New heroes lift Huskies to Canada West Final

Camryn Drever has been beyond stellar in the post-season.

Legends are made in the playoffs, and the new generation from University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Hockey team is leaving their mark.

The Huskies advanced to the Canada West Conference Championship Series sweeping the Mount Royal University Cougars 2-0 in a best-of-three Canada West semifinal series this past weekend in Calgary, Alta. The Cougars had topped the Canada West regular season standings with a 16-2-2 record, while the Huskies finished fifth with an 11-7-2 mark.

Mount Royal won the two regular season encounters with the Huskies, but both victories came by 1-0 scores.

On top of advancing to the Canada West Final, the Huskies earned a berth at the U Sports Championship Tournament for the fourth time in program history with the previous appearances coming in 2004, 2014 and 2018.

The biggest star in the Huskies series upset win over the Cougars was third-year goaltender Camryn Drever. In the two wins over the Cougars, Drever turned away 85-of-86 shots to allow the Huskies to post a 1-0 victory in Game 1 and a 2-1 overtime triumph in Game 2.

Drever has made her first four U Sports post-season starts this year, and she won all four of those contests. She came to the Huskies as an experienced post-season performer.

Before joining the U Sports ranks, Drever was the star goaltender for the St. Albert Slash, and she backstopped them to two straight Esso Cup titles as national under-18 AAA hockey champions in 2017 and 2018. She earned a reputation as a clutch player in those runs.

In Game 1 against the Cougars played this past Friday played before 265 spectators at the Flames Community Arena, third-year forward Kara Kondrat scored at the 3:08 mark of the first period to account for the contest’s only goal in the Huskies 1-0 win.

Kennedy Brown scored the OT series winner for the Huskies.

The tally was Kondrat’s third career U Sports goal including play in the regular season and playoffs and her first marker in U Sports post-season play. It was also a career highlight as Kondrat is from Cochrane, Alta., which is a small city located on the northwest border of Calgary.

Rookie forward Mallory Dyer and rookie defender Brooklyn Stevely picked up assists on the play.

Kondrat’s goal was all the offence the Huskies would need as Drever made 32 saves to pick up her second shutout win of the post season, which matched her shutout total from the regular season.

Zoe De Beauville made 12 stops in goal for the Cougars.

In Game 2 last Saturday played before 250 spectators at the Flames Community Arena, Huskies rookie defender Larissa Bohlken scored on the power play at the 1:50 mark in the second period to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. The tally was Bohlken’s first career U Sports goal including action in both the regular season and playoffs.

Third-year forwards Sophie Lalor and Jordyn Holmes picked up assists on the play.

Before the second period ended, third-year forward Breanne Trotter scored for the Cougars to even the score at 1-1. From there, the contest went to overtime.

At the 3:42 mark of overtime, Huskies third-year forward Kennedy Brown popped home the rebound from a shot taken from linemate Bailee Bourassa to count for the game and series winner. The tally was Brown’s second winning goal of the post-season.

For Bourassa, the assist was the first point of the post-season for the Huskies captain. As the team’s lone fifth-year player, Bourassa, who is pursuing her master’s degree in nursing, has faced tighter checking from opposing teams as a known scoring threat.

Brooklyn Stevely had an assist for the Huskies this past Friday.

Bourassa topped the Huskies in regular season scoring with 11 points coming on seven goals and four assists appearing in all 20 of the Huskies games. She along with the Huskies lone fourth-year player in forward Abby Shirley have provided a steady had to guide the team’s new generation.

Shirley picked up a second assist on Brown’s series winning goal.

Drever had a spectacular night making 53 saves to backstop the Huskies to victory. De Beauville turned away 22 shots to take the extra time setback in goal for the Cougars in what would be her final U Sports game as she completed her fifth-year of eligibility.

The Huskies will now face the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds in a best-of-three Canada West Championship series. The Cougars swept the other best-of-three Canada West semifinal 2-0 against the University of Alberta Pandas.

The Thunderbirds finished second in Canada West regular season standings with a 14-6 mark. UBC will host the Canada West Final at the Doug Mitchell Sports Centre on Vancouver, B.C.

