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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Champs again! - Stars capture third SFMAAAHL title with sweep

Stars captain Mackenna Parker, right, raises the Fedoruk Cup.

    The Saskatoon Stars weren’t going to be denied in their quest to recapture the Fedoruk Cup.

    A year ago, the Stars were swept away 3-0 by the Prince Albert Northern Bears in the best-of-five Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League Championships Series, which the Stars had won in 2015 and 2016. This year, the Stars returned the favour.

    On Tuesday night at the Agriplace Arena, the Stars scored twice late in the first period of Game 3 of the SFMAAAHL title series to erase an early 1-0 deficit to take a 2-1 lead on the Bears. 

    Saskatoon held on over the next two frames to cement that 2-1 score as the final outcome for Game 3 to sweep the series 3-0 to claim the SFMAAAHL championship banner and the Fedoruk Cup.

The Stars celebrate winning the SFMAAAHL title and the Fedoruk Cup.

    “It feels amazing,” said Stars captain Mackenna Parker. “I have been waiting for it for two years now.

    “Finally, we came together and did it. It is so exciting.”

    For a lengthy stretch of the opening frame, it appeared the Bears were going to force the series to go to a Game 4. They took a 1-0 lead on a well-executed power-play goal at the 5:25 mark of the first.

    Bears physical defender Jordan Ashe passed the puck from the point down to the Jadyn Kushniruk at the right side of the Saskatoon goal. Kushniruk passed the puck across front of the Saskatoon net to skilled centre Kate Ball, who tucked home the opening tally of the contest.

Kate Ball scored to give the Bears an early lead.

    Stars netminder Arden Kliewer had to make a number of big stops to keep the Bears from extending their advantage, which included turning away Ball on a backdoor opportunity later in the frame.

    With 2:58 remaining in the first, Stars forward Kaitlin Jockims took a pass from Anna Leschyshyn to pot the equalizer to tie things up at 1-1.

    Parker proceeded to net the series winner with 12.5 seconds to play in the first period, when she swooped across the front of the Prince Albert goal and tucked home a backhand shot between the legs of Bears netminder Ryan Fontaine. Leschyshyn picked up an assist on that tally as well.

    “I didn’t know if it was going to go through or not, but it did,” said Parker. “It just ended up going five-hole.”

    After 20 minutes, the shots on goal were even at 14-14 thanks to the Stars push in the final three minutes of the frame. Stars head coach Greg Slobodzian said the two goals his side scored at the end of the first was the turning point of Game 3.

Kaitlin Jockims had the equalizer for the Stars on Tuesday night.

    “P.A. came out hard,” said Slobodzian. “We knew they were going to come out hard. You have a team like that which plays hard all the time and then you back them into a corner, they really sent it.

    “We weathered the storm. As soon as we scored those two goals, I was like to play that hard and come out down one goal that is sort of disheartening. They continued to push for sure, but they didn’t have the same jump that they had.”

    The Stars carried play for much of the second period outshooting the Bears 13-5. Netminder Ryan Fontaine made a number of big saves for the Bears to ensure the Stars didn’t get any further ahead on the scoreboard.

    In the third, Bears captain Hannah Koroll likely had the best chance to net the equalizer for her side firing a hard mid-range drive on goal in the second half of the frame, but Kliewer turned away the shot. Outside of Koroll’s opportunity, Saskatoon clamped things down defensively to close out the victory.

Captain Mackenna Parker celebrates her series winning goal for the Stars.

    “It is awesome,” said Jockims of the win. “It is a great feeling to share with all my friends and family.”

    Kliewer made 25 stops to pick up the win in goal for the Stars. Fontaine turned away 33 shots to take the setback in the Bears net.

    In Game 2 in Prince Albert on Sunday, Kliewer had a huge outing turning away 30 shots to back the Stars to a 4-2 win. After experiencing what it was like to be swept out of the SFMAAAHL title series a year ago by the Bears in her rookie campaign with the Stars, Kliewer was pumped to be on the winning side this time around as second-year player.

    “It feels great to comeback this year and sweep them the same as they did to us last year,” said Kliewer. “It is an amazing feeling.”

