The University of Saskatchewan Huskies women's hockey team celebrate a goal over the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds on Friday night at Merlis Belsher Place. (Katie Brickman-Young/HuskieFAN)

By Katie Brickman-Young

Women's hockey team move ahead of UBC in standings

Four in a row for Huskies

Nov 26, 2021 | 10:49 PM

The feel-good vibes are strong for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies right now.

The Huskies women’s hockey team won their fourth straight game and took sole possession of third place in the Canada West standings with a big 4-2 victory over the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds on Friday night at Merlis Belsher Place in Saskatoon.

“This one is huge – especially against UBC as they are a strong team,” said Huskies forward Jordyn Holmes. “I think it was important for us to come out there and show them that we can keep up and challenge them just like any other team.”

Entering the contest, the Thunderbirds and Huskies were tied in points, but with the win, they snapped the TBirds two-game winning streak and took advantage of moving up the standings.

“We couldn’t celebrate that win until the buzzer said zero, and that’s what games are like in this league,” said Steve Kook, head coach of the Huskies. “The pucks have been going in for us the last couple of games, so there is a lot of confidence on our shooter’s part right now.”

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After a scoreless first period, UBC’s Sophia Gaskell got the TBirds on the board just 1:21 into the second frame. Isabella Pozzi notched her first of the season, getting the Huskies on the board with the equalizer.

The scoring continued for both teams in the frame as Kennedy Brown scored on the power play midway through, tipping a shot from the point to beat UBC’s goaltender Elise Hugens.

TBirds forward Mackenzie Kordic would tie the game up again on the power play, but Jordyn Holmes scored her second of the season on a goal at a hard angle from the goal line that beat Hugens stick shoulder side.

“Jordy was pretty good for us tonight. She scored a big goal, drew a couple of penalties and in that last minute, she was just outstanding on that six-on-five,” said Kook. “For us, she was the player of the game for us. She was outstanding for us tonight.”

The Huskies never looked back after that goal by Holmes, as Abby Shirley added an insurance goal in third period on the power play. It was Shirley’s fourth goal in three games.

After completing a weekend sweep of the University of Calgary Dinos last weekend, the team is feeling confident and feeling good against opponents above them in the standings.

“We have a lot of confidence right now, but I think we have to keep working,” said Holmes. “It doesn’t come easy – we know we have to show up every day and grind every night in order to be successful.”

For the TBirds, this was the most goals they have given up in a game this season. Rookie goaltender Hugens has been dynamic for UBC. Coming into this match, she had a 5-0 record with three shutouts in 300 minutes with a .40 goals against average (GAA). This was the most goals she has given up on the season.

The Huskies knew they were in tough against the sharp goalie, but they focused on creating traffic in front of her to make her work harder to see and fight for the puck. The strategy worked well, as two of the four goals came with bodies in front of her in the crease.

“We focused on keeping the game simple and the puck in front of us. They move so fast, and they have a good transition game, so we wanted to make sure we were above the puck and have some counter punch,” said Kook.

Huskies’ goaltender Camryn Drever was lights-out as well. She stopped 29 shots, earning her fifth win on the season.

“She brings stability. There have been times when we have defensive zone breakdowns, but I think what Cam does well is taking control of the situation,” said Kook. “Rarely does Cam give up a second chance.”

The Huskies will look to bring their streak to five games in what will be a difficult rematch against the TBirds on Saturday night (7 p.m., Merlis Belsher Place).

“Same thing – keep it simple, stay engaged, stay motivated and stay in the game for every shift and keep the puck in front of us,” said Kook on the game plan on Saturday night.

-With files from Daniella Ponticelli