Courtesy: Panda Athletics

By Ryan Flaherty

BACK IN PLAYOFF POSITION

Special teams spark Huskies comeback win over Pandas

Jan 24, 2026 | 11:29 PM

The Huskies hockey team continues to pick up points on the road, adding two more in thrilling fashion with a 3-2 shootout victory over the Alberta Pandas on Saturday in Edmonton.

Down 2-0 after two periods of play, the Dogs got a shorthanded goal from Jayde Cadieux and a power play marker from Peppi Virtanen in the third before completing the comeback in the skills competition.

After seeing a regulation win slip through their grasp in Friday’s shootout loss to the Pandas, the Huskies were determined to finish the job in the final game of their weekend set.

“Everything here, from the boards to the benches is just suited to the home team and that’s why it’s such a hard place to play in but at the same time it’s always a fun challenge to come here because there’s so many things you have to overcome and I thought that’s what made it a character weekend for us,” head coach Steve Kook said.

Holly Magnus opened the scoring late in the first period and Sara Kazeil doubled the lead midway through the second on an Alberta power play. But the ice began to tilt in the Huskies favour in the third. At the tail end of another Pandas skater advantage, Shelby Williamson sent Cadieux in on a shorthanded break and the fourth-year forward made no mistake, burying her second goal in as many games to cut the deficit in half.

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The Pandas ran into penalty trouble a few minutes later as Jadynn Morden was whistled for holding the stick then received an extra penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct after complaining about the call. On the first half of the double minor, Kendra Zuchotzki blasted a shot off the goalpost and Virtanen deposited the rebound to knot the score at two.

In overtime, the Pandas outshot the Huskies but Colby Wilson stood tall, punctuating the extra frame with a terrific glove save off Morden right before the final buzzer.

Wilson then denied Natalie Kieser in the shootout before Cadieux put the Huskies in front. Abby Soyko equalized for Alberta in round two but Sara Kendall followed up with another goal, and Wilson slammed the door on Ryann Perrett to seal the win.

“This barn is definitely hard to play in so I think the team was pretty excited to take these three points away (this weekend), especially with Manitoba on our tail,” Cadieux said.

The victory pushes USask back into the third and final playoff spot in the East Division, one point ahead of the Manitoba Bisons, who briefly held it after a win over MacEwan earlier on Saturday. The Huskies now sit at 9-9-4 with six games remaining in the regular season.

“If we’re successful in getting where we want to get to then we’re gonna be back here in four weeks so that’s a good memory for us,” Kook said. “I don’t think they want us back here in four weeks.”

The Dogs will next face the Regina Cougars in a home-and-home set with the opener set for Friday, Jan. 30 in the Queen City. The Cougars currently trail the Huskies by four points in the playoff race.

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