Huskies squeak out ninth win in a row, nail down playoff bye

Jared Dmytriw had the winning goal for the Huskies on Saturday.

    Riley Lamb nearly robbed the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team.

    The first year netminder for the University of Manitoba Bisons came up with an incredible 42 save performance on Saturday night at the Wayne Fleming Arena in Winnipeg, Man. The 21-year-old gave his Bisons a prime opportunity to steal a victory, but his effort wasn’t enough to keep the Huskies at bay.

    The Huskies overcame an early 2-0 first period deficit and ultimately rallied for a 4-3 victory in the U Sports regular season clash to pull out a ninth straight victory. The win allowed the Huskies, who are rated second in the U Sports Top 10 rankings, to improve to 20-4-2 to ensure they will have a bye through the first round of the Canada West playoffs and will host a best-of-three semifinal series.

    The Huskies and their “forever rivals” the U of Alberta Golden Bears (21-5) are guaranteed to finish in the top two positions of the Canada West Conference standings. Both squads have two games remaining on their respective regular season schedules.

    Both teams have 42 points to hold down the first and second spots in the Canada West standings. The Golden Bears hold the standings tiebreaker having won three out of the four head-to-head meetings between the two sides.

Kohl Bauml scored for the Huskies on Saturday.

    Against the Bisons on Saturday, the Huskies fell behind 2-0, when Bisons defenceman Ryan Carlson scored 48 seconds into the first period and again at the 3:15 mark of the opening frame.
    The Huskies battled back to even the score at 2-2 heading into the first intermission with goals coming from the sticks of rookie winger Justin Ball and fifth-year winger Kohl Bauml.

    U of S held a 16-5 advantage in shots on goal after the opening 20 minutes.

    In the second, fifth-year centre Logan McVeigh scored 65 seconds into the frame to give the Huskies a 3-2 lead. The Huskies were unable to add to their advantage despite holding a 19-3 edge in shots on goal.

    At the 7:01 mark of the third, Bisons fifth-year offensive defenceman Adam Henry netted his 10th goal of the season to even the score at 3-3.

    Rookie centre Jared Dmytriw potted his 10^th of the season and the game winner with 2:58 remaining in the third to put the Huskies ahead for good at 4-3.

    Sophomore netminder Travis Child turned away 16 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Huskies.

    The Bisons fell to 9-13-2-2 to sit fifth in the Canada West standings.

    After starting 0-3-1, the Huskies have rolled off a 20-1-1 record over their past 22 outings. 

Logan McVeigh scored for the Huskies on Saturday.

    They have battled the injury bug throughout the campaign including a rash of injuries at the start of the season on defence.
    The Huskies can still finish first in Canada West, if the Golden Bears, who are rated fourth in the U Sports Top 10 rankings, suffer a loss in one of their final two games.

    The Huskies close their regular season schedule with a home-and-home series with the University of Regina Cougars, who sit seventh in Canada West with an 8-15-2-1 record. The Cougars need to win both games against the Huskies to give themselves the best shot to move into the top six of the Canada West standings and earn a playoff berth.

    The two sides meet this coming Friday at 7 p.m. at Merlis Belsher Place and again this coming Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Co-operators Centre in Regina.

    The Golden Bears close out their regular season schedule hosting the Bisons this coming Friday and Saturday in Edmonton.

Major third period collapse costly for Huskies women’s team

Elizabeth Salyn had a goal and an assist for the Huskies on Saturday.

    The U of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team saw a golden opportunity to move into second in the Canada West Conference standings slip through their fingers.

    On Saturday at Merlis Belsher Place, the Huskies built a 3-0 victory over the U of Manitoba Bisons after 40 minutes of play. With star fourth-year netminder Jessica Vance playing goal and the Huskies carrying the reputation of being one of the best defensive teams in the conference, it seemed like that lead would be insurmountable.

    Unexpectedly, the Bisons rallied for four straight goals in the third period to skate away with a 4-3 victory in the U Sports regular season contest.

    The Bisons improved to 9-16-1 with the win but still remained last in the eight-team Canada West Conference. Due to the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds slipping past the U of Lethbridge Pronghorns 2-1 in Vancouver, B.C., on Saturday, the Bisons were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

    The Huskies entered Saturday’s clash with the Bisons riding a seven-game winning streak. With the loss, the Huskies fell to 16-7-2-1 to sit third in the Canada West standings with 49 points coming off 14 regulation wins, two extra time wins and three extra time setbacks.

