Tag: concordia hockey

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Ottawa 7, Concordia 2: There’s a job to do

After a collection of tight games and surprising many with a wild run to the OUA East finals, the Stingers fell in a 7-2 blowout to the now division champions, the Ottawa Gee Gee’s.

There was no time to sit and sulk though. There is still work to be done.

“It’s a tough loss but we’re not done, that’s what’s fun,” said Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement.

After a playoff run that included a victory over their most bitter rival, a sweep of the league’s top team, a triple overtime win, and eventually being swept themselves, the Stingers have one last challenge to face on their way to pushing for a berth at the national championship in Halifax.

They will be one of two teams vying for the bronze medal of the OUA and the final spot at nationals. They take on the loser of the OUA West final in a winner takes all, one game elimination battle later this week.

“It’s a game seven right away. So we have to be on our toes and play Stingers hockey,” said captain Philippe Sanche.

Because of new rules, regardless of the opponent and prior seeding, any Quebec team is not eligible to host such a game, so they’ll be traveling down to Ontario for the matchup.

The Stingers will need to work to get back to the team that toppled both Carleton and McGill as opposed to the one that showed up against Ottawa. The Gee Gee’s got them to lose their composure, taking penalties that simply hadn’t been a problem before this series. The vicious forecheck of the visitors left the Stingers scrambling and giving up turnovers in game two.

The Stingers’ offensive creativity that had gotten them so far seemed to dry up in the game after an intense first period in which both teams scored twice, including a late shorthanded goal by rookie Tyler Hylland.

The Stingers have liked playing with their backs against the wall this season and situations like that have provided some of their best hockey this year. It’s that exact scenario that they find themselves in now: Win and you’re in.

The team is refocusing themselves already and setting their eyes on where they can still get to.

“Obviously it’s hard because you want to win the league but you still have a chance to go to nationals,” said Sanche who went to nationals two season ago. “In my experience, even if we lost [at nationals two years ago], it was a great experience.”

There may be some doubting that they can get there now. They were a low seeded team heading into the playoffs, are now coming off of a blowout loss, and have to travel into enemy territory in Ontario.

That kind of adversity and underdog mentality is what the team has thrived on all season though. Whether it was injuries, suspensions, officiating trouble, the players reminded themselves that they had something to push back against.

“It’s been kind of our story the whole year,” said Stingers defenceman Carl Neill. “We didn’t play to our best capabilities throughout the season, so coming into the playoffs we ranked a bit lower. It might be the case next week now. It’s familiar territory for us. I’m sure the boys will be ready.”

They’re back to embracing that idea and certainly aren’t feeling scared of the new challenges this last chance game is going to bring them.

“It’ll be good for us to go down there and just work,” said Sanche. “We don’t have pressure. We’re just gonna play hockey and get a win.”

Some players have been in this exact spot before. Neill, Sanche, defender Alexandre Gosselin, and centre Jean-Philippe Beaulieu were all on the Stingers team that fell to McGill in the playoffs two years ago before beating the York Lions and earning a spot at nationals.

These players and their coach are reminding the young team that, regardless of the loss, their goal is right there for taking because they’ve seen it before. That’s certainly rubbed off on the rest of the Stingers.

We’ve been going through adversity all year, this is just another stepping stone,” said Hylland. “We’re going to take the sting of this loss with us and we’re going to carry it into the next game [as motivation].”

Hylland and his team feel they can make some noise and upset the country’s best. Now they just need to earn the chance to do so with one more win.

 

Photos by Ora Bar

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Weekend Recap: Men’s hockey team dominates Lakers, women’s bounce back against Carabins

Women’s hockey:

The Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team went into this weekend having to face two of the top five teams in the country. I don’t care what the U Sports rankings say,  Concordia, UDEM and McGill are all giants in Canadian university sports.

“It’s a long season and we’re in a tremendous league,” said head coach Julie Chu. “We know that we’re going to be in tight, hard-fought games and we gotta make sure that we continue doing the little things right and staying positive is the number one thing. We have an opportunity tomorrow to go and have a great game too.”

