORTS National Women's Hockey Championship. Tonight, I settled down in front of the ol' television to take in Game One of the OUA Quarterfinal series between the York Lions and the Nipissing Lakers, and I have to say that you missed a beauty if you weren't watching!

Playoff hockey is always better with storylines and a little dislike between the two teams, and there was a little of both when it came to York and Nipissing. These two teams played to 1-1-1-1 records in their four games against one another this season as York played them tough every time they met. Because of that edge that York carried into those games, Nipissing brought a little more physicality as well. In short, these two teams played entertaining games when they met.

The first period was pretty evenly-played between the two teams with no penalties and no goals scored. Why? Both Emma Wedgewood in the York crease and Chantelle Sandquist in the Nipissing net were going save-for-save in their respective nets. Both netminders made key saves through opening 20 minutes, and this game would remain a 0-0 draw with Nipissing up 8-7 in shots.

The second period was more of the same as Wedgewood and Sandquist were putting on a show. A couple of shortened power-plays late in the frame did nothing to help the scores, but both netminders made key saves to prevent power-play goals. Maggie McKee was generating chances for herself and her linemates for the Lakers that Wedgewood turned aside regularly while Alexa Giantsopoulos, Sydney Paulson, and Jillian Milligan were stopped by Sandquist at various moments in the frame. After 40 minutes, it was a 0-0 stalemate with Nipissing holding an 18-15 edge in shots. Despite the score, though, the goaltending was fantastic through the first two periods.

Nipissing turned on the pressure in the third period as you'd expect from a 20-win team, but that only seemed to encourage Wedgewood in the York net. A power-play five minutes into the frame for the Lakers was the break they were seeking, but credit Wedgewood for making a couple of big saves deny the Lakers the goal they sought. While Sandquist saw less action in her end of the ice, she was called upon a couple of times to stand tall to keep this game even at goose eggs. That's how the third period would end as we'd head to overtime tied 0-0 and with Nipissing holding a 29-19 margin in shots.

Before we get to overtime, the last time there was a goalless game heading into free hockey in the OUA playoffs was on February 22, 2023 - one year minus a day from this night! In that game, the Windsor Lancers and Guelph Gryphons battled into double-overtime in their goalless draw before Emily Eikelboom scored the game's only goal when she beat Martina Fedel at the 7:19 mark of the fifth period. Windsor netminder Kristen Swiatoschik stopped 38 shots for the five-period shutout, so we were well on our way to seeing if either goalie could equal Swiatoschik's save total.

Neither team really held back in this overtime period as we know that any shot on net has the chance to go in. Nipissing had a couple of opportunities to bury the puck early, but Wedgewood was seeing everything clearly. The Lions got a few shots on Sandquist that she handled easily, and it felt like we may be watching this game for a while longer. However, with 14:12 gone in the overtime period, Nicole York's shot towards the net saw Sydney Paulson get a stick on it, and her deflection found room past Sandquist for the game-winning goal as York took Game One by that 1-0 score!

While some may say this is an upset in the opening game of the best-of-three series, I think we established at the top of this article that York was well-equipped for this series against Nipissing. What teams can never game-plan for is a goalie who decides to go en fuego, and we saw Emma Wedgewood do that here tonight as she stopped 44 shots for her first playoff win and shutout in the OUA! For the record, Chantelle Sandquist stopped 25 shots on this night, so it's not like she had a bad night in the crease either.

Having watched enough best-of-three series in my life, a hot goalie can change a series dramatically. If Wedgewood is catching fire right now, Friday's game is going to be a huge test for the Lakers on the road. We saw Gabriella Durante catch fire in the series against the Saskatchewan Huskies as she pitched two-straight shutouts in Games Two and Three in Canada West, and it seems like Emma Wedgewood might be combustable based on her play tonight.

The OUA also saw another surprise tonight as the Queen's Golden Gaels downed the Toronto Varsity Blues by a 3-1 score in their Game One contest. That's the top-two teams in the OUA East Division suffering opening-game losses in their series as both Nipissing and Toronto are now in must-win mode for Game Two. Could two of the top-ten teams in the nation take quarterfinal losses in the OUA?

We'll find out Friday. Keep an eye on the OUA scores, and we'll see if Emma Wedgewood can continue her incredible play in York's crease as the Lions look to eliminate one of the favorites from the OUA!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!