    U of S trails the U of Calgary Dinos (16-7-1-2) by one point for second place. The Dinos have 50 points in the standings coming off 15 regulation wins, one extra time win and three extra time setbacks.
    In Canada West women’s hockey, teams are awarded three points in the standings for regulation wins, two points for extra time wins and one point for extra time setbacks.
    The top two teams in Canada West earn byes past the first round of the playoffs and the opportunity to host best-of-three Canada West semifinal series.

Shyan Elias had an assist for the Huskies on Saturday.

    Both the Huskies and Dinos have two games remaining on their respective regular season schedules. The Huskies hold the standings tiebreaker over the Dinos having won all four head-to-head encounters between the two sides.

    The Huskies can’t finish any lower than third or any higher than second in Canada West.

    The U of Alberta Pandas (19-7) top the Canada West standings with 56 points coming off 18 regulation wins and one extra time win. The Pandas, who are rated fifth in the U Sports Top 10 rankings, need to earn one more point in the standings to lock up first in Canada West.

    The Dinos hold the standings tiebreaker against the Pandas having one three out of four head-to-head encounters between the two sides.

    In Saturday’s clash between the Huskies and the Dinos, fifth-year centre Elizabeth Salyn scored to give the Huskies a 1-0 lead in the first period with fifth-year veteran left-winger Shyan Elias and third-year right winger Abby Shirley picking up assists. 
    Fifth-year left-winger Rachel Lundberg and sophomore forward Kara Kondrat each netted their first goals of the campaign in the second period to put the Huskies up 3-0.
    Salyn had an assist on Lundberg’s goal to finish with a two-point night.

    At that point, things fell apart for the host side. Just 1:42 into the third, third-year left-winger Mekaela Fisher scored for the Bisons to cut the Huskies lead to 3-1.

    At the 10:44 mark of the third, fourth-year right-winger Sheridan Oswald tallied for the Bisons to cut the Huskies edge to 3-2.

    With 1:26 remaining in the third, Bisons fifth-year captain Jordyn Zacharias scored the equalizer to force a 3-3 tie. Just seven seconds after that tally, Bisons rookie right-winger Kate Gregoire scored the winner for the visitors to cement the final score a 4-3.

    Zacharias had two assists to go with her goal.

    Vance turned away 16 shots to take the setback in goal for the Huskies. Fifth-year veteran Amanda Schubert turned away 20 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Bisons.

    The Huskies also failed to score on three third period power-play chances as the Bisons roared back on the scoreboard to add to the collapse for the host side.

Kara Kondrat had a goal for the Huskies on Saturday.

    The Huskies close their regular season with a home-and-home series against the U of Regina Cougars, who sit fourth in Canada West with a 13-13 record. The two sides meet this coming Friday at 7 p.m. at the Co-operators Centre in Regina.

    They then go at it on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Merlis.

    The Dinos close their season with a home-and-home series with the Pronghorns (9-14-1-2). They go at it this coming Friday in Lethbridge and again this coming Saturday in Calgary.

    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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Huskies shake away pesky Pronghorns with comeback

Logan McVeigh (#14) sets to embrace teammates after scoring an OT winner.

    The University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team always seems to have a battle on their hands, when the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns come to town.

    On Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the Huskies needed some late game heroics to rally from a 3-2 deficit and pull out an exciting 4-3 double overtime victory. Trailing the Pronghorns 3-2 late in the third, the Huskies pulled netminder Jordon Cooke for an extra attacker.

    With 75 seconds to play, Huskies right-winger Levi Cable attempted a wraparound and his shot rebounded out to teammate Collin Shirley, who was alone in front of the Pronghorns goal. Shirley fired the equalizer home into an empty right side of the U of Lethbridge goal to force a 3-3 tie and send the U Sports regular season contest to overtime.

Centre Logan McVeigh gets set to fire a shot on goal for the Huskies.

    After a scoreless five minute four-on-four overtime period, the Huskie won the contest 44 seconds into a three-on-three second overtime session with a breakaway goal from centre Logan McVeigh. After a shot block in the Huskies end, McVeigh found himself in a race with Pronghorns captain Mitchell Maxwell for the puck into the centre ice zone.