The Stingers first game came against McGill. The Martlets came out flying and worked well to pressure the Stingers into making costly mistakes. After two periods of play, the Martlets were up 3-1. The Stingers then managed to come back to tie the game thanks to the efforts of captain Claudia Dubois, Audrey Belzile and Rosalie Bégin-Cyr who combined to force Concordia’s next two goals. Despite the comeback, the Stingers couldn’t get any momentum through the first overtime, and in the second overtime period, the Martlets capitalized and took the dub. This was the first time all season that the Stingers dropped back-to-back games.

The next day against the UDEM Carabins, the Stingers made sure to not make that mistake again. In what would be a tight, hard-fought and physical battle against Montreal, Concordia managed to outlast their opponent to take the shootout win. Back-up goalie Madison Oakes got the start against the Carabins to play in her third ever U Sports match, and she did not disappoint. Oakes was calm in the crease, only allowing one goal, including blanking all three Carabins shootout attempts.

“It’s kind of like your first shift back after not playing for a while,” said Chu. “But I think she settled in really well as the game went on. She’s a gamer. I think anytime our goaltenders are able to make big saves, that gives us a boost of energy.”

Bégin-Cyr continued her torrid scoring pace with a three-goal weekend, moving into a tie for sixth place in U Sports scoring.

– Matthew Coyte, Managing Editor

 

Men’s hockey:

The Stingers men’s hockey team put on a show for their fans on Saturday night. Going into their game with Nipissing, Stingers were on a four-game losing streak with their most recent loss coming on Jan. 15 against UQTR, losing by a score of 3-1. The Stingers had their chances in that game but again, it was their lack of ability to put the puck in the back of the net that got the best of them. Special teams were also an issue against the Patriotes as they were 0/5 with the man advantage.

Then came Saturday.

Only two points separated the Stingers and the Nipissing Lakers heading into the game. Having lost four in a row and facing a team trailing them in the standings, this game was critical for the Stingers. Head coach Marc-André Élement said the message going into the game was “leaders lead the way,” and boy, did they ever.

Fourth year player and team captain Philippe Sanche netted a hat-trick while assistant captain Carl Neill added three assists to his point total on the season. The team has shown flashes of brilliance in the past this season but haven’t been able to string together consecutive wins since Nov. 1. Things only get harder for the Stingers as they only have one more home game left on their schedule between now and the end of the regular season.

On top of all that, the special teams units really stepped up in a big way. The Stingers went 2/8 on the powerplay—which included goals from Jeff de Wit and Alexander Katerinakis. Meanwhile their penalty killing unit did a great job for the most part of neutralizing the Lakers’ powerplay, only holding them to a singular goal on eight attempts. On top of that, one of Philippe Sanche’s goals was a short handed marker.

A game like the one against Nipissing can turn into a critical one for the Stingers down the final stretch of the season. Beating a team that is jockeying for playoff position with the Stingers is no small feat. It can boost the confidence of the team which at this point is much needed. It is one thing to say that they can compete with any team in the country, as many of the players have said before. It’s another thing to do it.

That theory will be put to the test this weekend when the team heads to Ottawa to face off against the Ravens and the Gee Gees.

– Matthew Ohayon, Sports Editor

 

Photos by Britanny Clarke and Cecilia Piga

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Stingers 7, Lakers 2: “Leaders lead the way”

The Stingers headed into their Saturday night clash with the Nipissing Lakers having lost four games in a row — all to top ranked opponents in McGill, Carleton and twice to UQTR.

This turned into an important game as the Stingers were only two points ahead of the Lakers going into this game.

“The guys know that every game is an important one, especially in our league,” said head coach Marc-André Élement. “They were two points behind us, we needed that win and we got it.”

It was apparent early on that this game would be a barn burner as both teams combined for five goals in the first period, with Concordia coming out on top — leading 3-2 after the first frame.

“The team is really happy [with the way they played],” said Élement. “I just didn’t like the first period to be honest. We had a three goal lead and took some stupid penalties [so it got away from us].”

