Colby Wilson made 35 saves for her sixth career shutout as the Huskies defeated the Manitoba Bisons 2-0 on Jan. 17. Photo courtesy Dave Mahussier/1812 Photography/Bison Sports

By Ryan Flaherty

high-wire win

Wilson wows as Huskies blank Bisons

Jan 17, 2025 | 11:34 PM

The Huskies women’s hockey team isn’t ready to give up on its playoff hopes and with the kind of goaltending they’re getting from Colby Wilson, you can understand why.

The fourth-year netminder was simply sensational in a 35-save shutout performance as the Huskies downed the Manitoba Bisons 2-0 in Winnipeg to narrow the gap in their push for a post-season berth. After a winless first half of the season, the Dogs have won four of their last five games with Wilson posting three clean sheets, and Friday’s effort was the best of the bunch.

“I think I’m finally starting to figure out what I need to do mentally to be prepared and overcome obstacles and everything. I think I’ve been playing well but I wouldn’t be able to get shutouts without the team,” Wilson said. “It’s hard to say whether this is the best I’ve played but I’m pretty happy with my progress.”

The Huskies needed every save that Wilson could muster against a dangerous Bisons squad that controlled the game for long stretches, especially in the first 30 minutes. Manitoba got its first scoring chance 13 seconds into the game on an odd-numbered rush but Wilson came up large with what proved to be a tone-setting stop.

The Dogs gave their goaltender some early support, too. After weathering a flurry of chances in the opening two and a half minutes, Saskatchewan broke out of its zone with Jessica Patterson flying down the left wing and beating her defender wide before cutting inside for a point-blank shot. Though she was denied by Bisons netminder Emily Shippam, Patterson followed the puck to the right-wing boards and swung a pass back to the opposite point where rookie defender Julianna Herman wristed a shot home for her first career U SPORTS goal.

A series sweep over the Bisons

Huskies take seven game win streak into January 24th-25th series with the Alberta Golden Bears

Jan 19, 2025

point slips away

Last minute comeback spoils Huskies sweep bid

Jan 19, 2025

high-wire win

Wilson wows as Huskies blank Bisons

Jan 18, 2025

From there, it was more of the Wilson show, and while the Huskies high-wire act may have been the type of thing to give a coach a heart condition, Kook wasn’t wringing his hands about it.

“Something we haven’t been very good at this year is trying to make plays. I’ve just felt we’ve been too safe this year trying not to make mistakes. I’d rather do this than just sit back,” he said.

After a scoreless second period the Dogs added some insurance with another milestone goal midway through the third as Ava Bergman converted a centering feed from Jayde Cadieux for her her first career tally, and in her hometown no less.

Bergman’s goal proved to be massive as it was then time for more Wilson heroics. The Fort St. James, B.C., product stared down shot after shot from the Bisons, but one save stood head and shoulders above the rest. With just over six minutes remaining, after a scramble outside the crease, the puck popped free to the right side and Sadie Keller had a wide open net but Wilson streched across to get just enough of the shot to deflect it off the post and preserve the two-goal lead.

“That was pretty crazy. I thought it was going in and then I just felt the little tip of my glove and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I stopped that,'” she said.

“That save Colby made, and there was another one with about three minutes left, she fought for those. When you do that, the team in front of you just goes like that,” Kook said.

The Bisons continued to press but Wilson would not budge as the Huskies held on for the victory. Saskatchewan is now 4-11-4 on the year, ten points back of both the Bisons and Regina Cougars for the final playoff spot in the East Division. It’s still a steep climb with just nine games left in the regular season but the Dogs have three more matchups with Manitoba to provide a glimmer of hope.

The Bisons outshot the Huskies 35-19 on the night and the teams combined to go 0-5 on the power play. They will square off again on Saturday at 4 p.m. and the game can be heard on the free HuskieFAN app.

—

Twitter/X: @RFlahertypxp