Epic comeback caps Bears most memorable night at Hauser

The Bears celebrate clinching a berth to the Esso Cup in 2017.

It was a game where it appeared the Prince Albert Northern Bears were going to have to rely on a second chance to nail down an Esso Cup berth.

After capturing their second Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League title in team history in March of 2017, the Bears hosted the Hartney, Man., based Westman Wildcats in a best-of-three female midget AAA Western regional playdown.

The Bears took Game 1 of the series 6-4 on March 31, 2017 at the Art Hauser Centre.

Brooklyn Anderson (#7) had the late third period winner.

In Game 2 of the series on April 1, 2017, the Bears found themselves down 6-3 with 13:24 remaining in the third period. At that point in time, it appeared the two sides would play in a series deciding Game 3 the next night.

All of a sudden, the Bears made a frantic comeback. With exactly two minutes to play in the third, rookie forward Brooklyn Anderson tipped home a point shot from tough as nails defender Jordan Ashe to give the Bears a 7-6 lead.

Prince Albert held on from there to ensure that score would be the final result in order to capture the Lanchbery Family Trophy. The Bears swept the series 2-0 to qualify for the Esso Cup – the female under-18 AAA championship tournament – for the first time in team history.

The Bears celebrate Brooklyn Anderson’s late third period winner.

“It feels amazing,” said Anderson after the game. “I know the team was really excited to get there.

“We weren’t losing this. We wanted to get there, and we got there, so that is awesome.

“I saw Jordan (Ashe) had it on the point, and I knew that I just needed to get in front of the net. It is exactly what I did, and it just went off my stick and in.”

The Bears in 2016-17 were the carbon copies of the romantic image of their WHL cousins the Prince Albert Raiders, when the Raiders are at their best.

If you wanted to play run and gun, the Bears could run and gun. If you wanted to get down in the trenches, the Bear would get down in the trenches.

Captain Brooke Hobson was the Bears best player.

While fighting is technically banned in the female game of hockey, the Bears had the toughness to take care of things in a flat out brawl, if their opponents chose to play that way. The Bears had a team that was built for any type of game.

Overall, head coach Jeff Willoughby liked the high tempo offensive games the best being a fan of the 1980s NHL’s Edmonton Oilers. It seemed fitting the Bears most memorable home game turned out to be a 7-6 shootout that saw a championship trophy and banner handed out at the end of the contest.

The Bears finished second overall in the SFU18AAAHL with what was at the time the best record in team history at 22-6.

When they got to the best-of-five SFU18AAAHL championship series, the Bears swept away their archrivals the Saskatoon Stars 3-0. The Stars had topped the league standings with a 25-2-1 mark.

Camryn Amundson (#9) jets up ice for the Bears.

The Bears had a well-rounded roster, but their best player was captain and ultra-talented offensive-defender Brooke Hobson. Hobson was a member of Canada’s under-18 national women’s team and turned heads with a shot that seemed to be gifted to her from a Higher Power.

Veteran forward Camryn Amundson skated through an inspired season in 2016-17. She played in 27 regular season games setting career highs in goals (13), assists (14) and points (27).

Her older sister Shaye had passed away tragically in a single-vehicle accident in June of 2016. On the ice, it seemed like Shaye was still there helping her younger sister play.

Abby Soyko had the equalizer for the Bears.

The Bears roster had some classic Prince Albert hockey elements.

 They had the great power forward in Abby Soyko. At age 15 that season, Soyko topped the Bears in scoring with 18 goals and 13 assists for 31 points in 27 regular season games.

The Bears had players that could put up points with a finesse offensive game like Kate Ball, who had 15 goals and 15 assists appearing in all of the Bears 28 regular season games.

They had gritty checkers like centre Ireland South, who also showed some offensive touch netting 11 goals and 10 assists in 26 regular season games.

Finesse defender Hannah Koroll was solid and made the game look easy to play at both ends of the ice.

Of course, the Bears had Ashe on the back end, and she was the Bears version of Raiders legend Dave Manson on defence.

Kate Ball had a big offensive season for the Bears in 2016-17.

In goal, the Bears had the reliable duo of Ryan Fontaine and Brooklyn Elek, and the team couldn’t go wrong playing either in big games.