Philippe Sanche recorded a hattrick in the game and Carl Neill added three assists to his season point totals as well. Élement said that he needed his veterans to step up in this game, considering the gravity of its significance with regards to the playoff picture.

Our message before the game was ‘leaders lead the way,’” said Élement. “They really needed to step up and that’s [exactly] what they did.”

Sanche credits his performance from last night to his linemates. He, along with Alexander Katerinakis and Tyler Hylland, dominated the game whenever they were on the ice. The three players combined for four goals and two assists.

“You wanna score every game,” said Sanche. “Our overall work in the offensive zone was great. It was a great game offensively for us.”

The Stingers are back in action tonight. They’ll take on the Queen’s University Gaels who beat them back on Oct. 11 by a score of 5-0.

 

Feature photo by Cecilia Piga

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Ravens 4, Stingers 3 OT: Stingers battle back but fall short in OT for second game in a row

Last week the Stingers beat the Ottawa Gee Gees 8-7 in overtime.

The Stingers looked to have turned a corner but in the three games following that win, they have gone winless, with a 0-1-2 record in that stretch.

“It’s two big points. It’s not an easy weekend,” said head coach Marc-André Élément. “It’s not an easy weekend, we gotta work on some things but overall I’m happy about the way we played this weekend.”

Whenever Concordia faces Carleton, things get chippy — fast. Last night’s game was no exception to that rule.

Everyone knows about the rivalry with McGill which comes naturally as they are the Stingers’ crosstown rival. Those games always make for high intensity, fast paced hockey.

The one with Carleton is just different. These games always contain some form of controversy. In this edition, the controversy came in the third period when Chase Harwell made a seemingly clean hit but was given a five minute penalty and an ejection for a slew-foot.

On the ensuing powerplay, Carleton took full advantage and notched a goal off the stick of Alexandre Boivin. Exactly six seconds after the penalty was over, Boivin scored again

About two minutes after that, the Ravens’ Cody Caron took a double minor for high sticking. Right off the faceoff win by Félix Lauzon, Bradley Lalonde one timed a puck past Mark Grametbauer, the netminder for the Ravens. A minute and 50 seconds later, Liam Murphy streaked down the right wing side and fired home the tying goal.

Before their match with Carleton, the Stingers’ hadn’t scored a powerplay goal since they played RMC on Nov. 23. They scored all three of their goals last night with the man advantage. Captain Philippe Sanche scored the first goal of the game — his first goal since Oct. 12.

“I think that was my hardest shot ever,” Sanche laughed. “I was so angry at myself for not scoring goals on so many chances in the last few games. It was a great play from all five guys on the ice.”  The players were in a light mood after, not dwelling on their losing streak. But the fact remains that they will need to start winning games if they want to be taken seriously in the playoff conversation.

“We gotta score more goals. When we have the chance we have to put it in,” said Élément. “We have to be hungrier around the net.”

The Stingers will resume play on Jan. 18 when they take on the Nippissing Lakers, a team they have yet to face this season, at home. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m. at the Ed Meagher Arena.

 

Feature photo by Cecilia Piga

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Healthy and happy new year for the Stingers

The Concordia Stingers men’s hockey team can have some fun in 2020, as a treat.

If their game on Jan. 4 was any indication of what the second half of the season is going to look like for the Stingers, then the players, coaches, and fans are in for a wild ride.

We’ve been over this before: the first part of the season for the Stingers was tough. There were 16 games plagued with injuries, bad bounces and a complete lack of goal scoring.

Things are seemingly turning a corner, though. On Jan. 4, they played with a healthy lineup for the first time, minus a banged up Marc-Antoine Turcotte, since shit hit the fan and the injuries started to pile up back on Oct. 18, 2019 when they played the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks.

Philippe Sanche, one of the three players who sustained injuries that game, reflected on the first part of his team’s season after Saturday night’s 8-7 overtime victory against the Ottawa Gee Gees.

“When things don’t go your way, maybe you grip your stick a bit too tight,” said Sanche. “We were trying too much, not scoring goals and forcing plays. I think [tonight] the boys were just happy to be playing hockey. It’s a fun game so we want to have fun out there.”

