Friday 4 November 2016

Puck luck smiles on Huskies

Kennedy Harris breaks up ice for the Huskies.
    The University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team never gets upset when a few bounces go their way.
    On Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the Huskies built a 3-0 on the Mount Royal University Cougars due to some positive bounce breaks. From there, the hosts ultimately hung on for a 3-2 victory to end a two-game skid.
    The Huskies, who are rated 10th in the U Sports top 10 rankings, jumped ahead 1-0 just before the midway point of the first period, when a seeing-eye point shot from offensive defender Leah Bohlken found the back of the goal. The two clubs played a fairly even opening 20 minutes, where the Huskies held a 9-7 edge in shots.
    Just 2:10 into the second period, the Dogs went ahead 2-0 thanks to a positive bounce goal from fourth-year forward Kennedy Harris. Harris was trying to centre the puck from the right corner of the offensive zone and managed to bank the puck off the legs of Cougars goalie Zoe DeBeauville into the net.
    A short time after that tally, the Huskies went up 3-0 thanks to some good awareness from third-year utility player Brooke Patron, who was playing on the U of S’s top line. After Huskies star winger Kaitlin Willoughby was stopped on a drive to the Cougars goal, Patron found the puck loose in the crease and popped it home to give her side a three-goal edge.
Kori Herner circles with the puck in the offensive zone for the Huskies.
    DeBeauville was injured on the play in a collision with Willoughby and left the game stopping eight-of-11 shots. Emma Pincott entered the contest in relief and turned away all nine shots fired in her direction.
    At that point, the Huskies started playing at a faster pace. They almost picked up their fourth goal on a two-on-one. Feisty forward Brooklyn Haubrich found a pinching Bohlken alone on the left side of the Cougars goal with a perfect pass, but Bohlkin was stoned by Pincott.
    The Cougars managed to gain some traction before the second frame ended, when Sarah Weninger picked up her fourth tally of the season to cut the Huskies edge to 3-1.
Jasey Book makes a stop in goal for the Huskies.
    In the third, the Huskies found themselves pinned in the defensive zone. The Cougars worked hard on the forecheck, but they were only able to beat rookie goalie Jacey Book with 3:44 to play.
    During a net scramble, Gabreille Seper picked up the rebound from a Weninger shot to cut the host’s lead to 3-2.
    That was as close as the Cougars would get in their search for the equalizer.
    Book slammed the door shut making 12 stops in the third period and 24 saves overall in the contest. The Swift Current Diamond Energy Wildcats midget AAA team grad has won both of her starts with the U of S.
    The Huskies improve to 6-3 with the win. The Cougars fall to 2-5-2.
    The two teams go at it again on Saturday at 5 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink.

Huskies men’s team thumped on the road

Jordon Cooke and the Huskies had a rough night in Calgary.
    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team had a second period they would like to forget on Friday night.
    Taking on the Mount Royal University Cougars, who are rated seventh in the U Sports top 10 rankings, the Huskies gave up four goals in the second period to fall behind 4-0. The Cougars cruised through the third period to post a 6-0 victory in Calgary.
    Cam Maclise, Luke Simpson, Jesse Lees and Jamal Watson all netted singles for the Cougars in the second. David Stephens and Matthew Brown rounded out the scoring for the host side in the third.
    Colin Cooper stopped all 25 shots he faced to pick up the shutout win in goal for the Cougars. Jordon Cooke turned away 18-of-23 shots starting and taking the loss in goal for the Huskies. Backup Daniel Wapple stopped 6-of-7 shots making a relief appearance for the visitors.
    The Huskies, who were rated second in the U Sports top 10 rankings, fell to 6-2-1. The Cougars improved to 5-2.
    The two teams face each other again on Saturday in Calgary.

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