    Maxwell toe picked and went down to allow McVeigh to have a clean rush into the Pronghorns zone. McVeigh smartly tucked a backhand shot past Pronghorns netminder Garret Hughson to win the game.

    Hughson had a spectacular night turning away 46 shots to take the loss in goal for the Pronghorns, who fell to 1-1-1.

    “It was a tight finish,” said McVeigh, whose Huskies improved to 3-0. “Coming back late in games, that is what good teams do.

Winger Collin Shirley (#11) celebrates scoring a game-tying goal.

    “We want to be that good team that can be down a goal late in the third and comeback, so that is good for us.”

    The Pronghorns protested at first thinking McVeigh hauled down Maxwell to get the breakaway. At full speed, it could appear that McVeigh committed an infraction, but that wasn’t the case.

    “They were pretty upset about it,” said McVeigh. “I thought it was just a battle for the puck.

    “I managed to stay on my feet, and he managed to fall over. It was just a hockey play.”

    The Huskies actually never held the lead in Friday’s encounter until McVeigh potted the winner in overtime.

    In the first period, rookie right-winger Tyler Maltby gave the Pronghorns a 1-0, but fifth-year left-winger Josh Roach tallied for the Huskies to send the teams into the first intermission locked in a 1-1 tie.

    The Huskies brought tonnes of pressure Hughson’s way in the second period, but the Pronghorns exited the frame with a 2-1 edge, when Maxwell fired home a shot from the slot with 59 seconds remaining in the stanza.

Pronghorns G Garret Hughson (#29) pokes the puck out of danger.

    At the 3:33 mark of the third, the Huskies tied the contest up at 2-2, when Roach found rookie left-winger Alex Forsberg on a backdoor feed. Forsberg made no mistake in firing the puck into an open cage.

    Just over three minutes later, sophomore right-winger Torrin White tipped home a point shot from Maxwell to put the Pronghorns up 3-2.

    That set the stage for the late heroics coming from Shirley and McVeigh for the Huskies. The pair have teamed up with Forsberg to form a dangerous offensive line for the Huskies in the early going of the campaign.

    “I love playing with Collin (Shirley) all the time,” said McVeigh. “To see him getting that equalizer late in the third, it is awesome.

    “Thankfully, I managed to get the overtime (winner).”

Netminder Jordon Cooke (#32) makes a big stop for the Huskies.

    While Hughson had to stand on his head, Huskies fourth-year star veteran goalie Jordon Cooke put on a strong performance turning away 27 shots to pick up the win in the U of S net.

    Friday’s game was a real high tempo contest with a lot of back-and-fourth action up and down the ice.
    The two sides go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rutherford, and McVeigh is expecting another tough contest.

    “They are not usually that great of a team in the standings, but they always play us well,” said McVeigh. “They always play well in this rink.

    “Their goaltender played a heck of a game. They always play us hard, and thank goodness we got the win.”

Anderson steals victory for Pronghorns women’s team

Kira Bannatyne had an assist for the Huskies.

    Netminder Alicia Anderson turned into “the Great Wall” of Lethbridge on Friday night, and that spelled big trouble for the U of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team.

    The third-year Calgary product turned away 44 shots to back the host U of Lethbridge Pronghorns to a 2-1 overtime victory over the Huskies at the Nicholas Sheran Arena. Alli Borrow scored at the 4:02 mark of a four-on-four overtime period to give the Pronghorns (2-1) the win.

    The Huskies outshot the Pronghorns 21-9 in the opening frame, but came away only with a 1-0 lead on a tally from third-year forward Elizabeth Salyn. Rookie centre Chloe Smith and fifth-year defender Kira Bannatyne picked up assists on the play.

    Pronghorns fourth-year forward Brett Campbell scored to force a 1-1 tie at the 2:52 mark of the second.

    The Huskies, who were playing without star fifth-year captain Kaitlin Willoughby due to a suspected undisclosed injury, couldn’t find the go ahead goal despite hold a big edge in territorial play. Jasey Book stopped 20 shots to take the loss in net for the Huskies (1-1-1).

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday night in Lethbridge.

    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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    If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.

Thunderbirds withstand Huskies' fight

UBC's Haneet Parhar (#12) battles U of S's Elizabeth Salyn (#3) for the puck.

    In what may have been one of their most intense performances of the season, the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team deserved a way better fate.

