Box Score Hitting the ice for their last weekend of regular-season games, the Mount Royal University women's hockey team hosted the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds Friday night in their first home clash of the weekend.
Neither the Thunderbirds nor Cougars managed to score in the opening period of the game.
Thunderbirds Kailee Peppler received a ten-minute misconduct penalty immediately at the beginning of the game.
The only other penalty of the period was given to Thunderbirds Mackenzie Kordic for holding an opponent's stick, granting the Cougars a two-minute power play advantage in the last minute of the period, extending into the second.
However, the Thunderbirds defence prevented the Cougars from securing any points.
Within the first four minutes of the second period,
Lyndsey Janes received a two-minute tripping penalty, giving the Thunderbirds an opportunity to take the lead.
However, the Thunderbirds were unable to score.
Seconds after the power play ended, Rylind MacKinnon of the Thunderbirds managed to score, putting her team into a 1 – 0 lead over the Cougars.
Halfway through the period, Mya Healey of the Thunderbirds received a two-minute hooking penalty, providing the Cougars an opportunity to respond with a five-on-four advantage.
However, despite the upper hand, the Cougars were unable to get past the Thunderbirds.
Once again, the Thunderbirds received a penalty in the last minute of the period after Rylind MacKinnon was given a two-minute penalty for a hit to the head.
Starting off the third period with a disadvantage, the Thunderbirds managed to protect their net from any shots made by the Cougars.
Grace Elliott of the Thunderbirds extended their lead to 2 – 0 over three minutes into the period, with assists from Kennesha Miswaggon and Joelle Fiala.
With under seven minutes left in the game,
Ava Metzger received a four-minute penalty for a hit to the head, with teammate
Jordynne Hojnocki serving two-minutes.
Additionally, Thunderbirds Cassidy Rhodes received a two-minute penalty for a hit to the head at the same time.
In the last three minutes of the game, the Cougars opted to pull their goalie, creating a six-on-five game.
However, Thunderbirds Mackenzie Kordic took control of the puck, managing to score in the Cougars empty net and extending their lead to 3 – 0. She was assisted by teammate Chanreet Bassi.
Despite their efforts, the Cougars ultimately fell to the Thunderbirds.
The Cougars will face off against the Thunderbirds once more Saturday afternoon, concluding their regular season as they head into playoffs next weekend. The puck is set to drop at 3 p.m. Tickets can be purchased here.