Game 1 is this coming Friday (9 p.m. Saskatchewan time, HuskieFAN.ca), Game 2 follows this coming Saturday (9 p.m. Saskatchewan time, HuskieFAN.ca), and if necessary, Game 3 is set for this coming Sunday (5 p.m. Saskatchewan time, HuskieFAN.ca).

This will be the fifth time since 2014 the Huskies and Thunderbirds have met in the post-season and the first time a post-season clash between the two sides will be for the Canada West title. Both sides sport two series wins each from the previous four post-season meetings.

Before the 2020-21 campaign was lost due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world, the Huskies and Thunderbirds had developed a rivalry in the style fitting the WHL from the 1980s.

Both teams experienced sizable turnover since the Thunderbirds swept a best-of-three Canada West quarter-final series between the two clubs 2-0 in February of 2020.

The Huskies aim to keep the victory celebrations coming.

The Huskies and Thunderbirds split their two encounters in the 2021-22 regular season with the two squads playing intense but straight up. The current Huskies and Thunderbirds are in position to add their own unique spin to what has been a storied set of post-season battles that have happened in the past.

Both teams will play in the U Sports Championship Tournament, which is set for March 24-27 in Charlottetown, P.E.I.

For this new generation of the Huskies, they have really nothing to lose and everything to gain. A priceless challenge lies ahead to keep adding pages to this special and unique chapter in team history they are currently writing.

KENNEDY BROWN SAYS GOOD NIGHT IN CALGARY!#HuskiePride #PowerOfThePack https://t.co/jE8AkqrVUQ pic.twitter.com/3b1uITfSB2

— USask Huskie Women's Hockey (@HuskiesWHKY) March 6, 2022

D-man breakaway gives Raiders OT win, other notes

Nolan Allan scored a breakaway OT winner on Saturday.

A defenceman breakaway proved to be one of the top highlights of this past weekend in the WHL.

On Saturday, the host Prince Albert Raiders found themselves locked in a 2-2 in overtime with the WHL East Division leading Winnipeg Ice in the friendly confines of the Art Hauser Centre. The Ice were buzzing in the Prince Albert zone until Raiders defenceman Nolan Allan picked off a drop pass from Winnipeg rearguard Benjamin Zloty.

Allan chipped the puck past Ice centre Chase Wheatcroft to spring himself on a breakaway. Wheatcroft fell when he turned to chase Allan allowing the Raiders blue-liner a clear unchallenged path to the Winnipeg goal.

Allan broke into the Winnipeg zone and sniped home the winning goal low glove side on Ice netminder Gage Alexander to give the Raiders 3-2 victory and allow the 2,339 spectators at the 2,580 Art Hauser Centre to try and blow the roof off the legendary rink with their raucous response.

The tally was Allan’s third goal of the season and his second winner on the campaign. The first round NHL Entry Draft selection who has a signed NHL entry-level contract with the Chicago Blackhawks has 24 assists to go with his three goals for 27 points in 49 games with the Raiders this season.

Power forward Jack Finley scored to give the Ice a 1-0 lead late in the first period of Saturday’s contest.

Offensive-defenceman Landon Kosior scored on the power play for the Raiders in the second period to even things up at 1-1. Early in the third, Raiders right-winger Cale Sanders scored to put the host side up 2-1.

With 8:57 remaining in the third, Ice star left-winger Mikey Milne scored the equalizer to force a 2-2 tie and send the contest to overtime.

That set up the dramatics for Allan’s winner.

Import netminder Tikhon Chaika turned away 33 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Raiders (21-28-2-1). Alexander turned away 36 shots to take the extra time setback in net for the Ice (36-9-3-2).

The Raiders return to action on Tuesday when they host the 23-25-2-1 Lethbridge Hurricanes (7 p.m., Art Hauser Centre).

A defensemen? On a breakaway?