Overall, the Bears had their own unique collective personality, where it seemed it was always a good day to go to the rink. Ultimately, everyone on the roster stepped up with big performances and moments at different points in the campaign to make it a special one.

When the Bears showed up for Game 2 of their series with the Wildcats, they had an estimated 1,200 supporters waiting for them at the Art Hauser Centre.

A sweep in the short set wasn’t guaranteed as the Wildcats had some star players like forward Ashton Bell, who was the captain of Canada’s under-18 national women’s team.

Hannah Koroll made playing the game look easy.

The Wildcats scored on their first two shots of the game to go ahead 2-0, but the Bears stormed back to take a 3-2 lead early in the second period.

The visitors proceeded to score four straight goals to go ahead 6-3 with 13:24 remaining in the third.

Josee Casavant and Bell had each scored twice for the Wildcats, while Camryn Clyne and Haley Wickham had singles.

Ball, Amundson and Story Navrot replied with singles for the Bears up to that point in time.

With 12:22 remaining in the third, the Bears got traction when forward Miranda Heidt slipped a pass across the front of the Westman goal to Hobson. The Bears captain potted a tally to cut the Wildcats edge to 6-4.

Hobson struck again with 7:54 remaining in the third, when she blew home a point shot to further trim the Wildcats lead to 6-5.

Jordan Ashe brought grit and toughness to the Bears.

Soyko proceeded to even things up at 6-6 with a power-play goal with 3:13 remaining in the frame. That set the stage for dramatics on Anderson’s winner.

Elek made 24 stops to pick up the win in goal. Kaitlyn Slator turned away 19 shots to take the setback in goal for the Wildcats.

“Both teams kind of just let it loose,” said Willoughby after the game. “It was kind of run and gun and fun to play in and fun to coach.

“I’m sure all the fans got more than their money’s worth here. It was incredible to coach in I will say that first of all. There was lots of intensity on the bench.

“The girls didn’t get down too low, didn’t get up too high. It was very good.”

The Bears raise the Lanchbery Family Trophy.

The win marked the first time the Bears accepted a championship trophy and banner on home ice. 

The two times they clinched the SFU18AAAHL title were both on the road.

The Bears on ice celebration with their parents and fans seemed to last a good two hours after their series clinching win ended.

Later that same month, the Bears finished fifth overall in the round robin standings at the Esso Cup tournament, which was held in Morden, Man. They just missed out making the playoff round with a 2-3 record.

The Bears are all smiles after their epic comeback win.

Looking back now, the excitement Prince Albert that season had for the Bears in 2016-17 seemed to be a prelude in “Hockey Town North” for the huge excitement that followed for the Raiders in their special 2018-19 campaign.

Of course in 2018-19, the Raiders topped the WHL standings with a 54-10-2-2 record and went on to win the WHL title thanks to Dante Hannoun’s overtime winner of Game 7 of the league championship series at the Art Hauser Centre.

In 2016-17, it was Anderson’s late third period goal and the Bears that took centre stage at the Art Hauser Centre. Prince Albert rallied around the Bears as they collected championship trophies and banners.

Camryn Amundson enjoys her moment with the trophy.

The Bears crafted a story in 2016-17 which will be passed down through generations in P.A.

That season, the Bears truly embodied the romantic image of “Hockey Town North.”

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Impressive epic comeback sends Bears to first Esso Cup

Prince Albert erases three-goal deficit in thrilling 7-6 victory

The Prince Albert Northern Bears celebrate their Western regional win.

    PRINCE ALBERT - In a comeback worthy of the Edmonton Oilers teams of the 1980s, the Prince Albert Northern Bears are bound for the Esso Cup for the first time in team history.

    On Saturday night at the Art Hauser Centre, the Bears trailed the Hartney, Man., based Westman Wildcats 6-3 with 13:24 to play in the third period in Game 2 of a female midget AAA Western regional playdown series. It appeared the Wildcats were going to force the best-of-three set to a series deciding Game 3, which would have been played on Sunday.

    Cue the comeback. The Bears rallied back with four straight goals to pull out a 7-6 victory and sweep the series 2-0 to capture The Lanchbery Family Trophy.

Brooklyn Anderson (#7) scored the series winning goal for the Bears.

