The Rundown - Week 15

I fully admit that I watched very little Canada West hockey this week thanks to my involvement at the 2025 Female World Sport School Challenge. I did get to see some incredible performances from players heading to schools next season, and I'll chat about those players below the recaps. With the Crowchild Classic this week and Saskatchewan playing in their "Find A Cure" game, there were some games to be highlighted! Let's find out how everyone did in their respective games this weekend on this edition of The Rundown!

FRIDAY: We'll kick things off in the Scotiabank Saddledome where the annual Crowchild Classic games were being played between the Calgary Dinos and Mount Royal Cougars! The ladies had the early draw in this year's event, but they had a solid crowd on-hand by the third period as fans made it down to the arena after work.

Mount Royal was looking to end Calgary's hopes of a playoff spot with a win while gaining points on UBC while Calgary was trying to stay alive mathematically with a win and some help. Full marks to both schools for going colour-on-colour for jerseys in this game as well as Kaitlyn Ross was in the visitors' net for Mount Royal while Amelia Awad took to the blue paint for the Dinos!

The first period saw both sides trying to establish an early lead as chances were had, goal posts were hit, but none of the pucks sent towards the nets found twine. Nonetheless, the opening twenty minutes saw both sides play a clean frame as no penalties were called either. With no ink on the scoresheet, we'd hit the first intermission tied at 0-0, but Mount Royal held a slight 8-6 shot edge.

The middle frame got started with some fun as Summer Fomradas' long shot from the point just 2:11 into the period got past the screen in front and past Awad to dent twine as Mount Royal went up 1-0 on Fomradas' third goal of the season! A penalty shortly after that goal to the Dinos didn't help them respond, but they did kill the infraction successfully. A second penalty late in the period almost saw Sydney Mercier score on a partial breakaway while shorthanded, but she could not beat her FISU teammate in Ross as the period ended. At the second break, Mount Royal led 1-0 and had a 23-15 edge in shots.

The Cougars continued to look to add to their lead in the third period, but Awad and the Dinos' defence were having none of that. Shots and chances were thwarted in the Calgary end while shots were blocked and passes were disrupted in the Mount Royal end. We would see a goal just past the midway point of the period, though, when Brooklyn Anderson danced along the goal line from the corner, took a quick pass from Sydney Mercier, and snapped a shot that found room between Ross' pads to tie the game at 1-1 at the 12:54 mark! While both sides had chances through the final seven minutes, the score at the end of regulation stood at 1-1 so we were off to overtime with the Cougars holding a 32-19 shot margin!

The five-minute overtime period solved nothing between these two rivals despite a handful of glorious chances to end the game, so the skills competition would find a winner. The opening round of shots produced no goals, but Sydney Mercier would come in on the angle from the left wing and rip a shot five-hole past Ross for a goal! Kiana McNinch would be denied and Brooklyn Anderson was stopped, so it came down to Mount Royal leading scorer Aliya Jomha.

On her attempt, she looked to go five-hole, but Awad denied her as the Calgary Dinos earned the 2-1 shootout win over the Mount Royal Cougars! Amelia Awad stopped 34 shots plus three more in the shootout for her seventh win of the season while Kaitlyn Ross was tagged with the shootout loss after stopping 23 shots.

Highlights of this game are below! Thanks, Dinos!

SATURDAY: The home-and-home series reverted back to the Flames Community Arena for the second-half of the series as the Dinos met the Cougars in their barn. Mount Royal wasn't going to be thrilled in missing out on two points one night earlier in front of a near-capacity lower bowl in the Saddledome, so I expected a push from them in this game. Calgary was looking to keep their slim playoff hopes alive with another win over their intercity rivals. I'd like to show you the action, but Mount Royal has opted not to do highlights at all this season.

Cougars goals: Allee Gerrard (5), Aliya Jomha (11), Aliya Jomha (12), Sydney Benko (3), Abigail Borbandy (5)
Cougars assists: Alexandria Spence (9), Aliya Jomha (10), Allee Gerrard (4), Athena Hauck (13), Athena Hauck (14), Alexandria Spence (10), Alexandria Spence (11), Aliya Jomha (11)
Cougars netminder: Kaitlyn Ross (15/17)

Dinos goals: Josie McLeod (4), Sydney Mercier (3)
Dinos assists: Brooklyn Anderson (3), Josie McLeod (4), Evelyn Lawrence (2)
Dinos netminder: Amelia Awad (24/28)

Result: 5-2 victory for Mount Royal over Calgary.

