UBC’s women’s hockey kept up their winning streak in the Canada West after last Friday’s match against the University of Alberta Pandas, securing a 3–0 victory in an intense game at Father David Bauer Arena.
For the ‘Birds, they had some extra motivation coming into this game. Last year, despite finishing with the best record in the conference, they fell to the Pandas in the Canada West final at home. While UBC was able to exact some revenge, with their most recent matchup with Alberta being the consolation final of the U Sports Championship — where the Birds’ won 5–1 — the T-Birds still knew the pressure would be on.
“ We came in with a little bit more hunger, [especially] knowing that the Canada West Champions [were] coming in,” said head coach Graham Thomas. ”That's something we haven't been used to in the last [few] years. [It] is usually us that everybody's coming after.”
It may have been four years since the Pandas last came to Vancouver as defending Canada West champions, but the Thunderbirds weren’t going to let that unfamiliarity get in the way of notching another win.
Before the puck had been dropped, the tension was palpable between the teams, with both sides hooting and hollering, banging their sticks and skates against the boards.
Both teams came out of the gate in the first period playing fast and aggressively. The T-Birds’ defence worked hard, not letting the Pandas stay in the offensive zone for long. That commitment paid off. Despite going on the power play early, Alberta still wasn’t able to get past UBC’s defence, only managing four shots on goal in the opening period.
The T-Birds, however, didn’t waste their power play opportunity, lighting up the scoreboard for the first time eight minutes into the period. After a scrum in the corner off the faceoff, defender Jaylyn Morris managed to sneak a shot through Alberta’s defence less than 15 seconds after their power play began.
She was assisted with a quick pass from forward Annalise Wong, who showed yet again her ability to find great opportunities for the team to score. Wong, the team’s captain, leads the ‘Birds in assists this season with five.
While the rest of the period saw an escalation of the tension between the teams, the score remained a one-goal advantage for the ‘Birds after one. Alberta was still not able to get past UBC’s defence, with the ‘Birds limiting all chances for the Pandas. Meanwhile, the T-Birds’ forwards were finding plenty of opportunities against the Pandas’ defence — with 11 shots in the frame — but were unable to get past goalie Misty Rey again.
The second period saw Alberta finally make the game competitive, with the team having more shots on goal than UBC, but still not scoring despite having three power plays in the frame.
Being short a player most of the period, the Thunderbirds had to pull the brakes on offence, despite the narrow lead. Yet, they were able to hold their own, even when short-handed. While they can take pride in their penalty kill, the ‘Birds’ high volume of penalties early in the season is a concern.
While the ‘Birds had mostly controlled play, the third and final period began with the tension between the teams reaching its peak, with Alberta’s deficit still only one. Referees had to separate scrums a few times, and while penalties were distributed to both sides, the T-Birds received five out of the seven penalties in the period.
With the ‘Birds still nursing a one-goal lead, the majority of those penalties came at an inopportune time. In the final five-and-a-half minutes of the game, UBC was short-handed essentially the entire time, being called for four consecutive penalties, which led to two separate five-on-three advantages for the Pandas — one of longer than a minute. In spite of Alberta’s power play opportunities, they were still unable to get past UBC goalie Mya Lucifora, who posted 20 saves in her second career shutout.
With less than two minutes left in the game, just following the conclusion of the Pandas’ second five-on-three, Alberta’s decision to pull their goalie became their ultimate doom. UBC forward Mya Healey sent the puck flying across the ice to score an empty netter. Following her teammate’s cue, forward Karine Sandilands scored another empty net goal one minute later to seal the victory.
While perhaps closer than they would have liked, the ‘Birds were able to face some adversity and still come out on top.
“ We knew [it was] always gonna be a spirited battle — [it] feels like playoff hockey in October,” said Thomas.
He specifically highlighted the talent of the UBC roster — being able to rely on anyone in their lineup to make a play.
“Our huge strength this year is our depth, top to bottom. You can put anybody out there at any given moment,” he said. “Our rookies [have] been great. They don’t look like rookies. They're making mistakes like everyone else and they're learning fast … but they're making some really good plays and they're playing solid.”
Following a rematch against the Pandas the following day, the next challenge ahead of the Thunderbirds will be in Saskatchewan, taking on the University of Regina Cougars on Friday, Oct. 31.
