The MRU Cougars hockey teams were the only squads remaining in this year's Canada West Playoffs last week, with the men's team hosting the University of Alberta Golden Bears at Flames Community Arena and the women's team in Edmonton taking on the University of Alberta Pandas in the Canada West Semifinals. Only the men's team advanced to the finals and qualified for the U SPORTS National Tournament, but both Cougars squads gave their best and put on a show for their fans, making selecting this week's Players Bench Athletes of the Week all the more difficult.

Players Bench Female Athlete of the Week: Kaitlyn Ross (WHKY)
Kaitlyn Ross's final year as an MRU Cougar was filled with some incredible moments; in 21 games played, the legendary goaltender posted a save percentage of 0.943, the highest of her Cougars career, and earned six shutout victories. Ross was a huge component in making her team's playoff run possible and in her final weekend as a Cougar, the goaltender made 60 saves on 66 shots for a save percentage of 0.910, averaging just 1.86 goals against in her team's three-game semifinal series against the Pandas.

Every game of this nail-biting series was decided by a single goal and two of the three games required at least one overtime period. The Cougars opened the series with a 3-2 double-overtime win on Friday night and Ross played a huge part, making 16 saves on 18 Panda shots. The biggest of these saves came in the first overtime as Ross sprawled across the net to stop a Pandas two-on-one attack, making a save and keeping the game alive long enough for Gabby Lindsey to score the game-winner.

The Cougars lost game two 0-1, with Ross saving 21 of 22 shots for a save percentage of 0.955. With their season on the line, the Cougars marched into Clare Drake Arena in Edmonton ready for war. MRU held the lead for the majority of the game, entering the third period with a 2-1 lead. Ross had saved nine of the 10 shots she faced in the first two periods and made 13 more in the third period, but the Pandas found a way to score one more regulation goal and send the game into overtime. Both goalies made a save each in the extra period, but it was the Pandas who scored the golden goal two minutes into overtime and handed the Cougars a 2-3 game loss and 1-2 series loss in the Canada West Semifinals.

Ross ended the season as one of, if not the best goalie in all of U SPORTS. With her incredible MRU Cougars career behind her, she has a legitimate opportunity to advance to a professional league, whether it be in between the posts as a goaltender or on the mound as a baseball catcher. Regardless, she has established herself as a Cougars legend and cemented that status forever with countless incredible seasons, including the Cinderella run to the U SPORTS National Championship in 2023. 

Players Bench Male Athlete of the Week: Josh Tarzwell (MHKY):
For the first time in Cougars history, the MRU men's hockey team will play at the U SPORTS National Championship in Ottawa at the TD Place Arena, home of the Ottawa Senators. After years of heartbreaking losses in the semifinal rounds, the Cougars beat the University of Alberta Golden Bears 2-1 in this year's Canada West Semifinals with a 4-2 victory in the final game of the series, and that feat was made possible by the incredible offensive contributions of Josh Tarzwell, who totalled four points in the three-game series on three goals and one assist. 

Tarzwell scored the first goal of the semifinals on Friday night 12 minutes into game, giving Justin Lies and Kurtis Smythe their first assists of the series. Alberta tied the game in the second period, and after both teams scored one more goal each, the game advanced into overtime. Spencer Moe buried the game-winner eight minutes into the extra period and the Cougars skated off the ice with a 1-0 series lead and 3-2 game one victory.

The Cougars did not score a single goal in game two, which they lost 0-6 on Saturday night, and were forced to play a third game at Flames Community Arena with their season on the line. Things looked bleak at first as the Golden Bears scored the first goal of the game on the power play. 11 minutes later, Teague Patton tied the game with a power play goal of his own and injected hope into Cougars fans' veins, but Alberta retook the lead late in the second period with yet another power play goal. 

Not to be left out, Tarzwell joined the power play party with a man-advantage goal to tie the game in the dying seconds of the second period. He also picked up an assist on Lies' goal midway through the third period to give MRU a 3-2 lead, putting the pressure squarely on Alberta's shoulders. The Bears pulled their goalie late in the period to have a sixth attacker on the ice, but Tarzwell punished them for leaving their net open and sealed the victory with an empty-netter in the dying seconds of the game. 

With Tarzwell's three goals and one assist over the weekend, MRU finished their semifinal series with a 4-2 game win and 2-1 series win, advancing to the Canada West Finals and U SPORTS National Tournament for the first time ever.