What else can you expect in WOAH-VERTIME!@PARaidersHockey | @NHLBlackhawks pic.twitter.com/MtMRKEmRwf

— The WHL (@TheWHL) March 6, 2022

• It is official, Prince Albert Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid sits alone in fifth place on the WHL’s all-time career regular season head coaching wins list. Habscheid did indeed pick up his 573^rd victory to move alone into fifth spot, when the Raiders downed the Hitmen in Calgary 1-0 on February 23. The Raiders current run of two straight wins has pushed Habscheid’s career regular season win total to 575 victories. Lorne Molleken sits fourth on the WHL’s career regular season head coaching wins list with 626 victories. Molleken piled up his win total working stints behind the bench with the Moose Jaw Warriors, Saskatoon Blades, Regina Pats and Vancouver Giants from 1989 to 2016. Brett Smith, who is the Raiders manager of communications and community relations, double checked to confirm Habscheid’s win total.
• A monster season allowed Regina Rebels forward Alexis Petford to vault into 10^th place on the all-time career regular season scoring list for the Saskatchewan Female Under-18 AAA Hockey League. Petford led the league in regular season scoring with 76 points coming on 38 goals and 38 assists appearing in 29 games with the Rebels. All of those point totals were career highs for Petford, who is skating in her final campaign of under-18 AAA eligibility. In her career with the Rebels, Petford has appeared in 91 regular season games piling up 127 points coming on 63 goals and 64 assists. Petford overtook Lauren Zary for 10^th place on the career scoring list. Zary now sits 11^th on the SFU18AAAHL career regular season scoring list with 126 points. She collected her 126 points on 44 goals and 82 assists playing 103 career regular season games with the Saskatoon Stars from 2008 to 2012.
• On Saturday, the University of Wisconsin Badgers Women’s Hockey team dropped a 2-1 decisions to the Ohio State University Buckeyes in a WCHA semifinal contest. Sophie Shirley, who is an alumna of the Saskatoon Stars female under-18 AAA hockey team, had the lone goal for the Badgers. Shirley’s sister, Grace, is also on the Badgers roster and is also a Stars alumna. The Badgers still qualified for the NCAA Division I Women’s Hockey Championship tournament. On Thursday, the Badgers will play the Clarkson University Golden Knights in an opening round match in Boston, Massachusetts. The winner moves on to the elite eight quarter-final round against the third seeded Northeastern University Huskies. The Huskies roster contains star defender Brooke Hobson, who is an alumna of the Prince Albert Northern Bears female under-18 AAA team.
• On Saturday, the Cracovia Krakow from Poland downed the host Aalborg Pirates in Denmark 4-0 to win the International Ice Hockey Federation’s Continental Cup. The Krakow locked up a spot in the Champions Hockey League in Europe for the upcoming season. The Krakow roster contains Collin Shirley, who is an alumnus of the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers and U Sports’ University of Saskatchewan Huskies Men’s Hockey team. Shirley had a goal in the Krakow’s win over the Pirates.
• On Monday, the Swift Current Broncos removed the interim tag on Devan Praught’s job title as the team’s head coach. The 34-year-old Praught’s is now the Broncos full-time head coach. Praught originally joined the Broncos as an assistant coach on July 30, 2021. He became the club’s interim head coach on October 14, 2021 after Dean Brockman stepped down as the Broncos head coach and general manager. The Broncos posted an 18-25-5-2 record after Praught became in the interim head coach. Chad Leslie became the Broncos general manager after Brockman’s departure.
• On Monday, the WHL named Brandon Wheat Kings overage defenceman Chad Nychuk as the player of the week for the week ending this past Sunday. Nychuk had three goals and seven assists in three games for the Wheat Kings to pick up player of the week honours. Also on Monday, the WHL named Kamloops Blazers netminder Dylan Ernst as the goaltender of the week for the week ending this past Sunday. Ernst won all three of his starts for the week in question posting a 1.97 goals against average and a .930 save percentage.
• The Edmonton Oil Kings are riding an 11-game winning streak to lead the WHL’s overall standings with a 41-11-2-1 mark.
• If you are looking for stories on the U Sports playoff run of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Hockey team, you need to check out huskiefan.ca. Huskies women’s hockey play-by-play voice Daniella Ponticelli has filed great stories about the playoff run accompanying the team on the road. HuskieFAN has provided beat coverage of the Huskies Football team and the Huskies Men’s Hockey team.