    On Friday night at the ancient Rutherford Rink, the Huskies showed the grit and character that is currently being displayed by the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades. Facing the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds who top the U Sports women’s hockey top 10 rankings, the Huskies didn’t back down anywhere and took the fight to their foes, which at times meant literally. The squads engaged in a few post-whistle scrums.

    When the dust settled, the Thunderbirds, like any top ranked club, found a way to pull a victory out of what was an extremely hot fire. Playing in a three-on-three double overtime period, the Thunderbirds broke in on a two-on-one break, when the Huskies were still trying to change a couple of players.

Huskies forward Kaitlin Willoughby wins a battle for a loose puck.

    Mathea Fischer, who is from Oslo, Norway, fed a nice pass past a Huskies defender to lineman Nicole Saxvik, and the fifth year forward buried her ninth goal of the season to deliver the Thunderbirds to a 2-1 victory. The Thunderbirds improved to 18-3, while the Huskies fell to 11-7-3.

In defeat, the Huskies showed the potential they have.

    The Thunderbirds started the contest with a mini momentum spurt, before things turned in favour of the home side. At the 7:19 mark of the opening frame, speedy forward Kaitlin Willoughby set up Elizabeth Salyn for her third goal of the season on just the Huskies second shot of the contest.

    From that point, the Huskies came at the Thunderbirds in waves. UBC rookie goalie Amelia Boughn stood on her head to ensure the Huskies didn’t get ahead by more, as U of S had a 10-7 edge in shots after 20 minutes.

Huskies forward Danielle Nogier fights for the puck along the boards.

    In the second, the Huskies created more scoring chances, but couldn’t find the back of the net. Willoughby set up fifth-year forward Rachel Johnson in the slot with a nice pass through traffic. Johnson didn’t get all of the puck on her shot, and Boughn came up with the stop.

    With their effort, there were times the Huskies were a little too aggressive, which resulted in the Thunderbirds getting four straight power-plays in the second frame. On the third of those opportunities, Fischer beat Huskies netminder Cassidy Hendricks with a high looping shot to tie things up at 1-1.

    In the third, the Huskies really kept bringing the pressure. Right off the opening faceoff, Willoughby blew in on a breakaway and wired a shot that just missed the top corner of the UBC goal.

    A short time later, fourth-year forward Kori Herner found herself on a breakaway, but she was denied by Boughn. The UBC goalie gave up a rebound on Herner’s shot, which allowed Johnson a scoring chance, but she was also stopped.

The Thunderbirds, left, celebrate their overtime winning goal.

    Following those opportunities, Willoughby, who was playing with as aggressiveness similar to former Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Chris Schlenker, found herself on another breakaway, but Boughn came up big again for the Thunderbirds.

    Near the end of the third, rookie forward Bailee Bourassa, who used to pile up the goals for the Weyburn Gold Wings midget AAA team, had two chances in close but was unable to find the go-ahead tally.

    After the two teams played through a scoreless four-on-four overtime period, that set the stage for the Thunderbirds to get the winner in the second extra frame.

    Boughn made 27 mostly extremely hard stops for the Thunderbirds. Hendricks turned away 23 shots in net for the Huskies.

    The Huskies biggest hurt came from the fact they went 0-for-5 on the power play. So far this season, they have converted on just 10.8 per cent of their chances with the one person advantage.

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Rutherford.

Woytowich honoured in Play for a Cure

Hailey Woytowich, centre, drops the puck for a ceremonial faceoff.

    Tonight’s Huskies game was a big one for my family as my young cousin Hailey Woytowich dropped the puck for the ceremonial faceoff as part of the Huskie Play for a Cure game.

    Woytowich graduated from Bethlehem Catholic High School last June, while fighting cancer. At one point in time, she had a big lump on her neck, while fighting the disease. She had surgery over the summer and was declared cancer free.

    With that bit of news, she became the first person in my family that I know of to survive a battle with cancer. Cancer has taken the lives of many members of my family.

    Woytowich was brought to centre ice by another one of my young cousins in Danielle Nogier, who is a rookie forward with the Huskies, and fifth-year defender Alyssa Dobler, who is Woytowich’s neighbour and a long time best friend.

    Woytowich, who was nervous about the puck drop, made quick work of the formalities quickly dropping the puck between Huskies captain Lauren Zary and Thunderbirds captain Stephanie Schaupmeyer. Following the game, Woytowich also got Nogier’s game jersey as a keepsake.

