 |
| Marie-Philip Poulin (#29) checks Swede Hanna Olsson. |
On Tuesday night at the SaskTel Centre, Canada’s senior
national women’s hockey team opened play at the annual tourney with a 6-1 romp
over Sweden, while holding a 52-18 edge in shots on goal. The Canadian side had
too much depth for the Swedish side to
handle.
“I think we did play
well,” said Canadian right-winger Melodie Daoust. “We do still have things to
tighten up.
“Especially in our
D-zone, we just need to be more honest with ourselves and stay D-side a little
bit more. I think that is going to come throughout the tournament as we go and
learn to play together.
 |
| Melodie Daoust (#15) had two goals and an assist for Canada. |
Daoust had a pair of
goals and an assist for Canada on Tuesday, while linemate Rebecca Johnston had
four assists. Daoust netted an absolute beauty at the 6:37 mark of the third
period.
Working in the
offensive zone, the Valleyfield, Que., product collected the puck behind
Sweden’s net and quickly went backhand to forehand to net her second tally of
the game into the open right side of the goal. That marker put Canada up 6-0.
“I saw the little
hole there,” said Daoust about her third-period goal. “I thought I was going to
try it, and it worked. It was good.”
 |
| Canada celebrates a first period goal from Melodie Daoust. |
Daoust netted her
first of the game, and 18-year-old centre Sarah Fillier netted a single to give
Canada a 3-0 edge heading into the first intermission. Canada head coach Perry
Pearn said the Swedes did make things challenging for his side through the
first 30 minutes.
“We’ve watch Sweden
practice, but we haven’t seen them play,” said Pearn. “We weren’t sure exactly
what to expect from them.
“Their first period,
I think they impressed me with some of the things they did. They played a very
good trap. It took us a little while to adjust to that, but I thought after a
while, we handled the trap fairly well.
“As we did that, we
put more pressure on them in their end. I thought our third period was our best
period, so I thought we adapted fairly well.”
Pearn was pleased to
get solid efforts from younger players like Fillier, 20-year-old defender Jaime
Bourbonnais, 21-year-old winger Loren Gabel and 22-year-old centre Victoria
Bach.
 |
| Rebecca Johnston had four assists for Canada. |
“The lineup went
from having one extra forward dressed, having 13 forwards, to finishing off the
game playing with 10,” said Pearn. “Certainly, the youngsters handled
themselves well.”
Canada’s lead
expanded to 4-0 in the second period on a goal from Laura Fortino. Captain
Marie-Philip Poulin scored at the 3:48 mark of the third to increase Canada’s
edge to 5-0 and set the stage for Daoust’s second goal.
Sweden finally broke
through on the scoreboard with 3:09 to play in the third with a power-play goal
from Emma Nordin, who tipped home a point shot from defender Emmy Alasalmi.
Shannon Szabados
turned away 17 shots to pick up the win in goal for Canada. Lovisa Selander
turned away 46 shots taking the setback in goal for Sweden.
Sweden returns to
action on Wednesday, when they face Finland at 3 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.
With the tournament
opener out of the way, Canada turns its focus to the anticipated heavyweight
match with the United States set for Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.
That encounter will mark the first time Canada and the U.S. have faced each
other since the States claimed a 3-2 victory after a tiebreaking shootout in
the goal medal final at the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea, last
February.
 |
| Sarah Filler, an 18-year-old centre, scored for Canada on Tuesday. |
Daoust said the
Canadian side kept their focus on the opener against Sweden and tried not to get
ahead of themselves in thinking about the U.S.
“We try to stay in
the present,” said Daoust. “We just finished our game, so obviously, we’re
focusing on the U.S. now.
“I think recovery tonight
is going to be really important for us to play a big game tomorrow. We need to
be ready. I think we have the group to play against them.”
Clark issues statement on missing 4 Nations
Cup due to injury
 |
| Emily Clark seen at the SaskTel Centre last Thursday. |
The 22-year-old
forward on Canada’s senior national women’s team injured her left leg while
playing for the University of Wisconsin Badgers women’s hockey team of the
National Collegiate Athletic Association. Her injury occurred in the opening
minutes of a Badgers 4-2 home win on Oct. 13 against the University of
Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs.
“Although I am disappointed I am unable to play in the 4
Nations Cup, I am far more excited for my hometown and my teammates,” said
Clark in the statement. “I could not be more proud to be from Saskatoon, and I’m
thrilled that our journey to the 2022 Olympics is starting here.
“I’ve told me teammates to expect great support from the fans,
and I will be cheering along with the rest of Canada and following every step
of the way.”
Clark helped Canada win a silver medal at the Winter
Olympics held last February in PyeongChang, South Korea. She is an alumna of
the Saskatoon Stars female midget AAA hockey team.
Before the 4 Nations Cup started, Clark made a public
appearance at the home game of the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades last Thursday. Last
Saturday, she made a public appearance and was on hand for pre-game ceremonies
as the Stars played their first Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League
regular season contest at Merlis Belsher Place.
“Our focus and priority is Emily’s health, and in working
with Emily and her team, we feel that it is in her best interest to return to
school for treatment and to stay on top of her studies,” said Canada’s director
for women’s national teams Gina Kingsbury in the statement. “We are
disappointed she will not have the opportunity to play in her hometown, but we
know she is excited for the experience that is in front of our team.
“It is always special to put on the Team Canada jersey, play
on Canadian soil, and we look forward to the tournament this week.”
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