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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Stars advance to SFMAAAHL final for fifth straight year

Saskatoon eliminates Notre Dame with 3-1 win in Game 4

Joelle Fiala scored the winning goal for the Stars on Thursday.

    A slight scare ultimately couldn’t keep the Saskatoon Stars from returning to the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League championship series for a fifth straight year.

    On Thursday at the Duncan McNeill Arena in Wilcox, the Stars fell behind 1-0 to the host Notre Dame Hounds before rallying for a 3-1 victory in Game 4 of a SFMAAAHL semifinal series. With the win, the Stars take the best-of-five series 3-1.

    Saskatoon advances to the best-of-five SFMAAAHL championship series to play for the Fedoruk Cup for a fifth straight year. The Stars won the league title in 2015, 2016 and last season.

    They will face the Regina Rebels in this year’s league final. Saskatoon topped the SFMAAAHL regular season standings with a 27-1 record, while Regina finished second with a 17-7-4 mark. Game 1 of the SFMAAAHL final is set for Saturday at 7:45 p.m. at Merlis Belsher Place.

    The Stars were forced to play a Game 4 of their semifinal series against the Hounds on Thursday after Notre Dame prevailed 2-1 in double overtime in Game 3 on Tuesday at Merlis Belsher Place in Saskatoon.

    Notre Dame hit the scoreboard first in Game 4 when 16-year-old defender Jada Livingston scored at the 10:21 mark of the first period to give the host side a 1-0 edge.

Kaitlyn Ross made 25 saves in goal for the Hounds on Thursday.

    Coming out after the first intermission, the Stars proceeded to control play the rest of the way.

    At the 3:58 mark of the second, Stars 15-year-old sophomore forward Makena Kushniruk potted the equalizer that forced a 1-1 tie.

    Veteran centre Joelle Fiala netted what would be the game and series winner for the Stars just over four minutes after Kushniruk’s tally to put Saskatoon ahead 2-1.

    Veteran forward Anna Leschyshyn added a key insurance marker at the 9:27 mark of the third to round out the 3-1 victory for the visitors.

    Arden Kliewer made 12 stops to pick up the win in goal for the Stars. Kaitlyn Ross turned away 25 shots to take the setback in goal for the Hounds in the final outing of her stellar midget AAA career.

    Notre Dame finished fifth in the SFMAAAHL with a 12-13-3 regular season record and eliminated the Prince Albert Northern Bears 3-1 in a best-of-five SFMAAAHL quarter-final series.

    Last season, the Stars swept the Bears 3-0 in the best-of-five SFMAAAHL championship series. Saskatoon will be making a record eighth overall appearance in the league final.

Bohlken’s OT winner pushes Rebels into SFMAAAHL final

Larissa Bohlken scored the OT winner for the Rebels.

    Larissa Bohlken found some magic in overtime to become a playoff hero for the Regina Rebels.

    On Wednesday at the Fairview Arena in Swift Current, Bohlken, who is a sophomore defender, scored the winner at the 4:13 mark of overtime to give her Rebels a 3-2 victory over the host Swift Current Diamond Energy Wildcats in Game 4 of a SFMAAAHL semifinal series. With the win, the Rebels take the best-of-five series 3-1.

    Regina advances to the best-of-five SFMAAAHL championship series to play for the Fedoruk Cup for the first time since 2014. The Rebels fell in that year’s league final to the Weyburn Richardson Pioneer Gold Wings, who advanced on to win the Esso Cup as national female midget AAA hockey champions.

    Regina won the SFMAAAHL championship in the 2012-13 season and advanced to the Esso Cup national championship tournament finishing fourth.

    The Rebels will face the defending SFMAAAHL champion Saskatoon Stars in the best-of-five SFMAAAHL final. Game 1 for the SFMAAAHL championship series is set for 7:45 p.m. at Merlis Belsher Place in Saskatoon.