Tyler Hylland, who was doing the heavy lifting in terms of scoring for the Stingers, was giddy after Saturday’s game. I mean, how could you not when you go coast-to-coast and finish off the play with a between-the-legs goal?

“We were definitely at our best offensively,” Hylland laughed. “We can’t be playing every game like that; we gave them a lot that we probably shouldn’t have. But like I said on [the last time we played] Ottawa, with this lineup, we match up with any team in the league.”

This game could be a defining moment in the Stingers’ season. They were just able to keep their heads above water in the OUA East playoff race, amassing 15 points in 16 games. The most important thing to note about the first part of the season was that they never shied away from being held accountable.

Through many conversations with Hylland, Chase Harwell, and Carl Neill, they never felt sorry for themselves or blamed their situation on the injuries. They felt they were just not playing well enough to consistently win games. Now, it is evident that with the fully healthy lineup, they are a much more energized and confident team.

“It was definitely a huge boost of confidence. Everyone gave it all they had before Christmas but it just didn’t go our way,” said Neill. “Playing with all the guys does something to your confidence and the whole mental side of it.”

On top of Sanche, Alexander Katerinakis, and Zachary Zorn being back in the lineup from injuries on Saturday, the team had two newcomers: Félix Lauzon and Jéremy Diotte.

Lauzon spent his last season of junior hockey playing with the Drummondville Voltigeurs of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Lauzon not only played with the likes of NHL prospects Joe Veleno, Maxim Comtois and Pierre-Olivier Joseph, but he was also a stand out performer for the team. In that same season, Lauzon put up 80 points and was given the Guy Carbonneau Trophy, which is awarded to the QMJHL’s best defensive forward.

Félix Lauzon lines up for a faceoff against Jacob Hanlon of the Gee Gees

Best defensive forward. In a season where he put up 80 points. 80. Eight zero.

Yeah, I think the Stingers found themselves a gem.

Lauzon was not fully healthy on his Stingers’ debut on Saturday but he still received high praise from his coach and teammates for his effort.

“He was really good on faceoffs for us and really good defensively,” said head coach Marc-André Élement. “He’s going to be really good for us. He’s a complete centreman and will be a very important part of our team.”

Speaking of important parts of the team, Turcotte is still ailing with an undisclosed injury. But Élement did give an update on his starting goaltender’s status, saying he is “day-to-day.”

The Stingers have a tough stretch of games ahead of them, with just four home games left on the schedule. It’s no secret that the Stingers still have a ton of work left to do. But they can rejoice in the fact that they are once more a full, healthy line up.

“We have a lot of work to do, a lot of video to review especially after a game that [we gave up 7 goals],” said Element. “Right now, I’m just happy and it was really fun to see the guys back and [healthy].”

 

Photos by Cecilia Piga

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Ottawa 5, Stingers 3: Stingers fall in Ottawa to close out 2019

OTTAWA – Down the 417, the Stingers lost their Saturday afternoon matchup to the University of Ottawa Gee Gees by a score of 5-3.

The Stingers were vastly outplayed for the majority of the game and it showed on the stat sheet, being outshot by Ottawa 52-26. It’s a good thing that game footage exists because Sebastien Lefebvre, who made his fifth start of the season, played a very solid game despite letting in 5 goals.

Defenceman Carl Neill, who scored a highlight reel goal in the third period, praised the Stingers netminder for another performance that kept them in the game.

“You wanna play well for anyone who’s in net but especially for [Sebastien Lefebvre],” said Neill. “He hasn’t played many games in this league and he’s been doing his best.”

The Stingers made some crucial mistakes that ultimately cost them the game, most of which came in the first period, said head coach Marc-André Élement.

“It’s the little details. Little mistakes really cost us,” said Élement. “You have to give [Ottawa] credit though. They played a really good game.”

Other than a couple of mistakes made in the third period that led to the Gee Gees’ fourth and fifth goals, special teams was where the game was lost for the Stingers. The Stingers went 0/5 on the power play while letting in two goals on four opportunities on the penalty kill.