Goalie Ryan Fontaine makes one of her 33 saves for the Bears.

    As for her play in net, Kliewer said she was riding a good vibe.

    “I was just feeling the puck having a good game,” said Kliewer. “I had a good team in front of me. I was just feeling it.”

    Tuesday’s victory marked the third time in four years the Stars captured the SFMAAAHL championship. Parker along with forwards Kianna Dietz, Jordyn Gerlitz and Jordyn Holmes played for the Stars in all three league championship seasons.

    This year’s league championship series had been pegged as another big showdown as the Stars finished first in the SFMAAAHL regular season with a 24-3-1 record, while the Bears were second with a 22-5-1 mark.

Goalie Arden Kliewer makes one of her 25 stops in goal for the Stars.

    Slobodzian said the run by his team has been a remarkable one.

    “I’ve always said I have been blessed with really, really good athletes who are eager to get better and want to play the right way,” said Slobodzian. “These are the outcomes that you get.

    “I’m just happy for them. We work those girls so hard in practice, and they are so committed in their dryland. To get rewarded for all that work, it means a lot.”

    The Stars now advance to play in a best-of-three female midget AAA Western regional playdown series versus the Manitoba female midget AAA champion.

Jordyn Holmes, left, and Jordyn Gerlitz enjoy the Fedoruk Cup.

    The best-of-five Manitoba championship series is still going on as the Eastman Selects, who are based in Ste. Anne, have a 2-1 edge in the set on the defending champion Pembina Valley Hawks, who are based in Morden. The latest that series is slated to go on is Friday.

    The winner of the Manitoba championship series will host the Stars for the entire Wester regional playdown series.

    “Everyone on this team gets along so well,” said Jockims. “It is just awesome to have a couple of more weeks together.”

    The club that takes the playdown series advances to the Esso Cup national female midget AAA championship tournament, which runs April 22 to 28 in Bridgewater, N.S.

The Stars celebrate their third SFMAAAHL title in four years.

    Parker, Dietz, Gerlitz and Holmes are all playing out their final campaign of midget AAA eligibility along with defender Dana Wood and netminder Jordan Ivanco. The Stars captain was happy that her team’s season will continue in April.

    “I don’t have to worry about hockey being done,” said Parker. “We can just keep going.

    “I don’t want leave that great group of girls that we have here.”

    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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Wheat Kings withstand Blades’ battle, clinch playoff berth

Ty Lewis (#14) fist bumps with James Shearer (#32) after Brandon’s win.

    Stelio Mattheos said his Brandon Wheat Kings weren’t at their best, but the 18-year-old centre was pleased his club locked up a playoff berth with a gutty road win.

    On Saturday night at the SaskTel Centre, the Wheat Kings had to withstand the battle of a fired up host Saskatoon Blades side, who were playing in front of 5,826 spectators. 

    The Wheat Kings scored some timely goals and road a 29-save performance from sophomore netminder Dylan Myskiw to pull out a 4-2 victory.

The victory allowed the Wheat Kings to improve to 37-26-3-2 and lock up a playoff berth for a fifth straight year.

    “It is a good feeling,” said Mattheos. “It is a bit of a relief.

    “Guys worked hard for it for sure in the last bit. It is not our best game, but we’ll take it.”

Stelio Mattheos scored the Wheat Kings first goal on Saturday.

    The Wheat Kings are riding a three-game winning streak looking to reverse the struggles they’ve had in the second half of the campaign. Entering play on Jan. 3, Brandon sat third overall in the WHL standings with a 25-11-0-1 record and was rated fifth in the CHL Top 10 rankings.

    The Wheat Kings were also playing in an East Division that saw the Moose Jaw Warriors, Swift Current Broncos and Memorial Cup hosting Regina Pats all make deals to stack their teams this season before the WHL trade deadline rolled around on Jan. 10. 

    Before the deadline on Jan. 10, the Wheat Kings dealt star defenceman Kale Clague and then captain Tanner Kaspick in separate trades to the Moose Jaw Warriors and Victoria Royals respectively for a plethora of players and WHL Bantam Draft picks.