    Forward Brooklyn Anderson tipped home a point shot from defender Jordan Ashe for the game and series winning tally with two minutes to play in the third.

    With the win, the Bears earned a berth to the Esso Cup female midget AAA national championship tournament, which runs April 23 to 29 in Morden, Man.

    “It feels amazing,” said Anderson. “I know the team was really excited to get there.

    “We weren’t losing this. We wanted to get there, and we got there, so that is awesome.

    “I saw Jordan (Ashe) had it on the point, and I knew that I just needed to get in front of the net. It is exactly what I did, and it just went off my stick and in.”

    Anderson’s goal concluded what was a wild shootout of a contest. The Wildcats scored on their first two shots of the game to go ahead 2-0, but the Bears stormed back to take a 3-2 edge early in the second.

Ashton Bell, right, scored twice for the Wildcats.

    The visitors proceed to score four straight to go ahead 6-3, but the host Bears never gave up.

    At the 7:38 mark of the third, Bears forward Miranda Heidt slipped a pass across the front of the Westman goal to Prince Albert captain Brooke Hobson. Hobson potted the first tally in the rally to cut the Wildcats edge to 6-4.

    With 7:54 to play in the third, Hobson blasted home a point shot for her second goal of the game to pull the Bears to within 6-5. The hosts tied the contest with a power-play goal from star forward Abby Soyko with 3:13 remaining in the third. That set the stage for Anderson’s winner.

    “I just can’t believe the determination of these girls,” said Bears head coach Jeff Willoughby. “That is all it comes down to is their determination and want. It is incredible.”

Kate Ball breaks into the offensive zone for the Bears.

    Kate Ball, Camryn Amundson and Story Navrot also had singles for the Bears, while Brooklyn Elek made 24 stops to pick up the win in goal.

    Josee Casavant and Ashton Bell, who was the captain of Canada’s under-18 national women’s team, each scored twice for the Wildcats, while Camryn Clyne and Haley Wickham had singles. Kaitlyn Slator turned away 19 shots to take the loss in goal for the Wildcats.

    The Bears took Game 1 of the series 6-4 on Friday at the Art Hauser Centre. Willoughby, whose favourite NHL team happens to be the Oilers, was amazed the Bears and Wildcats combined to score 23 goals in two games considering playoff games at the female midget AAA level are usually tight 3-2 or 2-1 contests.

    “Both teams kind of just let it loose,” said Willoughby. “It was kind of run and gun and fun to play in and fun to coach. I’m sure all the fans got more than their money’s worth here.

Captain Brooke Hobson sparked the Bears rally with a pair of goals.

    “It was incredible to coach in I will say that first of all. There was lots of intensity on the bench.

    “The girls didn’t get down too low, didn’t get up too high. It was very good.”

    Hobson, who was also a member of Canada’s under-18 national women’s team, was proud of how her Bears rose to the challenge to rally back in Saturday’s series clincher.
    The 17-year-old defender said she went hard on the celebration of her first goal that started the rally to get her side fired up, and she believed the tactic worked.

    Playing in her final season of midget eligibility, Hobson was elated she will finally get to go to the Esso Cup in her fifth and last trip through the midget AAA post-season.
    Going into Esso Cup, the Bears are a perfect 11-0 in the post-season, and they have won 15 straight including action in the regular season.

The Bears pose for a team picture after winning the Western regional series.

    “It is an unbelievable feeling here we have here tonight,” said Hobson. “We’re definitely going to be looking forward to this in the next couple of weeks.

    “I’ve been waiting for this my whole five years, so now it has finally come, and it is pretty awesome. We have to keep the momentum going, and I think everything should turn out very good.”

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Sweet title sweep for Bears

P.A. turns tables on Stars from 2015, wins Fedoruk Cup

Bears captain Brooke Hobson holds the Fedoruk Cup during a team picture.

    Winning a league championship was all that much more sweet for Brooke Hobson, because she remember all too well what it was like to be on the other side.

    The captain for the Prince Albert Northern Bears has way too many bad memories about how tough it was to be swept out of the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League championship series losing the series clinching game to the host Saskatoon Stars at the Agriplace Arena two years ago. 

