Roberts rules in Crowchild Classic
Dinos goalie records shutout as women’s hockey squad blanks Mount Royal
Playing on the regular season’s biggest stage, Kelsey Roberts put on a goaltending clinic, ending the University of Calgary Dinos’ 2018 slump with a 1-0 victory over the Mount Royal University Cougars in the women’s portion of the Crowchild Classic Thursday night at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
“It’s pretty awesome,” said Roberts after her team’s victory. “We had that slump without goals, but we got one tonight and then shut them down for the rest of the game. It was a pretty special game to win in.”
The first period showcased a tentative start for both sides, as neither team could generate any quality scoring chances. The best chance for either side came off the stick of Kate Hufnagel, who found herself alone in the slot before ultimately lofting a shot over the cage.
The Cougars launched 10 shots at Roberts in the first 20 minutes, but the game remained scoreless.
In the second frame, the pace and chances for both squads ramped up. Delaney Frey, on the doorstep, was robbed by Cougars keeper Zoe DeBeauville following a nifty pass from linemate Tori Stebnitsky. For the Cougars, Tatum Amy failed to control a wideopen breakaway pass, keeping the game deadlocked.
Going goalless in the last six contests, it was the Dinos finally getting on the board. After a Sage Desjardins pass to the point, Merissa Dawson threw a low shot toward the net that Cheyann Newman deflected perfectly past DeBeauville.
For Newman, the goal was her first of the season, which gave her back-to-back goals in games at the Saddledome as she scored the Dinos’ lone goal in last year’s Crowchild Classic.
Newman knew Dawson was going to shoot, so she went right to the net.
“When I saw it coming, I just got my stick up and got the deflection,” Newman said.
Despite the goal, it was the momentum that swung in favour of Mount Royal. Anna Purschke missed a golden rebound opportunity before Roberts made a miraculous save. On a 2-on-1, Reanna Arnold saucered a pass over to Tianna Ko, who blasted the puck on goal, but Roberts went across the crease to keep her shutout intact.
“I saw my defenceman go down and know how fast she was sliding and I saw (Arnold) looking pass, so I cheated over a little bit and I was able to get there in time,” Roberts said.
The glorious chance by Ko led to a Dinos power play following the scramble, but the Cougars kept the deficit at one heading into the third. Megan Carver nearly tied the game late on a short-handed break, but Roberts threw a perfect poke-check to keep the lead at one.
Penalty trouble started early for the Dinos in the third as Diane Hitchings and Kate Lumley were assessed back-to-back minors, but Mount Royal only managed to generate one quality look from Reanna Arnold, which Roberts stopped.
The Cougars continued to press, but were unable to beat Roberts as the Dinos edged out a 1-0 victory. Roberts, who was named first star of the game, made 27 saves, good for her sixth shutout of the season.
With the win, the Dinos are tied with the Cougars for fifth in Canada West with the rematch set for Friday at the Flames Community Arenas. Puck drop is at 7 p.m.
The game can be streamed on CanadaWest.tv