    Against the Wildcats on Wednesday, the Rebels took a 2-0 lead in the second period with goals coming from the sticks of veteran forward Lauren Focht and Bohlken, who scored her first of two on the night.

    The Wildcats evened things up at 2-2 early in the third period with goals coming from the sticks of 17-year-old veteran forward Carissa Hogan and SFMAAAHL MVP Taylor Lind. Lind scored short-handed to force the 2-2 tie with 14:14 remaining in the third period.

Taylor Lind scored for the Wildcats on Wednesday.

    Both Hogan and Lind ultimately played the final games of the respective stellar midget AAA careers.

    After the Wildcats tied things up, that set the stage for Bohlken to score her second goal of the night to become the overtime hero for the Rebels.

    Chantel Weller stopped 21 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Rebels. Amaya Giraudier turned away 29 shots to take the setback in goal for the Wildcats.

    The Rebels finished second in the SFMAAAHL regular season standings with a 17-7-4 mark, while the Wildcats placed third with a 17-10-1 record.

    The Rebels and Wildcats split the first two games of their SFMAAAHL semifinal series. Regina went ahead 2-1 in the series taking Game 3 on Tuesday 4-2 at the Co-operators Centre in Regina.

    In that contest, Emma DeCorby, Kaylee Dyer, Focht and Jordan Fry netted singles for the Rebels. Kamryn Johnson and Sara Kendall replied with singles for the Wildcats.

    Weller made 27 stops to pick up the win in goal for the Rebels. Giraudier turned away 19 shots to take the setback in goal for the Wildcats.

    The Rebels swept away the Melville Prairie Fire 3-0 in a best-of-five SFMAAAHL quarter-final series. The Wildcats swept away the Battlefords Sharks 3-0 in another best-of-five SFMAAAHL quarter-final series.

    Back in 2013, the Rebels swept the Prince Albert Northern Bears 3-0 in the best-of-five SFMAAAHL championship series.

    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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Hounds’ Ross robs Rebels to close SFMAAAHL regular season

Kaitlyn Ross had a spectacular season for the Hounds.

    Kaitlyn Ross closed Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League regular season with arguably one of her best performances of the campaign.

    On Wednesday night at the Co-operators Centre in Regina, the 17-year-old Notre Dame Hounds veteran netminder was sensational making 50 saves to allow her squad to slip past the host Rebels 2-1. Notre Dame picked up the win while being outshot 51-22.

    The performance adds to a spectacular final regular season for Ross, where she posted a 10-6-1 record, 1.88 goals against average, a .942 save percentage and four shutouts. The Redcliff, Alta., product’s save percentage led the SFMAAAHL.

    Ross has committed to join the Mount Royal University Cougars women’s hockey team in the U Sports ranks next season.

    As for Wednesday’s win over the Rebels, the Hounds took a 1-0 lead at the 7:22 mark of the first period on a goal from Sophie Young with Claire Nimegeers picking up an assist. After 20 minutes, the shots on goal were even at 8-8.

Sophie Young had a goal for the Hounds on Wednesday.

    In the second period, the Rebels threw everything including the kitchen sink at Ross holding a 23-8 edge in shots on goal in the stanza. They finally beat the Hounds star goalie on a tally from star forward Lauren Focht with 1:53 remaining in the frame.
    Defender Larissa Bohlken picked up an assist on Focht’s goal.

    The Rebels kept applying the pressure in the third holding a 20-6 edge in shots on goal for the frame.

    Despite the best efforts by the host side, Hounds 17-year-old forward Raea Gilroy scored the winner for the visitors with 2:59 remaining in the third. Olivia Leier picked up the assist on Gilroy’s marker.

    Chantel Weller made 20 saves to take the setback in goal for the Rebels.

    The clash between the Hounds and Rebels wrapped up the regular season schedule for the entire SFMAAAHL. The two sides entered this encounter knowing the final result wouldn’t change any positioning in the SFMAAAHL standings.

    The Rebels finished second in the SFMAAAHL with a 17-7-4 record. That marked Regina’s highest regular season finish since last topping the SFMAAAHL standings back in the 2013-14 campaign with a 25-2-1 record.