FRIDAY: Normally, a battle for second-place in any division would have both teams pushing hard for wins and points, but Regina and Manitoba seem to be daring each other to take control of that second-place standing. Both entered the weekend playing .500 hockey or less in their last ten games, so this could be a weekend where one of these two make a serious push for that second-place mark. No highlights, of course, because Manitoba's athletics department understands that no one likes to see players doing amazing things on highlight reels. Or something.

Bisons goals: Brenna Nicol (3)
Bisons assists: Sophia Anderson (4), Glory Plett (1)
Bisons netminder: Emily Shippam (14/16)

Cougars goals: Tessa Stewart (3), Paige Hubbard (8)
Cougars assists: Julianne Girardin (3), Shaylee Scraba (6), Jules Stokes (7)
Cougars netminder: Natalie Williamson (22/23)

Result: 2-1 victory for Regina over Manitoba.

SATURDAY: Two points separated these two teams in the standings once more, and Regina was looking for the sweep to hold the tie-breaker over the Bisons. Manitoba needed some sort of response to a January that looked rather anemic offensively, and the two points would benefit them greatly with a split in the series. Again, no highlights because Manitoba believes in using one's imagination for the goals, so here's the scoring summary.

Bisons goals: Kylie Lesuk (5), Sophia Anderson (2), Norah Collins (10), Ashley Keller (1), Sadie Keller (4)
Bisons assists: Dana Goertzen (6), Rachel Gottfried (4), Rachel Gottfried (5), Kelsey Huibers (1), Brenna Nicol (4), Rachel Gottfried (6), Norah Collins (3), Julia Bird (5), Aimee Patrick (9), Louise Fergusson (7)
Bisons netminder: Emily Shippam (22/25)

Cougars goals: Pippy Pritchard (1), Cassidy Peters (2), Jules Stokes (2)
Cougars assists: Jules Stokes (8)
Cougars netminder: Arden Kliewer (22/27)

Result: 5-3 victory for Manitoba over Regina.

FRIDAY: Normally, a game between two teams clinging to their playoff lives wouldn't garner a lot of attention, but Friday's game at Merlis Belsher Place had all sorts of importance thanks to the cause for which the Huskies were playing. As they do every year, it was "Play For A Cure" night at the rink as the Huskies were looking to raise money in support of cancer research, treatment, and prevention at Jim Pattison Children's Hospital in Saskatoon, and they were playing for their own Brooklyn Stevely who missed most of last season while she battled ovarian cancer!

The good news is that Brooklyn has been given a clean bill of health, but the Huskies wanted to throw their support behind Brooklyn with a jersey for her and for Kent Logan, the father of a friend of Brooklyn. "EDWF" appears on this year's Play for a Cure jersey as a tribute to Kent who battled brain cancer for 27 years and adopted the acronym and saying for his battle. On Friday night, this was all that mattered as the Huskies and Griffins took to the ice!

Huskies goals: Bronwyn Boucher (7)
Huskies assists: Kendra Zuchotzki (6)
Huskies netminder: Colby Wilson (15/15)

Griffins goals: none
Griffins assists: none
Griffins netminder: Mikayla Christmann (24/25)

Result: 1-0 victory for Saskatchewan over MacEwan.

SATURDAY: After an emotional night where a pile of cash was raised for cancer research, treatment, and prevention, the Huskies looked to remain in the hunt for a playoff spot with a sweep of the Griffins. MacEwan, however, has been embracing their role as spoiler so they wanted to head back to Edmonton with a split. There are no highlights of this game, but here's how the scoring went down.

Huskies goals: Bronwyn Boucher (8), Jayde Cadieux (4)
Huskies assists: Kendra Zuchotzki (7), Avery Gottselig (3), Kendra Zuchotzki (8), Bronwyn Boucher (4)
Huskies shootout scorers: none
Huskies netminder: Colby Wilson (30/32) plus four more saves

Griffins goals: Jennifer Andrash (3), Rian Santos (1)
Griffins assists: Shaelyn Hopkins (2), Tess Collier (4), Allee Isley (2)
Griffins shootout scorers: Shaelyn Hopkins
Griffins netminder: Brianna Sank (34/36) plus five more saves

Result: 3-2 shootout victory for MacEwan over Saskatchewan.

