Huskies need someone to play hero role offensively

Kish’s 31 saves backs Cougars to 2-0 victory

The Huskies and Cougars scramble in front of the U of Regina net.

    REGINA - The University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team needs someone to throw on the superhero cape.

    So far during regular season play, the Huskies have lacked the scoring punch needed to pull off any comebacks. As soon as the opposition gets ahead, it seems like the final outcome is cemented on the scoreboard.

    On Friday night at the Co-operators Centre in Regina, the Huskies put in an effort to get a positive result against the host U of Regina Cougars. Collectively, it seemed like everyone was holding on to their sticks too tightly on the Dogs side and there was no finish.

    The visitors failed to score on four power play chances and fell victim to a 31 shutout performance from Cougars star netminder Jane Kish. That was enough to allow the Cougars to skate away with a 2-0 victory in a U Sports regular season clash.

Tamara McVannel had a power-play goal for the Cougars.

    The Huskies, who have lost four of their last five games, fell to 8-6-1 with the loss to remain fourth in the Canada West Conference. The Cougars improved to 7-7-1 to sit fifth in Canada West and four points back of the Huskies.

    The Cougars scored early when Czech import right-winger Martina Maskova flipped a shot past Huskies netminder Chloe Marshall at the 2:42 mark of the first period. The hosts picked up an insurance marker at the 11:45 mark of the second, when defender Tamara McVannel slid home a power-play goal from the point through a screen.

    Those tallies proved to be enough to cement the Cougars second win in their last eight games.

    Marshall was solid making 17 saves including a breakaway stop on Maskova in the third to take the setback in goal for the Huskies.

    In their seven losses, the Huskies have fallen three times by a single goal and four times by two goals. In 15 games, the Huskies have allowed 23 goals against which ties the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds for the third fewest goals against in Canada West. The Dogs have also outshot the opposition in six of the seven games they have lost this season.

Netminder Jane Kish made 31 saves to pick up the shutout win.

    U of S has scored just 25 goals on the campaign, so offence has been the Huskies biggest struggle.

    In Friday’s loss, the Huskies showed that their power play has been a huge weakness all season. On the campaign, the Huskies are connecting on 2-of-49 power-play opportunities for a 4.1 per cent success rate, which ranks last in the eight-team Canada West. They have allowed one short-handed goal against.

    At any level of hockey, that is just not good enough. To make matters worse for the Huskies, their power play struggles date back to last season.

    To be fair to the Huskies, no one is scoring in the women’s Canada West hockey conference this season.

    The U of Lethbridge Pronghorns have giving up the fewest goals in the Canada West at 21, and the U of Calgary Dinos have given up the second fewest goals at 22. Both those squads sit outside the top five in the conference standings. 

Emily Upgang had some dangerous offensive chances.

    The total goals given up by the Pronghorns are two less than the Huskies have surrendered.

    Venla Hovi, who is a star forward for the U of Manitoba Bisons, is the only player averaging at least a point a game in the conference with three goals and eight assists in 11 appearances.

    When the Huskies have been down, star fifth-year forward Kaitlin Willoughby, who is the third all-time leading scorer in team history, was able to put on the superhero cape and deliver a number of victories in the past.

    The Prince Albert product missed two games due to injury and admitted during a recent mainstream media interview that she has been playing hurt this season. Inside of the final minute of Friday’s loss, she had a glorious chance to score on a net scramble with Kish down but flipped the puck over an open goal.
    It was the type of chance Willoughby, who has four goals and five assists in 13 appearances, usually scored on in the past.

    Willoughby still entered the offensive zone with speed, but she didn’t look like herself in the opposition end often electing to pass the puck and getting only one shot on goal. At the moment, it feels like Willoughby isn’t the threat in the offensive zone that she once was.

Kaitlin Willoughby struggled in the offensive zone on Friday.

    Forwards Emily Upgang, Bailee Bourassa and Brooklyn Haubrich along with defenders Leah Bohlken and Morgan Willoughby, who is Kaitlin’s younger sister, all had effective chances in the offensive zone, but couldn’t bury any of their opportunities. Rookie centre Chloe Smith had a number of strong rushes up ice and seemed to have success creating plays despite not registering a shot on goal.

    At some point in time, the Huskies will need one or two of these players to step into the hero role in close games, if they want to make waves this season.

    Right now, the Huskies are stuck in a funk where basically the first goal of the game wins, and that is a recipe that doesn’t invite long term success.

    The Huskies and Cougars go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the ancient Rutherford Rink in Saskatoon.

Third period rally boosts Huskies win streak to four

Jordon Cooke picked up his 53rd career win on Friday.

    In Saskatoon on Friday night, the U of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team needed a third period rally to extend their winning streak to four games.

    The Huskies entered the third period of a U Sports regular season clash locked in a 1-1 tie with the visiting U of Regina Cougars at the Rutherford Rink. At the 3:57 mark of the third, Zak Zborosky scored for the Cougars to give them a 2-1 lead.

    U of S wasted little time in responding. Just 19 seconds after Zborosky’s goal, Jordan Tkatch scored his first of the season for the Huskies to tie the contest up at 2-2.

    Huskies star centre Logan McVeigh netted the winner at the 9:01 mark of the third to deliver his team to a 3-2 victory.

    Jordan Burns scored for the Cougars in the first period to give the visitors a 1-0 lead, while Collin Shirley tallied in the second period for the Huskies to tie the contest up at 1-1.

    Jordon Cooke made 21 saves to pick up his 53^rd career regular season win playing goal for the Huskies (12-2-1). Cooke is now tied with former teammate Ryan Holfeld for second all-time on the Huskies career wins list. Holfeld won 53 games playing for the Huskies from 2010 to 2015.

    Dawson MacAuley turned away 34 shots to take the setback in goal for the Cougars (3-10-2).

    The two teams go at it again on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Co-operators Centre in Regina.

    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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