Dylan Myskiw, left, knocks the puck up to one of his defencemen.

    Since their high point entering play on Jan. 3, the Wheat Kings posted a 12-15-3-1 record in their last 31 games. When they locked up a playoff berth on Saturday, the Wheat Kings were holding the first wildcard spot in the WHL’s Eastern Conference.

    Mattheos, who is second in Wheat Kings team scoring with 41 goals and 45 assists, believes his team is on the start of an upward swing during this last stretch heading to the end of the regular season.

    “We want to keep building our game heading into playoffs,” said Mattheos. “Once we get to playoffs, we want to do some damage.

    “We want to prove some people wrong and obviously win as many games as we can.”

Wheat Kings RW Evan Weinger, left, checks Blades D Jackson Caller.

    Saturday’s outing didn’t have the best start for the Wheat Kings. Saskatoon had the visitors pinned in their zone for much of the frame.

    The Blades were playing a lot more free and easy than they had in Friday’s 5-4 overtime loss to the Calgary Hitmen and Tuesday’s 6-5 win over the Edmonton Oil Kings.

    Out of seemingly nowhere, the Wheat Kings jumped ahead 1-0, when Mattheos scored on a backhand shot with 46.5 seconds to play in the opening frame.

    At the 9:38 mark of the second period, left-winger Linden McCorrister wired home his 18^th goal of the season to give Brandon a 2-0 lead.

Michael Farren snaps a shot on goal for the Blades.

    Just over three minutes later, the Blades were finally rewarded for their efforts, when left-winger Michael Farren potted his 10^th goal of the season to cut the Wheat Kings lead to 2-1.

    Moments later, the Blades had a glorious chance to tie the game during a net scramble that saw centre Kirby Dach and left-winger Gage Ramsay both get turned away in close. Right after those opportunities, Wheat Kings defenceman Schael Higson sprung right-winger Luka Burzan on a breakaway.

    Burzan proceeded to tuck home his 13^th goal of the campaign to put the Wheat Kings up 3-1.

    “It was a huge goal for us,” said Mattheos. “We were in our zone for almost a minute.

    “Dylan (Myskiw) stood on his head, and we kind of just caught a break. Good on Burz (Burzan) to finish that goal.”

    The Blades didn’t go away. At the 6:47 mark of the third period, right-winger Josh Paterson scored on the power play to cut Brandon’s lead to 3-2. The hosts pushed hard looking for the equalizer.

Cole Reinhardt had an empty-net goal for the Wheat Kings.

    Inside of the final minute of the third period, the Blades sprung left-winger Eric Florchuk into the Brandon zone on a breakaway, but he was turned away by Myskiw.

    Cole Reinhardt sealed victory for the Wheat Kings scoring into an empty net with 17.3 seconds to play in the third period.

    Nolan Maier turned away 12-of-15 shots to take the setback in goal for Saskatoon.

    While the Blades scored once on the power play, Mattheos said the four successful penalty kills his squad had played a key role in Saturday’s outcome along with the saves made by Myskiw.

    “I think goaltending was huge,” said Mattheos. “We give big credit to Dylan (Myskiw) for the win, and also our PK I think was really good.

    “Our power play wasn’t our best tonight, so it was nice that the PK could step up.”

    With the loss, the Blades fell to 32-32-3-1 and moved dangerously close to missing the playoffs for a fifth straight year. Out in Prince Albert, the host Raiders won their ninth straight game posting a 4-3 overtime victory over the Calgary Hitmen.

Eric Florchuk nearly capitalized on a late third period chance.

    The Raiders improved to 32-25-9-2 with their win over the Hitmen and hold the second wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference with a seven-point edge on the Blades.

    Both the Blades and Raiders have four games remaining on their respective regular season schedules, and the Raiders need to earn just two more points in the standings to clinch a playoff berth.

    The Blades are off until this coming Tuesday, when they travel to Brandon to face the Wheat Kings. The Wheat Kings will travel to Moose Jaw on Sunday before returning to Brandon to host the Blades. The Raiders return to action this coming Tuesday, when they travel to Moose Jaw to face the Warriors.