FRIDAY: The Alberta Pandas made the hop over the Rockies to land in Langley, BC for a series with the Spartans. Alberta brought their 16-game points streak with them as they got set to face Trinity Western. The Spartans were looking for wins to clinch a playoff spot for the second time in their short Canada West history, but they'd need a big effort against the Canada West East Division leader. As we know, the Spartans only do highlights of their own goal scorers, so we'll just jump to the scoring summary rather than teasing highlights.

Spartans goals: none
Spartans assists: none
Spartans netminder: Kate Fawcett (27/28)

Pandas goals: Raegan Yewdall (5)
Pandas assists: Natalie Kieser (9), Ryann Perrett (3)
Pandas netminder: Grace Glover (26/26)

Result: 1-0 victory for Alberta over Trinity Western.

SATURDAY: The Pandas were looking to move into first-overall in Canada West with UBC being idle, so they came into Saturday's game with some motivation. The Spartans weren't going to let Alberta leave with four points so easily after a strong showing on Friday as they aimed to go into the playoffs knowing they can defeat some of the top teams. Again, no highlights for the Pandas, but the Spartans do have their scorers on video. Rather than watching half the story without the Pandas being involved, here's the scoring summary.

Spartans goals: Kara Yackel (6), Kyra McDonald (11), Kyra McDonald (12)
Spartans assists: Jace Scott (4), Chloe Reid (7), Jordyn Matthews (6)
Spartans shootout scorers: Kara Yackel
Spartans netminders: Mabel Maltais (6/8) in 17:21; Kate Fawcett (11/12) in 47:39 plus two more saves

Pandas goals: Abby Soyko (8), Hayleigh Craig (3), Abby Soyko (9)
Pandas assists: Madison Willan (11), Ryann Perrett (4), Jadynn Morden (10), Madison Willan (12)
Pandas shootout scorers: Raegan Yewdall, Hayleigh Craig
Pandas netminder: Misty Rey (18/21) plus three more saves

Result: 4-3 shootout victory for Alberta over Trinity Western.

No, I'm not doing the stupid East and West Divisions on the standings board. One conference, nine teams, let's see who is best.

CANADA WEST WOMEN'S HOCKEY

School	Record	Points	GF	GA	Streak	Next
Alberta	17-3-5-1	45	67	27	W11	vs MAN
UBC	18-2-3-1	43	89	32	W10	@ SAS
Mount Royal	14-4-2-4	36	68	41	W1	@ REG
Manitoba	10-9-3-2	28	53	54	W1	@ ALB
Trinity Western	10-12-2-2	26	56	53	L2	BYE
Regina	6-10-4-4	24	39	52	L1	vs MRU
Calgary	5-15-2-2	16	42	70	L1	@ MAC
Saskatchewan	4-13-1-6	16	29	56	L1	vs UBC
MacEwan	1-17-3-3	11	21	79	L1	vs CAL

Honour Roll

Each week on The Rundown, I highlight the best performances from the weekend's games. It won't always be the top scorer or the best goalie, but I'll have a reason for who gets picked each week. This week's Honour Roll candidate didn't score any points, but she had a huge impact on her team and community as Brooklyn Stevely's inspiring victory over cancer highlights this week's nomination.

Every year, the Huskies hold this game in honour of someone who has a relationship with someone on the women's team. We've seen family and friends honoured with a jersey worn by one of the Huskies women's hockey players, but never has the team had one of their own as the person for whom they are playing. Brooklyn's diagnosis last season was shocking and unexpected for a woman her age, and it seemed like she may to forced to step aside from hockey altogether while she battled to regain her health from the disease.

Brooklyn's battle was far from easy and nothing was guaranteed for her hockey future, but her resolve to make each day better seemed to be reflected in her overall health as well. That positive outlook carried her through the season with improving results until doctors gave her the green light to return to the ice during the U SPORTS National Championship where, on March 17, 2024 in her first game since ending cancer treatments, she took the ice and did this.
Brooklyn's inspiring return to the ice helped the Huskies defeat the StFX X-Women in the consolation semifinal, and her effort with the Huskies this season helped the program raise a pile of money for cancer research at Jim Pattison Children's Hospital.

How much, you ask? Keep reading, but Brooklyn's successful defeat of ovarian cancer last season will help a lot of people in and around Saskatchewan moving forward thanks to the money the Huskies raised on Friday night. That's how Brooklyn Stevely made the list!

Update: No Update

We're now into two months of not having the media stats fixed on the Canada West Hockeytech site. I'm almost impressed with how little Canada West care about its own product at this point.