    The Rebels will face the Melville Prairie Fire (10-16-2) in a best-of-five first round playoff series.

Lauren Focht scored for the Rebels on Wednesday.

    The Hounds finished fifth in the SFMAAAHL with a 12-13-3 record. They will take on the Prince Albert Northern Bears (17-9-2) in a best-of-five first round SFMAAAHL playoff series.
    The Rebels and Prairie Fire announced Tuesday the dates for their best-of-five series. It begins on March 7 at 8 p.m. at the Co-operators Centre. Game 2 follows on March 9 at 8 p.m. at the Horizon Credit Union Centre in Melville.

    The series shifts back to the Co-operators Centre for Game 3 on March 10 at 7:45 p.m.

    If necessary, Game 4 is slated for the Horizon Credit Union centre for March 12 at 7:45 p.m., and Game 5 is scheduled for the Co-operators Centre on March 14 at 8 p.m.

    The rest of the SFMAAAHL post-season series are set to begin around March 7.

    The SFMAAAHL has taken a short hiatus due to the fact many of the players on the circuit will be participating in the Canada Winter Games, which are currently being held in Red Deer, Alta. The Canada Winter Games conclude on March 2.

    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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Physical defender Bohlken lights up scoreboard for Huskies

U of S beings playoff journey hosting Mount Royal

Leah Bohlken smiles after scoring a goal this season.

    Leah Bohlken still cherishes the lessons taught to her by a special friend, when she first joined the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team.

    Way back at the start of the 2015-16 season, Bohlken arrived on campus at the U of S as a fresh faced defender from Moose Jaw, who was about to celebrate her 18^th birthday near the start of the school year.

    She quickly became friends with a player, who is regarded as the best defender the Huskies women’s team ever had.

    “My first year coming on to the team I played with Julia Flinton, and that was pretty huge for me,” said Bohlken. “Being older and playing, she helped me a lot through that year.

    “She taught me a lot kind of like the more you experience the better you become. I kind of saw that through her. You just have to give it time, and things come in time.”

Leah Bohlken fires a shot through a screen for the Huskies.

    Flinton, who is still the Huskies all-time leader in career regular season points among defenders, was in her fifth and final season, when Bohlken was a rookie.

    To Bohlken’s pleasant surprise, the two were placed together as a defensive pairing. Flinton took Bohlken under her wing.

    Besides learning from Flinton through talks, Bohlken watched Flinton on the ice in order to pick up pointers on how to be better.

    “I remember making one pass to her on one power play,” said Bohlken. “This is one vivid memory that I have.

    “I went D-to-D, and she went down low backdoor to a girl that I had now idea was there. Flinton just saw her plain as day, and they put it in. I was like, “That was the nicest goal I have ever seen.””

    Now in her fourth year with the Huskies, Bohlken has established her own presence as an offensive force for the Huskies. In 27 regular season games, she had a team high nine goals and seven assists for 16 points.

Leah Bohlken tied for the Huskies team lead in points this season.

    She finished in a tie for the lead in team scoring with third-year right-winger Bailee Bourassa, who had five goals and 11 assists in 27 games.

    Bohlken’s goal, assist and point totals are all career highs.

    Her goal total for one season has surpassed Flinton’s best for one campaign.

    “It is new to me for sure, but it has been good,” said Bohlken, who was a plus-three in the plus-minus department. “I’ve been kind of finding the right places this year.

    “It is kind of all coming together. Every year I think you work on something, and then you see it kind of improve throughout the year. This year, it has been points.

    “I can’t take it from one end to the other and go score. It is all the other girls on the ice helping me too.”

Leah Bohlken had nine goals for the Huskies this season.

    Thanks to Bohlken’s efforts, the Huskies finished with a 16-10-1-1 record to finish fourth in the Canada West Conference and have secured home ice advantage for a best-of-three quarter-final playoff series at Merlis Belsher Place.

    The Huskies face the Mount Royal University Cougars, who concluded the regular season on a three-game winning streak and finished fifth in Canada West with a 12-14-2 record. Game 1 of the series is set for Friday at 7 p.m.