    Mattheos is one of the holdovers on the Wheat Kings roster from when they won the WHL title in 2016.

Ty Lewis and the Wheat Kings will return to the post-season.

    When the post-season rolls around, he believes that experience will be a big help to his club.

    “Just having played that many games in the playoffs and knowing what it takes and knowing how long it really is if you go deep, it is going to be huge for us,” said Mattheos. “We want to use that to our advantage.”

    NOTES – The Wheat Kings were without star overage goaltender Logan Thompson on Saturday. Thompson was injured in his team’s 6-3 victory in Brandon on Friday over the Swift Current Broncos. Ethan Kruger, who spent the season in the Alberta midget AAA ranks with the Sherwood Park J. Ennis Kings, joined the Wheat Kings to be their backup goalie. The J. Ennis Kings have been eliminated from the Alberta midget AAA playoffs.
    The Blades wore special Don Cherry style suit inspired jerseys to promote organ donation awareness.

Shirley, Fiala power Stars romp over Regina

Grace Shirley had a big night for the Stars.

    Grace Shirley and Joelle Fiala were on fire in the playoff opener for the Saskatoon Stars.

    On Saturday at the Agriplace Arena, Shirley picked up two goals and two assists and Fiala had two goals and one assist to power the Stars to a 6-0 victory over the Regina Rebels in Game 1 of a best-of-five Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League semifinal series between the two clubs.

    Thanks to finishing first overall in the SFMAAAHL, the Stars had a bye into the semifinal series. The Rebels won a best-of-five SFMAAAHL quarter-final series 3-1 against the Swift Current Diamond Energy Wildcats to advance to the semifinal series.

    The Stars led 2-0 after the first period and 5-0 after the second frame.

    Kaitlin Jockims and Mackenna Parker both scored singles for the Stars.

    Jordan Ivanco turned away 16 shots to pick up the shutout win in goal for Saskatoon. Chantel Weller turned away 33 shots to take the setback in goal for the Rebels.

    Game 2 of the series is set for Monday in Regina. Game 3 is slated for Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Agriplace Arena.

Ashe blasts Bears to series opening win

Jordan Ashe blasted home the winning goal for the Bears on Saturday.

    Jordan Ashe blasted the Prince Albert Northern Bears to victory in Game 1 of their Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League semifinal series with the Notre Dame Hounds.

    The 17-year-old physical defender blasted home a goal to the top corner of the Hounds goal at the 10:18 mark of the third period to deliver the Bears to a 1-0 victory at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert. The Bears, who are the defending SFMAAAHL champions, have won their last 13 straight league playoff games dating back to last season.

    Ryan Fontaine made 26 saves to pick up the shutout win in goal for the Bears. Kaitlyn Ross turned away 35 shots to take the setback in goal for the Hounds.

    The Bears swept way the Battlefords Sharks in a best-of-five SFMAAAHL quarter-final series 3-0. The Hounds claimed a best-of-five quarter-final series with the Melville Prairie Fire 3-1.

    The Bears and Hounds will go at it in Game 2 of their semifinal series on Sunday in Wilcox, Sask.

Game 3 is set for Wednesday 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.

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Prince Albert’s mightiest Bear

Ashe follows in Manson’s strides in “Hockey Town North”

Jordan Ashe is a force on defence for the P.A. Northern Bears.

    PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. - Jordan Ashe originally wanted to be like number four Bobby Orr.

    When you play for one of Prince Albert’s elite hockey programs, number four takes on a whole different meaning. At the start of the 2014-15 season, Ashe cracked the roster of the Prince Albert Northern Bears of the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League on a full-time basis and chose to wear number four.

    Ashe knew a little bit of Prince Albert’s hockey history and was aware Dave Manson donned number four and played defence for the WHL’s Raiders in the 1980s helping them win the Memorial Cup in 1985. The Raiders retired Manson’s number on Feb. 12, 2016, so Ashe has skated under his number four banner at the Art Hauser Centre for practices and games for almost two years now.

    She was aware Manson went on to have a lengthy career in the NHL that spanned 16 seasons, and in both the WHL and NHL, Manson became famous for his toughness. He wore number four at various times during his NHL days as well.

