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| The Saskatoon Stars have produced many memorable moments like this. |
After the
Saskatoon Stars fell 3-2 after a tiebreaking shootout to the Ontario-based
Stoney Creek Sabres in the bronze medal game of the Esso Cup female midget AAA
national championship tournament on Saturday, it hits you that the Stars season is done.
The
conclusion of that contest held at the Gerry McCrory Countryside Sports Complex
in Sudbury, Ont., brings forward another reality.
Grace
Shirley, Anna Leschyshyn and Joelle Fiala will never skate for the Stars again.
When August
comes, they will be departing for the United States to play for women’s hockey
teams in the NCAA ranks. Shirley will join the University of Wisconsin Badgers,
Leschyshyn will suit up for the Syracuse University Orange and Fiala will play
for the Robert Morris University Colonials.
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| Grace Shirley, right, at the Stars 2015 SFMAAAHL title win. |
That trio
were the constants in the Stars last three appearances at Esso Cup including
last year and in 2016. This season, Shirley was the Stars captain, while
Leschyshyn and Joelle Fiala served as assistant captains along with offensive
defender Ashley Messier, who turned 17-years-old in late March.
Shirley and
Leschyshyn each played a handful of games for the Stars as associate player
call ups in 2014-15.
Leschyshyn
was on the ice the night the Stars won their first Saskatchewan Female Midget
AAA Hockey League title on March 25, 2015. She picked up an assist in the Stars
2-0 victory over the Prince Albert Northern Bears that clinched the SFMAAAHL
championship series.
The Stars
took Shirley to that year’s Esso Cup tournament in Red Deer, Alta., and she
dressed for all seven of Saskatoon’s games.
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| Captain Grace Shirley in action for the Stars this season. |
They are
linked extremely tight to the identity of the team. To think they will no
longer be in the Stars lineup next season seems difficult to fathom.
When the
Stars returned to the Esso Cup for the fourth time in the last five years,
hopes were high that this would be there year. They would make the one or two
plays they hadn’t made in past years and one or two breaks would go their way
allowing Shirley, Leschyshyn and Fiala to graduate as national champions.
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| Anna Leschyshyn in action for the Stars on March 25, 2015. |
Playing in
one of the tournament’s tougher fields of six teams, the Stars finished first in
the preliminary round standings with a 4-1 record.
To show how
unpredictable the results could be, the preliminary round loss the Stars
suffered was a 7-3 drubbing to the As de Quebec on Monday.
Saskatoon
followed that up with a pair of one-goal wins in regulation including a 3-2
victory over the Alberta-based St. Albert Slash on Tuesday and a 3-2 triumph
over the host Sudbury Lady Wolves on Wednesday.
On Thursday,
Leschyshyn set Esso Cup single game records for goals (five) and points (eight)
in the Stars 11-1 win over the Halifax Fire.
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| Anna Leschyshyn in action for the Stars this season. |
The Slash
and Lady Wolves ultimately met in Saturday’s championship game, where the Slash
won a third straight national title with a 4-1 victory.
The Stars made
the national “frozen four” like their three previous visits to the Esso Cup and
like those previous visits more heartbreak ensued.
On Friday,
the Stars faced the Slash in one of two semifinal contests. Defender Dayle Ross
scored for the Slash 30 seconds into the third period to break a scoreless
deadlock.
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| Joelle Fiala (#27) celebrates scoring in the 2016 SFMAAAHL final. |
Captain
Madison Willan scored 2:46 into overtime to deliver a 2-1 victory to the Slash.
Arden
Kliewer made 26 saves to take the setback in goal for the Stars. Brianna Sank
turned away 22 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Slash.
Out of the
four times the Stars had played in a national semifinal, they picked up one win
and lost two games in extra time. In Saskatoon’s first visit to the Esso Cup in
2015, they dropped a 2-1 decision after a tiebreaking shootout to the host Red
Deer Chiefs.
In Saturday’s
bronze medal game against the Sabres, the Stars took a 1-0 lead at the 2:57
mark of the second period, when Fiala and Jayda Sachs combined to set up Calli
Arnold for her third goal of the tournament.
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| Joelle Fiala in action for the Stars this season. |
The Sabres rallied scoring twice to force a 2-2
tie and overtime with singles coming from Tessa Holk and Alicia Juras. Juras
netted the equalizer with 4:30 remaining in the third, when the Sabres were
short-handed.
Saskatoon held a 24-7 edge in shots on goal
through the third period and overtime.
The Sabres took the tiebreaking shootout 4-1
scoring on all four of their chances. Jenna Duarte, Alicia Juras, Vanessa Upson
and Alyssa Kawa all scored for the Sabres.
Fiala tallied in the shootout for the Stars.
Rookie Kaitlyn Cadrain turned away 19 shots in
regulation and overtime in goal for the Stars. Megan Warrener stopped 37 shots
in regulation and overtime in goal for the Sabres and two-of-three shooters in
the shootout.
The shootout at Esso Cup is conducted under
international rules.
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| Grace Tam played with heart in her final season for the Stars. |
The toughest aspect for the Stars to digest
from their Esso Cup appearances is that they could have legitimately one the
event two to three times. Out of their four appearances, they took home a
bronze medal in 2015 and fell to the Slash 2-1 in last year’s title game.
They still had a spectacular season in 2018-19
posting a 47-3-2-1 overall record that included winning the prestigious Mandi
Schwartz Memorial Tournament, the SFMAAAHL title and the Western regional
playdown series. Saskatoon posted its best ever record in regular season play
at 27-1.
Shirley, Leschyshyn and Fiala were generational
greats the Stars may never replace.
Shirley appeared in 107 career regular season
games becoming the Stars all-time leader in goals (97) and points (166). She
graduates as the third all-time leading scorer in the history of the SFMAAAHL.
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| Kaitlin Jockims concluded her time with the Stars as a hot scorer. |
Fiala appeared in 112 career regular season
games becoming the all-time leader in assists at 83. She had 47 goals and 130
points to become the team’s fourth all-time leading scorer and the eighth
all-time leading scorer in the history of the SFMAAAHL.
At the moment, no one is near cracking 100
points in SFMAAAHL career regular season play, so Shirley, Leschyshyn and Fiala
will likely remain high on the all-time scoring list for some time.
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| Abby DeCorby was solid on defence for the Stars. |
A year ago, the Stars graduated Mackenna
Parker, who is the SFMAAAHL’s third all-time leading scorer, Kianna Dietz,
Jordyn Holmes, Jordyn Gerlitz, Jordan Ivanco and Dana Wood. In 2017, the
graduates included Julia Rongve, Abby Shirley and Willow Slobodzian.
The bulk of the players who were responsible for
the Stars run of success over the past five seasons under head coach Greg
Slobodzian are gone.
The returning players and future additions will
create their own identity with the team.
Will they match the accomplishments the team
posted over the last five seasons? That in all reality is too much to ask.
In NHL terms, how often have the Edmonton
Oilers matched what their club accomplished with a roster of generational
players in the 1980s following their last Stanley Cup win in 1990?
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| Jayda Sachs picked up points during important moments for the Stars. |
Of course, they have never duplicated the run
they had in their heydays in the 1980s.
The era of Shirley, Leschyshyn and Fiala marked
a unique time in the history of the Stars that contained lots of good times. It
is too much to ask for a run like they’ve had to happen again.
Their time with the team was truly something to
behold.
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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