A Huge Number

The Huskies always do a great job on their "Play For A Cure" night when it comes to raising money, but this year's effort will reportedly set a new standard for the team to meet in future years. We've seen four- and five-digit dollar totals come out of these games for cancer research, treatment, and prevention that go to charities who assist in delivering these services, and the 2025 edition of this amazing night went one step further in establishing a new high!

According to reports, the Huskies raised some $17,960.10 this year through their jersey auction and silent auction efforts, and that's a massive sum of money that will go a long way in helping the Jim Pattison Children's Hospital in Saskatoon do a lot of good when it comes to cancer initiatives and research! Way to go, Huskies!

The Future Is Bright

Having called nine games at the 2025 Female World Sport School Challenge, I can say that the incoming class of freshwomen who will take their places on Canada West teams will certainly push for roster spots if they play as well as they did this weekend. It's incredible just how good these women were for their respective teams!

Manitoba signed Isabella Man of the Winnipeg Ice this weekend at the tournament, and they're getting a woman who is the epitome of canned energy. She was all over the ice for the Ice this weekend in helping them win a gold medal, and her five goals tied her for second-best at the tournament. She often was seen streaking back on a hard backcheck to take up a defensive position in helping the Ice secure their zone only to jump back into the play as the Ice entered the offensive zone. She was named a tournament all-star for her efforts, and she looks like she'll give opposing coaches fits next season when trying to gameplan for her.

Evy West of the Winnipeg Avros had already committed to the Saskatchewan Huskies next season, but she looked like a university player this weekend with her poise and solid play on both sides of the puck. She, too, was named a tournament all-star after leading all defenders in scoring with seven points at the event, and her defensive play was some of the best I've seen at the AAA or CSSHL level in a long time. Her size and smarts will make her a difficult player to match up against next season, and I'm quite certain the Huskies are excited about her arrival in Saskatoon.

Like West, Callie Hilhorst of the Westman Wildcats had already committed to the Regina Cougars prior to the start of the tournament, but she's going to be a tough defender to beat for any player at the Canada West level. Her size, skating, and smarts were a big reason why Westman was playing for the bronze medal as she consistently looked like the best defender on the ice when her team was playing. The Cougars will be excited about her play in the defensive zone as she was nearly impossible to beat.

I didn't get to see the Yellowhead Chiefs play this weekend, but Kirby Gray led her team in scoring as Mount Royal will want her scoring next season. The Chiefs admittedly are rebuilding this season and aren't quite at the level they want to be just yet, but Gray makes them better on every shift. She skates confidently, she distributes the puck well, and she jumps into high-traffic areas. Those are the kind of players that the Cougars love to have on their roster, so Gray should fit nicely with the Calgary-based Cougars.

In short, there's a lot to be excited about for next season if you're one of these four schools, and I imagine the other five will have dynamic rookies as well. The future is bright for Canada West teams!

The Last Word

Four games. That's all anyone has left. Some have just two games, but four is the maximum left on most teams' schedules this season. We know that Alberta has earned the bye through the first round, and we know that Trinity Western will travel to one of Winnipeg or Regina in their playoff appearance this season. UBC, Mount Royal, and Manitoba have all clinched playoff spots, and Regina is on the verge of doing so with a single point earned or any sort of loss by Saskatchewan. Based on tie-breakers, it appears that Regina has already clinched, but why worry about details, right, Canada West?

UBC clinches a first-round bye if they earn a single point over their next four games. That would set Mount Royal up to host one of Manitoba or Regina in a first-round playoff series. The higher of the two teams - Manitoba and Regina - will host Trinity Western with Alberta watching from afar. UBC and Alberta are still in a battle for first-place overall when it comes to securing home ice throughout the playoffs, so we'll have to watch that race as well, especially since Alberta has a bye in the final week of the season.

For Calgary, Saskatchewan, and MacEwan, the preparation for next season begins now. Honour your graduating players, play your younger players who need that exposure to Canada West hockey, and start to build for 2025-26 season. We had solid playoff races right down to the end of January this season, and we likely could see that extend into February next year with a little work this season. Most of all, have fun over the next two weeks of hockey because it's a long time until September when classes and training camps start once again.

The playoffs loom large for the other six teams. There's a banner and two berths at Nationals in Kitchener this season to be had. Which two of the six teams will want one of those two spots the most? We'll find out as things play out over the next few weeks!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!