Cougars snap Dinos win streak

By Stephane Arnault, January 22 2015 —

The Mount Royal Cougars (2–13–3) defeated the University of Calgary Dinos (11–3–4) women’s hockey team 3–2 in a clash between the league’s hottest and coldest teams on Jan. 15 at the Crowchild Classic.

It was the Dinos’ second loss in three meetings this season to the basement dwelling Cougars.

“This loss might hurt us in the long-run,” said Dinos head coach Danielle Goyette. “I feel like this is a team that we struggle with every time we play them.”

The Dinos entered the contest on a five-game win streak while the Cougars entered on a four-game losing skid.
The first period was a chess match with both teams waiting the other out.With less than five minutes remaining in the opening stanza, Cougars forward Danielle Klein backhanded the puck at the side of the Dinos net, sailing it over Dinos goalie Carissa Fischer for the goal.

Mount Royal netted an insurance marker 1:30 into the second frame when Taralynn Suzuki snapped a shot from the left hash mark that went off the crossbar and in. It was the Cougars’ second goal on six shots.
The Dinos answered a few minutes later, when Stephanie Zvonkovic’s blast from the point went through a maze of bodies and into the net, making it 2–1 for the Cougars.

The see-saw battle continued as Cougars defenceman Devonie Deschamps wristed one through traffic and past Fischer to restore the Cougars’ two-goal lead, making it 3–1 after 40 minutes.

The Dinos found life with four minutes remaining in the game. Janelle Parent pounced on a rebound and managed to raise it over Cougars goalie Jess Ross to bring the Dinos within one.

However, their momentum was short lived.

With less than two minutes to play, Dinos forward Erika Mitschke took a questionable slashing penalty that all but ended any chance of a Dinos comeback.

“You can’t really complain about the ref,” Goyette said. “It’s a one-goal game and [the ref] let everything go, and then in the third just a little tap and she called that. At the end of the day, we know what kind of ref she is and we have to live with that right now.”

The Dinos outshot the Cougars 31–15.

“I juggled a lot with my lines today trying to find something that motivates or sparks something,” Goyette said. “Tonight it didn’t work.”

Ross made 29 saves and was the game’s first star.

“You have to give her credit,” Goyette said. “She had a good game, but I think we made her look good. We had about three shots that we should have put on net and we missed. You can’t be fancy. I think it’s a lesson learned. I’d prefer to learn that lesson today than to learn it at the end of March.”

The Dinos’ four-game home stand will wrap up on Jan. 23 against the Lethbridge Pronghorns. Puck drop is at 7:05 p.m. at Father David Bauer Arena.