    Since I moved back to Saskatoon in the summer of 2014, I still have a hard time keeping track of all my family members. I believe I speak for everyone in thanking the Huskies for the special night.

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

Ervine finds OT magic

Huskies halt Bisons five-game winning streak with 3-2 win

Marley Ervine is all smiles after scoring an OT winner.

    Marley Ervine was in the right place at the right time, when the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team needed her the most.

    With the Huskies locked in a 2-2 draw with the visiting University of Manitoba Bisons in a three-versus-three double overtime period, Ervine was sprung in on a breakaway after a turnover near the Bisons blue-line. The feisty fifth-year forward laser beamed a shot past Bisons goalie Rachel Dyck to give the Huskies a 3-2 victory on Friday night at the Rutherford Rink.

    The goal came after Ervine was snakebitten on a number of chances throughout the contest.

    “It felt pretty good,” said Ervine. “I felt like I had a few chances tonight. It was finally nice to see one be successful.

    “I was pretty tired, so I just thought get a quick shot off and maybe have a rebound, if I don’t score on the first one. I just wanted to get the puck on (goal) for sure.”

    The victory ended a five game winning streak for the Bisons (7-5-1) and put a wrap on a three-game skid for the Huskies (8-3-2), who were rated eighth in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport top ten rankings.

    Momentum swung back and forth during regulation. The visitors jumped ahead 1-0, when fifth-year forward Kayleigh Wiens scored on a wraparound just 1:27 into the second period.

    The Huskies battled back to go ahead 2-1 heading into the second intermission. First, rookie forward Elizabeth Salyn roofed home her first career regular season CIS goal through a screen to tie things up at 1-1.

    About three minutes after that tally, standout forward Kaitlin Willoughby blew past the Bisons defence to score on a breakaway to give the hosts a 2-1 edge.

    In the third, the Bisons found the equalizer with 6:45 to play in the frame, when defender Erica Rieder scored from close in.

Marley Ervine gets set to drive a shot on goal for the Huskies.

    When the contest advanced into overtime, the Huskies held a decided edge in territorial play through a five-minute four-on-four period, and they maintained that advantage in a second five-minute frame with three-on-three play.

    The offensive zone pressure finally resulted in the turnover that created Ervine’s overtime goal. As university teams play only on weekends, the Huskies three-game skid meant they last celebrated victory on Oct. 30 in Edmonton, when they downed the University of Alberta Pandas 3-2 after a tiebreaking shootout.

    Ervine was pleased to see her team get back in the win column and also put an end to the Bisons winning streak in the process.

    “It definitely feels nice,” said Ervine. “It is nice to hear the win song in the dressing room for the first time in a long time.

    “Our league is so tight that anyone can beat anyone, so it is nice to see that we can kind of knock a team off their pedestal for a bit here.”

    Cassidy Hendricks turned away 19 shots to earn the win in goal for the Huskies, while Dyck made 24 stops to take the extra time loss for the Bisons.

    Both teams go at it again on Saturday at 5 p.m. at the Rutherford Rink.

Huskies men’s team eclipses last season’s win total

Josh Roach powers a Huskies victory with a three-point night.

    A three-point night from Josh Roach helped the U of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team to surpass last season’s win total before the current campaign hit its halfway point.

    On Friday night in Winnipeg, Roach had a goal and two assists to help the Huskies double up the host U of Manitoba Bisons 6-3. The win allowed the Huskies, who are rated third in the CIS rankings, to improve to 11-2. Last season, the Huskies posted a 10-15-3 mark.

    Against the Bisons on Friday, the Huskies found themselves locked in 2-2 draw after 20 minutes and a 3-3 tie after 40 minutes. The visitors surged for three goals in the third to round out the contest’s scoring.

    Matthew Spafford, Parker Thomas, Jesse Forsberg, Levi Cable and Jordan Fransoo all netted singles for the Huskies, while Blake Voth turned away 26 shots to earn the win in goal.

    Warren Callis, Shaq Merasty and Brett Stovin, who is a former captain of the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades, replied with singles for the Bisons (5-6-2). Byron Spriggs turned away 33-of-38 shots to take the loss in goal.

    Both teams face each other again on Saturday in Winnipeg.

    If you want to pass along any comments about this blog post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. Check out more game photo on Twitter @StanksSports.