    Fast forward to Tuesday night and Hobson and her Bears were back at the Agriplace Arena in the SFMAAAHL final looking to sweep away the Stars, who were the two-time defending league champs.

    The Bears pulled out a 4-2 victory to sweep the best-of-five series 3-0 and capture the Fedoruk Cup for the second time in team history before a packed house. Prince Albert last won the SFMAAAHL title back in 2009.

Captain Brooke Hobson is the Bears grizzled vet.

    “It is awesome,” said Hobson. “This is my fifth year trying to run for the title and getting it in my last year definitely means a lot to me.

    “I have been working hard since my first day on this team, and this finally came to pay off here. The emotions are definitely flipped upside down here from losing. Having beat the team that beat us that last year we were in the finals definitely means a lot.”

    Hobson, who was a member of Canada’s under-18 women’s team, is the most battled hardened out of all the Bears players. The 17-year-old defender, who is in her final season of midget eligibility, has appeared in a team record 128 regular season games piling up 41 goals and 45 assists. She has appeared in an SFMAAAHL record 46 playoffs games posting five goals and 24 assists.

    In Game 3 on Tuesday, Hobson had a key role in manufacturing her side’s biggest goal of the season. With the Bears locked in a 2-2 draw with the Stars in the third period, Hobson fed a pass to forward Jasper Desmarais to spring a two-on-one break.

    Desmarais fed a perfect pass across the front of the Saskatoon net to linemate Camryn Amundson, who calmly tucked home the championship winner at the 12:19 mark of the frame.

Brooklyn Anderson jets up ice for the Bears.

    “She (Amundson) comes out shinning whenever we need her,” said Hobson. “I am super proud of her and my whole team. She is awesome.”

    Amundson, who is in her second season with the Bears, was pumped to be the finisher on what she thought was some great work by her teammates.

    “It was the perfect pass,” said Amundson. “Jasper (Desmarais) gave me the perfect pass, and if I missed it, I would have been so disappointed.”

    “It wasn’t that great of a shot, but it snuck through. I am just glad it did.”

    The Stars came out with the big jump, when forward Brooke Hausermann scored at the 3:21 mark of the first period on her team’s third shot of the contest to give Saskatoon a 1-0 lead. The hosts held a 10-5 edge in shots over the opening 20 minutes and carried the majority of the play over that time.

    Momentum changed early in the second, when Bears standout forward Abby Soyko scored in her team’s first shot of the period to tie things up a 1-1 just 2:27 in. Brooklyn Anderson proceeded to put the Bears ahead 2-1 scoring just 2:07 after Soyko’s goal.

    Saskatoon regrouped before the second period ended. During a net scramble with 3:24 to play, Jordyn Gerlitz scored to put the Stars on even terms with the Bears at 2-2.

Hannah Koroll (#20) makes a clear for the Bears.

    That set the stage for the play that resulted in Amundson’s series winner. Jadyn Kushniruk added an empty-net tally with 24.7 seconds to play to round out the scoring for the Bears.

    Bears head coach Jeff Willoughby, who is in his sixth season guiding the team as head coach, was proud to see his players win the SFMAAAHL title and quietly admitted it felt good from a personal standpoint.

    “It is like you built a big building,” said Willoughby. “It has been a long time coming.

    “We have seven girls that played in this final two years ago. We had 11 girls that lost a heartbreaker last year in the semifinals.

    “We’ve had our chance to be on the other side, the losing side, so we know what it feels like. It makes this win special.”

    Ryan Fontaine turned away 24 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Bears, who posted a perfect 9-0 record in the SFMAAAHL playoffs. Jordan Ivanco stopped 22-of-25 shots to take the loss in net for the Stars.

Alli Soyko (#22) enjoys victory with a couple of her Bears teammates.

    Willoughby said his players did a good job playing as a unit of five throughout the series, which helped put the Bears in favourable situations.

    “I think from the first game it was our plan to make sure we tried to match them five-on-five, don’t over pursue pucks and cause two-on-one situations for them,” said Willoughby. “I think the girls were resilient doing that.

    “They were consistent, and I think that was the biggest factor.”

    The Bears will now host a best-of-three Western regional playdown series against the Westman Wildcats, who play out of Hartney, Man. Game 1 of that series is set for March 31 at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.