Jordan Ashe (#4) often finds herself around physical action.

    In her four complete seasons with the Bears, Ashe developed a reputation as being one of the toughest defenders in the SFMAAAHL. Standing 5-foot-9 and weighing a fit 171 pounds, the 17-year-old rearguard often physically overwhelms her opponents, and she isn’t afraid to throw the odd timely hit to get her team pumped up, even though bodychecking is penalized in the female game.

    Ashe never thought she would become a rugged defender when she joined the Bears, but she has enjoyed trying to emulate one of Prince Albert’s biggest hockey heroes in Manson, who is currently an associate coach with the Raiders.

    “If you think about it, it is like actually pretty cool,” said Ashe, who topped the Bears with 47 penalty minutes in 23 regular season games in 2016-17. “It is like it is kind of meant to happen I guess.

Jordan Ashe has career highs in goals and assists this season.

    “Coming to P.A., it was a good choice for me. I really like it here.”

    Ashe started playing minor hockey in her hometown of Debden, which is about 94 kilometres northwest of Prince Albert, at age 10 after following her younger brother, Dylan, into the sport. Jordan quickly discovered hockey was her true calling.

    “It seemed like way more fun than doing dance, which is what my parents put me in originally,” said Ashe. “I like the adrenaline rushes like going down the ice and making rushes.

    “I used to be a forward. I used to score lots of goals, not so much anymore, but that is OK. I still get to rush the puck.”

Jordan Ashe improved her all-around game since joining the Bears.

    During her minor hockey days in Debden, Ashe switched over to defence due to the fact her ability to skate backwards was better than any of her teammates. She hoped her offensive production would follow to her new position, which led to visions of emulating Orr.

    Ashe played on boys teams up through and including the 2013-14 campaign, when she also joined the female midget A team that was started up in town by her father, Mike.

    She gained her first experience of playing with the Bears in 2013-14, when she was called up for three regular season and seven playoff contests as an associate player.

    Ashe played more of a physical style during her early time with the Bears to compensate for the fact her skill set wasn’t as strong as her teammates.

Jordan Ashe recently played in her 100th career SFMAAAHL game.

    “I’ve always been a bigger player,” said Ashe, who has lived at a billet home in Prince Albert since joining the Bears full time. “You need to use that to your advantage.

    “I used to like not have that great a shot, not have the best hands. That (physical play) was just like an aspect of my game that was just always there for me, because I was always the taller, stronger player.”

    In her last two off-seasons, Ashe, whose family relocated to Warman, Sask., before the start of her first full season with the Bears, trained at Sadoway Conditioning in Saskatoon. Ashe said she felt way stronger physically on the ice last season and this season than she did in her first two full campaigns with the Bears.

    Her skill set on the ice has also advanced. In helping the Bears post a 17-3 regular season record in the current campaign, Ashe has posted career highs with seven goals and six assists.

Jordan Ashe, second from left, celebrates a Bears playoff goal last season.

    Ashe helped the Bears advance the female final at the Mac’s Tournament in Calgary on Monday. The Bears fell in that contest 6-2 to the Alberta based Rocky Mountain Raiders. Individually, Ashe was named to the tournament’s second all-star team on the female side.

    “Jordan (Ashe) has come along really nicely, especially this year,” said Bears head coach Jeff Willoughby. “Her offensive game has really blossomed.

    “She has always been a responsible defensive player, but her offensive game has just come along really nicely for her, so that is nice to see.”

    Willoughby said Ashe’s physical toughness is still one of her biggest assets of her game.

Jordan Ashe is solid at controlling the play with the puck on the back end.

    “You see her say go on a rush or defend our corner in our end (and) not too many players have their way with her,” said Willoughby. “She is not going to get beat out of the corner.
    “She is a definitely plus for our team.”

    By improving her all-around game, Ashe, who is an assistant captain with the Bears this season, actually began mirror Manson even more.

    While Manson was best known for piling up 2,792 penalty minutes in 1,103 NHL regular season games, his toughness reputation overshadowed the fact he was a good all-around player.