    Game 2 is slated for Saturday at 7 p.m., and if necessary, Game 3 is set for Sunday at 7 p.m.

Bohlken’s production has been a sweet sight for Huskies head coach Steve Kook.

    “I’m happy for the breakthrough year that Leah is having,” said Kook. “She’s always lead by example putting in extra time on the ice and the weight room.  

    “In past seasons, she’s always produced quality scoring chances. I’m happy she’s getting rewarded for her hard work. With scoring at a premium in our conference this season, we’re going to need all the scoring we can get.”

Leah Bohlken had career highs in all offensive categories.

    Bohlken is one of those offensive defenders that likes to quarterback the play from the point. A lot of her goals are the result of her rocket shot.

    With that said, she has capitalized on the odd opening to sneak down low from the point to score from the front of the net.

    “Leah has been making great reads off the puck and has been putting herself in good spots on the ice and the puck finds her,” said Kook. “Whether you call it secondary scoring or scoring by committee it’s something that all our players can do in order to help us generate offense in the second half of our season.”

    While Bohlken stands 5-foot-6, she can play gritty and physical too. That was a characteristic of Flinton’s play as well.

    Bohlken said she gained the physical side of her game from her older brother, Brett, who played two full seasons with the Moose Jaw Generals midget AAA team from 2011 to 2013.

Leah Bohlken is best known for playing tough in her own zone.

    “Apparently the day after I got out of the hospital, my mom took me to the rink, and I was in watching my brother play,” said Leah, who has been a U Sports academic all-Canadian in her first three seasons with the Huskies. “I kind of looked up to my brother.

    “He is two years older than me. We’d play mini sticks downstairs, and I’d remember we would play hit hockey. That kind of gave me the playing style that I have today being hard and tough.

    “That kind of got me into it. Then I just stuck with it, and I loved it.”

    Bohlken always received great support from her parents in father, Dean, and mother, Dawn. She remembers her dad taking pride in her physical game, when she played in boys’ leagues.

    “My dad would probably tell a story about me going and rocking one of the guys in one of our little league practices,” said Bohlken. “From right then, I kind of knew whenever I got on the ice that was the sport that I wanted to play.”

Leah Bohlken breaks into the offensive zone around a checker.

    It helped that her family was big into the sport too. Dean played the game as well, and younger sister, Larissa, is a 16-year-old defender with the Regina Rebels female midget AAA team. Larissa stands 5-foot-8.

    “My sister, she is younger than me, but I look up to her,” said Bohlken. “She is taller than me, so I guess I actually look up to her.

    “It is kind of everybody that you play with and meet I think you take a little bit from everybody in how they play.”

    Now as one of the Huskies veterans, Bohlken, who is an assistant captain, tries to take the younger players under her wing like Flinton once did.

Leah Bohlken can quarterback the power play on the back end.

    Bohlken said the veterans want to continue the cycle of helping the younger players along and making them feel they are part of something special.

    “I think that we continue to do that every year,” said Bohlken. “I hope all the players feel like that.

    “This team is a great team to a part of. Everybody kind of helps out each other. You learn things from everybody.”

    The Huskies are in the mix holding the potential to make a long playoff push. This season they would have to it without the services of star captain Kaitlin Willoughby, who graduated after last season.

    Willoughby currently plays in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League with the Calgary Inferno and attended a tryout camp for Canada’s senior national women’s hockey team last September.
    Bohlken said Willoughby’s departure was a huge loss for the team and everyone has to step up to fill the void she left.

Leah Bohlken (#4) believes the Huskies can make another long playoff run.

    The standout defender said belief is high among the Huskies that they can return to U Sports nationals for a second straight year noting Willoughby left a great mark on the returning players.

    “Willoughby, she is a very special player,” said Bohlken. “You know that from watching her.

    “She also left leaving a lot of girls with a lot of help too. She was that fifth year where you come in, and she takes everybody underneath her wing. Everybody kind of got to experience what I did with Flinton that first year.

    “When she (Willoughby) left, she didn’t leave as big of a gap as what one would think, because she was helping players all year long to fill that gap.”

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