Fresh off a summer of hard work in preparation for the 2018-19 season, the Ravens women’s hockey team made its much-awaited debut in Montreal on Oct. 20 against the McGill Martlets.
After a disappointing 2017-18 season which saw them win three of their 20 regular-season games, the Ravens came out and played McGill tightly in the first period in which Carleton outshot the opposition by a count of 13 to 12.
However, penalty trouble cost Carleton early. After fourth-year forward Shannon Pearson was sent to the box for a hooking call just three minutes and 26 seconds into the game, McGill wasted no time in capitalizing. Just seven seconds after the puck dropped to begin the 5-on-4 advantage, McGill’s Kellyane Lecours recorded her first goal of the season to give the Martlets a 1-0 lead.
Carleton nearly equalized the score moments later, as forward Annie-Pier Tremblay found a streaking Jenna Mitchell alone in front of the net. However, McGill netminder Tricia Deguire was up to the task for both the initial shot and its rebound, keeping her shutout bid intact.
Not capitalizing on that play cost the Ravens dearly. After a turnover in their own zone, the Ravens suffered a defensive collapse and allowed Lecours to skate to the side of the net uncontested. A perfect pass allowed her to score on the tic-tac-toe play, doubling McGill’s lead with her second of the game at 6:57 of the first period.
Ravens goaltender Katelyn Steele held the fort for the rest of the first period, allowing Carleton to get back within one by its conclusion.
After a gritty, tenacious, and relentless shift which saw them keep the puck in the McGill zone for the better part of a minute, it was Tremblay, who nearly set up a goal earlier in the period, who cashed in for Carleton’s first goal of the season.
Crashing the net, she picked up a rebound in the slot and chipped it over the head of Martlets goaltender Deguire.
Entering the second period with a tenuous grasp on the lead, McGill began to escalate their level of play. They outshot Carleton by a margin of 14-10, all while playing a clean, penalty-free game.
Set up once again by the Martlets’ Jade Downie-Landry’s third assist of the game, Lecours capped off her hat trick with a nifty play at the 18:01 mark of the period.
Corralling the puck from her skates in front of the net, Lecours put an initial shot on Steele, who could not hold onto the rebound. Faced with a gaping cage, the McGill sniper made no mistake in making it a 3-1 Martlets lead.
Intent upon not giving the Ravens any more chances to claw back into the game, McGill showed dominance in the third period. The Martlets limited Carleton to just six total shots in the final frame and carried the majority of the play in the Ravens’ own zone.
After a great stretch of saves from Ravens goaltender Katelyn Steele, Lecours found her way into the slot of the Ravens defence—firing a bullet of a shot over Steele’s glove to give the Martlets the crucial insurance goal they needed. Lecours’ fourth goal of the night made it a 4-1 McGill lead.
Carleton nearly cut the lead to 4-2 late in the third as forward Halle Bodnarchuk narrowly missed converting with a wrist shot to the blocker side of Deguire.
McGill added another goal under two minutes after Carleton’s miss. This time, it was Sidonie Chard who scored, as she entered the Ravens’ zone and fired a bullet top-shelf over Steele’s blocker to make it a 5-1 lead with under five minutes to play. It would remain that score until the final buzzer.
The Ravens will get a chance to redeem themselves on Oct. 27 when they take on the University of Montreal Carabins for their home opener at the Ice House.
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