    A solid defensive defenceman, Manson was strong at controlling the play by bringing the puck up ice, could make a strong first pass to start an offensive rush, had a good shot, was popular among his teammates and was great in the dressing room.

Jordan Ashe has always been popular with her teammates.

    Ashe is also strong in her own zone and at controlling the play when she brings the puck up ice. She can make a strong first pass to start an offensive rush, has a good shot, is popular with her teammates and is great in the dressing room.

    Actually, Ashe has always gotten along well with teammates on any team she has been on or with other players at any hockey camp she has attended.

    “I think it is like my ability to have a conversation with somebody and be understanding to like whether they are sad or happy to be able to like joke with them and know my limits with that too,” said Ashe. “I think I’m just like good at having a conversation.”

    Ashe’s most memorable moment with the Bears came during their playoff run last season, where they won the SFMAAAHL championship and advanced to the Esso Cup female midget AAA national championship tournament.

Jordan Ashe, front centre, enjoyed the Bears run to the Esso Cup in 2017.

    In Game 2 of a best-of-three Western regional playdown series played on April 1, 2017 against the Hartney, Man., based Westman Wildcats, the Bears were behind 6-3 in the third period before rallying for a 7-6 victory to sweep the series 2-0. Ashe’s point shot with two minutes to play in the third period was tipped home by forward Brooklyn Anderson for the winning goal before a crowd of 1,200 at the Art Hauser Centre.

    Ashe couldn’t believe what it was like to play in the Esso Cup later that same month in Morden, Man.

    “I remember like walking into the dressing room at nationals, and it was all set up,” said Ashe, whose Bears went 2-3 at nationals. “We all had nametags.

    “I was like, ‘Holy cow this is actually happening.’ I think that is when it sunk in when we were going there.”

Jordan Ashe will join the Nipissing University Lakers next season.

    Next season, Ashe has committed to joining the Nipissing University Lakers women’s hockey team located in North Bay, Ont. The Lakers are one of the stronger clubs in U Sports’ Ontario University Athletics conference and are guided former NHL player Darren Turcotte as head coach.

    “I am extremely excited to get going with that,” said Ashe. “I love the school, and I love the girls there.

    “I went out for a couple of weeks visit, and the girls were all so nice, and everybody was so welcoming. I loved Darren (Turcotte) as a coach, because I skated with him a few times as well. I’m just overall really excited to get going.”

    While she is looking ahead to her university days, Ashe isn’t sure what it is going to be like when her career concludes with the Bears.

    “It is going to be really weird,” said Ashe, who has 12 goals and 15 assists in 100 career regular season games with the Bears. “It feels like I am still in my first year to be completely honest.

Jordan Ashe plans to soak in her final months with the Bears.

    “I’m going to cry a lot, and it is going to take me a while to move on I guess and leave the girls, especially like my good friends Alli (Soyko) and Abby (Soyko).

    “It is going to be tough, but time has to come I guess.”

    Until then, she still has eight regular season games and a last playoff run to look forward to with the Bears.
    They resume their regular season schedule on Jan. 13, when they travel to Melville to take on the Prairie Fire.

    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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Bears edge Stars in marquee SFMAAAHL showdown

Bears goalie Ryan Fontaine tracks the action around her net.

    PRINCE ALBERT – Jeff Willoughby didn’t want any doubt to linger in his players’ heads, when it came to taking on the Saskatoon Stars.

    So far this season, the head coach of the Prince Albert Northern Bears saw his side fall three times in regulation to the Stars. On Wednesday night at the Art Hauser Centre, the Bears, who are the defending Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League champions, pulled out a 2-1 victory in a tight checking battle with their biggest rival.

    “It means more than the three points in the standings,” said Willoughby. “It gives confidence for the girls.

Goalie Arden Kliewer makes a stop for the Stars.

    “We’ve play everybody up until this point, all seven other teams. Heading into playoffs, I’ve seen it happen before where a team hasn’t had success against another team and it spills over to the playoffs. Getting this win for us is huge.”

