Jessica Vance moved into sole position of second place in the Canada West record books with the 20th shutout in her Huskie career, helping the University of Saskatchewan Huskies women’s hockey team pick up the 1-0 win over the Calgary Dinos on Jan. 18, 2020 at Merlis Belsher Place.
“It feels good, and it’s even better that I got my team the two wins this weekend,” said Vance.
Kennedy Brown scored the lone goal of the evening for the Huskies, as the second-year forward’s second tally of the season was the difference. Kara Kondrat and Kelsey Lalor tacked on assists on Brown’s first game-winner of her U SPORTS career.
Brown’s first-period goal was the lone blemish on the night for Kelsey Roberts, who stopped 23 of 24 shots on the night.
With the win, Saskatchewan picked up five of a possible six points over the course of the weekend, improving their record to 11-6-2-3 on the season. Just four points back of Calgary in the standings.
“We want to finish first or second, so we can get that bye, and now we made it possible for ourselves,” explained Vance.
Meanwhile, the loss drops the Dinos to 13-6-1-2 on the season.
Right from opening puck drop. The Huskies controlled the play and their persistence was eventually rewarded. Kondrat, who was making her return to the lineup, came onto a loose puck at the side of the cage, putting it on net, and it was her linemate Brown who shoveled it past Roberts to give the Huskies the 1-0 lead.
After Saskatchewan outshot Calgary 8-2 in the opening frame, the Dinos battled back to respond in the middle frame, recording a handful of chances of their own in the second. However, unfortunately for the visitors, Vance was equal to the task, allowing the Huskies to enter the third period with the one-goal lead.
From there, Saskatchewan was able to withstand any threats Calgary was able to muster up, with a pair of penalties in the late going of the third erasing any momentum the visitors were mounting, allowing the host Huskies to pick up the three-point regulation win.
The Huskies will look to build on their four-game winning streak when they head on their annual west coast road trip to tangle with the UBC Thunderbirds. Meanwhile, the Dinos will look to snap their three-game skid as they square off against the Alberta Pandas in a battle of the conference’s top-two teams in the standings.