“We have to work on special units. They have to be better.” Élement said. “Our power play, our penalty kill. Everyone. They won the special teams battle and won the game.”

The Christmas break couldn’t come soon enough for the Stingers as they lost six out of their eight games in the month of November to close out 2019.

Despite their 6-7-3 record, brighter days are ahead for the Stingers. 2019 was not kind to the Stingers and was a year plagued with injuries to players like Philippe Sanche and Alexander Katerinakis, two of the team’s best and most important players. The two are expected to return for their first game back after the Christmas break.

The Stingers will cross the border to play the Boston University Terriers for an exhibition matchup on Dec. 29. They get back to league play on Jan. 4 when they will play host to these same Gee Gees for their second matchup of the season.

 

Photo by Alex Hutchins

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Concordia Stingers drop their season opener to the Carleton Ravens

The Concordia Stingers dropped their season opener 2-0 to the Carleton Ravens on Friday night, but the loss is the least of their worries.

“Hockey’s an emotional sport. Everyone wants to win,” said rookie forward Tyler Hylland. “Sometimes tempers boil over but it’s nothing personal. It’s just the competitive spirit.”

The Stingers are a young team – that’s no surprise to anyone. That inexperience caused some pregame nerves for some of the players, said Hylland, and the Stingers quickly found themselves down 1-0 halfway through the first period.

“It’s fun to get the jitters out of the first U Sports game, you never know what to expect,” said Hylland. “Obviously its not the result we were looking for tonight but it’s the first game, we’re going to learn and get better. We have the tools in the room to be a competitive team.”

Right from the get-go in the second period, the Ravens came out flying and quickly extended their lead to two nothing off the stick of Cody Caron, who ripped a slap shot past Marc-Antoine Turcotte. Turcotte was the main reason the Stingers only ended up losing.

After that, the emotions took over and plays started getting out of hand. The tipping point for the Stingers came when Captain Philippe Sanche took an elbow to the face, which made him sit out of the game for a while.

Three quarters of the way through the second period, first-year Stingers player Nico Blachman and Darian Skeoch of the Ravens dropped the gloves. Both players got match penalties and are subject to an automatic one game suspension for fighting in a no-fighting league.

In the third period, Liam Murphy, yet another newcomer for the Stingers, took a checking from behind penalty that gave his teammates a tall order of killing off the five-minute major penalty. One of the few bright spots of the night was on that penalty kill; Chase Harwell had one of the best shifts of his Stingers career.

“We need that kill. We’re down two, we gotta bear down,” said Harwell. “The team did a really good, a lot of communication between the players. In terms of penalty killing, I think we did really well.”

Unfortunately for Concordia, that was not the end of the drama as right before the final buzzer. Veteran third-year defence man Carl Neill slashed a Carleton Raven in the leg, resulting in a game misconduct and a one-game suspension for his actions.

The Stingers now look ahead to tonight when they face McGill in the first of three meetings this season. Puck drop is at 7:30pm at the Ed Meagher arena where the Stingers hope to put this game and its hostilities behind them.

 

Feature photo by Cecilia Piga

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Stingers women’s hockey building off of last season

The 2018-19 Réseau du Sport Etudiant du Québec (RSEQ) season didn’t finish the way the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team had hoped. After winning the RSEQ championship in 2018, the Stingers were eliminated in the semifinals by McGill last playoffs in what was a learning season for them.

This year’s Stingers roster will present a more mature group than last season, when 11 players were rookies. Stingers head coach Julie Chu said the team experienced a lot of growth over the past months, which is a big factor in approaching the new season.

“It’s the commitment it takes to play at this level,” Chu said. “It’s the patience to know that with so many first-year players, it takes time to get to the level we need to be in regards to fitness, conditioning, overall execution on a consistent basis, and just understanding the system at the next level.”

The ending of the Stingers’s last season pushed the players to work even harder this summer. Chu said it’s incredible to see the effort and commitment players made over the summer, and how it helped them improve their game.

“Over the summer, all of our returning players wanted to make a commitment at getting better, and making sure that by the start of this season, they were in a much better position [than last year],” Chu said. “Because of that, we’re in a much different spot and we’re able to compete at a higher level [since the beginning of our exhibition games].”

