File photo by Pete Yee

The Huskies women’s hockey team came out flying in the second annual Mandi Schwartz Challenge last weekend but gradually lost momentum as the three-day tournament wore on.

The squad opened the six-team non-conference tournament Sept. 21 with a huge 11-0 victory over the Balmoral Hall Blazers, a female prep-school team from Manitoba. Following the win, however, the Dogs struggled to find the same success for the rest of the tournament.

In their second game of the weekend the Dogs lost 3-2 in overtime against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds. In their final match, versus the University of Manitoba Bisons, the Huskies fell 7-5. The Bisons proved they were the better team, leaving Saskatchewan with a 1-1-1 record on the weekend.

Manitoba’s victory over the Dogs made them the only undefeated squad and winners of the tournament. UBC placed second with a 2-1 record, while Team Sask, the provincial U-18 women’s hockey team, tied both the University of Regina and Saskatchewan with 1-1-1 records. Balmoral Hall finished in last place, with their only victory coming in overtime against Team Sask.

The tournament is named for Mandi Shwartz, a Wilcox, Sask. native who competed at nationals twice with Team Sask’s U-18 squad before going on to Yale University where she played for the Yale Bulldogs. In December of 2008, while playing for the Bulldogs, Shwartz was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. Shwartz underwent a stem cell transplant in September 2010; three months later, however, she learned the cancer had returned. Leukemia would eventually be the cause of her death as she passed away on April 3, 2011 at the age of 23.

The women’s team will play in one final non-conference tournament before the season starts. The team travels to the University of Calgary for an international match against the Japanese national team Sept. 29 and for a game against the Mount Royal Cougars the following day.

The Huskies men’s hockey team also competed in a non-conference tournament over the weekend, playing in the 28th annual Brick Invitational Sept. 21-22 at Clarke Drake Arena in Edmonton.

The University of Alberta Golden Bears hosted the event, inviting their rivals the University of Calgary Dinos and the Mount Royal University Cougars, a new team in the league, along with the Huskies.

The Dogs opened the tournament against the Golden Bears.

Alberta scored first when veteran defenceman Colin Joe sent a cross-crease pass to Brett Ferguson who capitalized by neatly sliding it past Huskies goalie Ryan Holfeld.

The Dogs leveled the score less than four minutes later on the power-play. Forward Kenton Dulle scored after deflecting Craig McCallum’s hard shot on goal.

The teams combined for 13 power-play chances and over 70 minutes in penalties on the night. But despite four third-period man-advantage attempts, the Huskies were unable to score and the game was forced into overtime. Overtime solved nothing, causing the two teams to determine a winner via shootout.

The goalies stole the show in the ensuing skills competition, each stopping the first three shooters. Finally, on the Golden Bears’ fourth attempt, Sean Ringrose’s initial shot looked to be stopped by Holfeld but then bounced over top of the goalie and trickled into the back of the Huskies net.

Golden Bears goalie Kurtis Mucha made one final stop on Dogs rookie forward Brandon Herrod to ensure the win for Alberta.

In their second game of the tournament the Huskies were downed 4-2 by the Calgary Dinos and finished the tournament as the only winless team. Alberta played the Mount Royal Cougars in their second match and won that game in overtime to go undefeated and win the tournament.

The men open regular season play Sept. 28 and 29 on the road against the Mount Royal Cougars.

—
File photo: Pete Yee