Huskies women's hockey team members load the bus outside Merlis Belsher Place on Dec. 2, 2021. (Daniella Ponticelli / HuskieFAN)

By HuskieFAN Staff

BEST IN CANADA WEST

Huskies women’s hockey head west to face top-ranked Mount Royal

Dec 2, 2021 | 3:12 PM

A snowy bus ride to Calgary, Alta. Thursday as Huskies women’s hockey face a tough road test against the best in Canada West.

Saskatchewan visits the Mount Royal University Cougars for the team’s final weekend of games before the Christmas break.

The first road trip to Alberta this season is also a homecoming for seven players on the Huskies roster, including first-year McKenna Bolger on defence.

“It definitely motivates me to play better,” said Bolger, whose immediate and extended family will be in the crowd this weekend.

“I know there’s people watching me, who are excited to see me perform well, so I definitely think it helps my game.”

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Huskies head coach Steve Kook said it’s nice to have so many families come out when the team is on the road.

“Going back to Calgary, with that many families there, it’s going to be nice to have some sort of home fan cheering section for us,” said Kook, adding Mount Royal will have a good crowd cheering on the Cougars.

After the team’s final on-ice practice before hitting the road Thursday, Kook said points will be key this weekend to ensure the Huskies stay in good standing in Canada West.

“The second half is really a sprint because it’s eight games. That’s it,” he said. “If we need to make up some ground in the second half, we need to be able to do that. You don’t want to be too far behind the pack.”

Mount Royal sits atop the conference standings to start the weekend, tied at 16 points with The University of Manitoba Bisons.

The Cougars and Bisons split their series last weekend in Calgary. Mount Royal winning 3-2 in regulation Friday, followed by a 2-1 overtime loss for the rematch Saturday.

The University of Saskatchewan comes into the weekend ranked fourth in Canada West, with a 6-4 record, just behind the third-ranked University of British Columbia Thunderbirds.

Both teams are tied with 14 points on the season, having split their series in Saskatoon last weekend. The T-Birds have the tiebreaker with a 7-3 record.

Kook said he’s pleased with the Huskies progress at this point in the season.

“The young players are learning the amount of grit that they need to play in this league,” he said.

Saskatchewan and Mount Royal last met on Nov. 30, 2019, with the Huskies sweeping the series in Saskatoon.

Huskies and Cougars play Friday and Saturday at the Flames Community Arenas. Puck drops at 8 p.m. Friday and 7 p.m. Saturday.

Listen to all live and archived Huskies women’s hockey broadcasts on the HuskieFAN app and at huskiefan.ca.