Stingers forward Claudia Dubois will be one of the team’s veterans in 2019-20, as this season will be her fifth. Having been part of both 2018 RESQ’s championship team and last year’s team that lost in the semi-finals, Dubois said she’s gained enough experience to be a leader this season.

“It’s for sure a big role in the team,” Dubois said. “I just want to lead by example the best I can with the rookies, and guide them in the best direction as possible for the upcoming years at university.”

Dubois said players took a step back at the conclusion of last season. Even if the Stingers were hoping for a better result, Dubois thought this was a needed lesson, as it’s been a couple of good years for the Concordia women’s hockey program.

“I think to have experienced that as a team was a reset for this season,” Dubois said. “We know we’ll have to work hard for everything. It was hard at the beginning of the off-season, but as we were moving forward this summer, it became a motivation for all of us in discussions and practices. We’re looking forward to play McGill, but any team in the league will be sort of a revenge and opportunity to prove it was a mistake [last season’s results].”

Chu said the current Stingers roster is not only a great one, but also the ideal kind of group for players and coaches. She explained that compared to last year with all the rookies, this year’s team presents a better mix of players from all years.

“We can’t have a team of only rookies because that’s a lot of energy,” Chu said. “Yet, we also can’t have a team of only returners. Now that we’re introducing five new players to our program, it’s just adding to the veterans that we have here, which makes it better. What we have here is a really good balance of different qualities and skills that players bring to our team, lineup, and practices every day.”

With most players having already played their first year at university level, Chu said everyone seems more settled in than at the same point of the year last off-season.

“We don’t have as many players going through their first moments of figuring out everything like last year, where half of our team was new,” Chu said. “A lot more energy was spent on things as simple as understanding how to register for classes, or even moving to Montreal. It’s really fun to see our team coming together, and be in a good position in order to continue moving forward and getting better in this early part of the season.”

Stingers forward Rosalie Bégin-Cyr, RSEQ’s highest-scoring rookie and one of the Stingers’ 11 first-year players last year, said most of the team will now have made a little step forward with that first season completed.

“We now know how the league works, as well as the team’s system and everything that’s around it. We certainly have a really talented group right now with quality players in all positions.”

Dubois said players know they have what it takes to win. However, she explained the team is focusing on one step at a time, and doesn’t want to look too far ahead.

“We’re focusing on the first half of the season [that goes] until Christmas,” Dubois said. “We started playing better in the second half of the season last year. It wasn’t too late, but it didn’t help us at the end with the standings and the playoffs. We want to win and we know we have the team to do it, so we’ll proceed one step at a time and it all starts now.”

 

Feature photo by Laurence BD

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Stingers win fifth straight against Carleton

The Stingers have won five straight games thanks to their win on Friday. Photos by Alex Hutchins.

Concordia’s women’s hockey team won 3-2 on Friday night

The Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team extended their win streak to five games with a 3-2 win over the Carleton Ravens on Friday. The Stingers have been red-hot, winning eight of their last nine games, and 12 of their last 14.

Four graduating players were honoured on-ice following the game, as the match was the team’s last regular season game at home. Despite the emotional ceremony, the importance of focusing on the game didn’t change for head coach Julie Chu.

“Every time we step on the ice, we want to win,” she said. “For sentimental reasons, when it’s the last regular season [home game], I think there’s a little more emotion to it.”

The four graduating players were forwards Valerie Wade and Anne-Julie Deschenes, captain Tracy-Ann Lavigne and goalie Briar Bache. Chu expressed gratitude towards her veterans following the game.

“Our graduating players are a big part of this program, and have given a lot to us,” Chu said.

She added that the veterans helped the young players stay focused throughout the game.

“We wanted to play our hockey and get a chance to push and do all we could,” Chu said. “Our young players stepped up with the guidance of our veteran players.”

The game started with the Stingers clearly pushing to get their graduating players the win. They were all over the Ravens in the opening 10 minutes, and threw as many pucks as possible towards the net.

