‘Short memory’ key to goalie’s success
UBC Thunderbirds star Micklash earns conference player of the week honours
It takes a certain personality to have people fire halfpound discs of vulcanized rubber at your head for 60 minutes, but then again, hockey goalies are a breed apart.
“It’s definitely an acquired taste,” said a laughing Tory Micklash, the women’s UBC Thunderbirds goaltender.
Micklash has been getting her fill between the pipes for the T-Birds, facing about 21 shots per game but stopping 95.3 per cent of them. She’s helped UBC to a 10-5-3-4 record and third place in the Canada West standings with three weeks left in the regular season.
The native of East St. Paul, Man. — that’s about 10 minutes northeast of Winnipeg — has four shutouts on the year. Her career total of nine equals the all-time leader, Melinda Choy, who set the record a decade ago.
This season, the 5-foot-5 third-year kinesiology student has a minuscule 0.96 goalsagainst average and a .953 save percentage — second and third in Canada West, respectively. She was named the conference’s player of the week last Tuesday.
“I think the biggest thing is having a short memory, especially in games,” she said of her success so far this season.
“It’s so fast-paced, you can’t dwell on the little mistakes. If you make a mistake, they’re coming right back at you five seconds later. You just have to adapt.
“From a goalie standpoint, you have to pick and choose your moments to think about things, to keep yourself focused and in the moment.”
The T-Birds host the fourthplace Saskatchewan Huskies this Friday and Saturday, with a chance to put some distance between themselves and the Prairie dogs in the standings, as they’re separated by just a single point. Both games at Doug Mitchell Thunderbirds Sports Centre start at 7 p.m.
UBC blasted out of the gates with just two regulation losses in their first 14 games, but are just a shade over .500 since then.
Friday night’s game is also the team’s annual Mental Health Awareness game in correlation with UBC’s support of Bell Let’s Talk. It’s an issue that strikes close to the squad, having lost teammate Laura Taylor to suicide a few years ago.
UBC STARS OF THE WEEK
Michael Stenerson | Men’s hockey
The veteran Thunderbirds forward scored four points — including Saturday’s game-winner in double overtime — as UBC earned three of a possible four points against the Calgary Dinos this weekend, clinching a playoff berth in the process.
Stenerson assisted on Jerret Smith’s second-period goal on Friday and later tied the game late in the third period on the power play to force OT.
On Saturday, Stenerson earned another assist on Quentin Greenwood’s second-period goal. The fifthyear player from Surrey then gave the T-Birds their first win of 2019 with his fifth of the season in double overtime.
In his final Canada West season, Stenerson has compiled five goals, seven assists and just six penalty minutes in 16 games.
UBC is in Saskatoon this Friday and Saturday to face the first place Huskies.
Keylyn Filewich | Women’s basketball
Filewich led the way once again for the Thunderbirds with a combined 44 points on the weekend, registering another pair of double-double performances as UBC swept the Brandon Bobcats while punching their ticket to the Canada West playoffs.
The third-year player from Winnipeg led all players on Friday with 28 points and 15 rebounds.
The Thunderbirds have won nine in a row and sit fifth in the conference with a 12-4 record. They’re home to the UNBC Timberwolves this weekend.
Grant Shephard | Men’s basketball
The second-year forward put up back-to-back dou- ble-doubles against the Bobcats in Brandon over the weekend, helping the T-Birds to a weekend sweep, extending their current win streak to a 14 games.
Shephard had 14 points and a game high 15 boards in Friday night’s 98-81 win, adding another 25 points on Saturday along with a season-high 18 rebounds.
At 15-1, UBC is behind only the undefeated Calgary Dinos with two weeks left before playoffs begin. Shephard and the T-Birds are home to the UNBC Timberwolves Friday and Saturday at War Memorial Gym for their final home series of the regular season.
You can’t dwell on the little mistakes. If you make a mistake, they’re coming right back at you five seconds later.”
UBC women’s hockey goalie Tory Micklash