    The victory gives the Bears some breathing room on the Stars with regards to the race for first place in the SFMAAAHL standings. The Bears improved to 17-3 to sit in top spot with the win and hold an 11-point edge over the second place Stars, who fell to 14-2.

    Prince Albert has recorded all its wins in regulation time for 51 standings points, while Saskatoon has 40 standings points recorded on 12 regulation victories and two overtime wins. The Stars, who have topped the SFMAAAHL standings in each of the past three seasons, have four games in hand on the Bears.

Captain Hannah Koroll had two assists for the Bears.

    In Wednesday’s clash, the two sides entered the third period locked in a 0-0 tie. Arden Kliewer turned away 17 shots over the first two frames for the Stars, while Ryan Fontaine stopped 14 shots over the opening 40 minutes for the Bears.

    Tough as nails 17-year-old Bears defender Jordan Ashe was pleased with how her side handed the Stars vast number of high flying forwards like captain Mackenna Parker, Grace Shirley, Anna Leschyshyn and Joelle Fiala.

    “I think we did pretty good,” said Ashe. “I think we need to work on our head manning the puck, (and) being more firm on the blue-line making sure we don’t fumble pucks.

    “Overall, we were pretty solid. (Bears captain) Hannah (Koroll) was really solid as well.”

    Koroll ultimately picked up helpers on both Bears goals.

    At the 3:07 mark of the third, the Bears went ahead 1-0, when 14-year-old rookie forward Rhea Peterson flipped home the puck into the Saskatoon goal over top of Kliewer.

    With 7:22 to play in the third, the Bears capitalized on another break to go ahead 2-0 after killing off a Stars power play. Kliewer mishandled the puck resulting in a goal from Bears forward Alli Soyko.

Joelle Fiala (#27) scored the Stars lone goal on Wednesday.

    Saskatoon came with a hard push back. With 5:44 to play in the third, Fiala scored on the power play to cut the Bears lead to 2-1.

    Shirley thought she collected the equalizer during a net scramble with 1:37 to play in the third, but the officials waved off her goal saying she knocked the puck into the Prince Albert net with a high stick.
    Inside of the final minute of the third, Stars defender Chace Sperling wired a shot off the crossbar of the Prince Albert goal to just miss netting the equalize for Saskatoon.

    Fontaine made 22 stops to pick up the win in goal for the Bears. Kliewer turned away 20 shots to take the setback in goal for the Stars.

    Ashe said she like the atmosphere in her team’s dressing room, when the Bears were getting ready before the game.

Defender Jordan Ashe played her 100th regular season game for the Bears.

    She believes her side did a good job in not getting over-hyped to play the Stars and came with the same approach they would for any opponent.

    “In all honesty, it is not a big difference,” said Ashe. “We need to treat them like everyone else and not put extra expectations on top of that.”

    Overall, Willoughby thought this fourth and final meeting between the two sides in the 2017-18 regular season would be a competitive one, and the veteran bench boss said both sides delivered a tight contest.  

    “I thought there was a lot of back and forth play, not a high shot amount,” said Willoughby. “There was lots of blocked shots. There was lots of tight checking.

    “Those teams were tight gap all over the place, and that is what we expected. It was just a battle back and forth. Our second goal came with good timing.”

Defender Chace Sperling just missed scoring the equalizer for the Stars.

    Both teams now have to wait a bit for their next respective regular season games.

The Stars return to action on Jan. 6 in the new year, when they travel to Wilcox, Sask., to face the Notre Dame Hounds (10-3).

    The Bears head to Calgary for the prestigious Mac’s Tournament, which begins this coming Tuesday. They return to regular season play on Jan. 13 in the new year, when they travel to Melville to face the Prairie Fire (7-11).

    100-CLUB – A combined four players in Wednesday’s contest hit the ice for their 100^th career SFMAAAHL regular season game. Ashe and forward Abby Soyko played their 100^th career regular season games with the Bears, while forward Jordyn Gerlitz skated in her 100^th career regular season contest with the Stars.

The Bears celebrate their 2-1 victory over the Stars.

    Stars forward Jayda Sachs also played her 100^th career regular season game, and her total included making 56 appearances with the Bears in her first two campaigns in the league.

    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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