Their break came nearly eight minutes in when forward Audrey Belzile put a shot on net and the puck went through Ravens goalie Summer Roberts. It did not cross the goal line, but forward Stephanie Lalancette was ready to put it away.

Less than five minutes later, Lalancette, who is tied for second on the team in points, contributed to her team’s effort when she drew a penalty. The Stingers went on the power play and moved the puck around, creating some scoring chances. Less than a minute into the power play, defenceman Marie-Joelle Allard shot the puck from the top of the left face-off circle, and Belzile tipped it past Summers.

The Stingers pressured the Ravens for the rest of the period, outshooting them 10-4, but the score remained 2-0 after the first period. Chu said the team played well, but could have executed better.

The Stingers didn’t show as much drive in the second period. The Ravens scored the lone goal of the period when forward Nicole Miners scored on Bache on a breakaway. At the end of the second period, the Stingers were up 2-1.

In the third period, Stingers forward Alexandria D’Onofrio scored to make it 3-1, however, the Ravens scored to make it 3-2 just 22 seconds later.

The Ravens attacked the Stingers hard in the final five minutes, but the defence held them out, and Bache made some key saves. Bache’s win in her final regular season home game was a perfect way to end her Stingers career, according to Chu.

“[Bache] has been a great goaltender for us,” Chu said. “It’s been really tremendous for us. The character that she’s brought to the team, we’re really fortunate with that.”

The Stingers will now travel to Ottawa for another match against Carleton on Feb. 12 at 3 p.m.

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Concordia Stingers hockey by the numbers

A mid-year look at how the men’s and women’s teams are doing from a statistical standpoint

With Concordia’s hockey teams set to take some time off for the winter break, it’s a perfect chance to take a statistical peak into how the school’s two teams have been performing this year.

The men’s team posted a 9-4-0 record through 13 games this season, while the women’s team has had a rougher time so far, playing to a 2-5-0 record in seven games. All statistics are up to date as of Nov. 24.

Men’s Team

Last year, the Stingers had no trouble putting the puck in the net. What the team lacked was consistent defense—the 2015-16 squad allowed almost four goals-against per game.

However, the Stingers have tightened up their game, improving in virtually every defensive category. In just 13 games, the Stingers have almost matched their win total from last season, thanks in part to solid team defence.

The Stingers were busy this summer, recruiting three high profile players to their roster, adding to their depth at the forward positions and addressing their defensive weaknesses.

Forward Philippe Sanche played four years in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), scoring 200 points in 210 games before joining the Stingers, according to hockeydb.com. He was voted the hardest working player in the league in 2015 and has already had an offensive impact with the team.

Forward Anthony Deluca brings even more experience, having played professional hockey last year in the ECHL. Not only does Deluca lead the Stingers in scoring, but he ranks second in all of U Sports in goal scoring.

Still, it’s goaltender Philippe Cadorette who has had the greatest impact on the team’s success. Cadorette, has 209 games of experience in the QMJHL and has been able to provide the Stingers with the type of consistent goaltending the team lacked last year. He has stopped 322 of 352 shots this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

At first glance, it would be safe to assume that the Stingers women’s hockey team has been struggling this season. However, a deeper look into their play reveals that there is room for optimism.

Shots-For-Percentage (SF%) is a statistic that measures how much a team controls the flow of play. The Stingers may have trouble elsewhere, but with coach Julie Chu at the helm, they have been outshooting their opponents more effectively than they have in years.

Where things have gone wrong for the women’s team is in net. The Stingers are dead last in save percentage in the entire country, and not by a small margin.

Starting goaltender Katherine Purchase and backup Briar Bache have combined for an 84.6 per cent save percentage this season, meaning the team has allowed 3.28 goals-against per game. For reference, the average save percentage in U Sports this year has been 91.2 per cent.

Despite her struggles, Purchase is poised to bounce back from her weak start. This season’s results included, she’s posted a 91.6 per cent save percentage in her three years in U Sports. She was also named Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) rookie of the year in 2014-15.

If Purchase is able to return to form and the team maintains their strong defensive play,  the Stingers could become one of the toughest teams to score against in the league.

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