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Montreal 3, Concordia 2: Stingers season ends in heartbreaking Game 3 loss to the Carabins

The number one ranked Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team’s season is over.

The Stingers lost 3-2 in game three of the RSEQ semi-finals to the Université de Montreal Carabins.

“It’s hard, we’re devastated for sure,” said head coach Julie Chu. “We always took it one game at a time, and we had belief that our team could go really far into nationals. But we also know that we play in the best conference in U Sports. To get out of our conference is always tough to do, especially against a great rival.”

The first period saw the Stingers start where they left things off after Saturday’s 5-3 game two win. They managed quality chances against the Carabins and were executing their zone entries perfectly. With four minutes left in the frame, Stingers captain Claudia Dubois wired home a one-timer to give the Stingers the lead.

In the second period, the Carabins flipped the script.

A power play goal four minutes in, and an in-tight goal with two minutes left in the period gave the Carabins all of the momentum.

Blaming the refs for a loss is never the answer, but it should be said that there were some extremely questionable calls on both teams. Take the Stingers tying goal for example. A seemingly innocent shot from Audrey-Ann Rodrigue squeaked past Carabins goalie Maude Trevisan, but the puck fell right behind the goalie, but never cleared the goal line and was clearly still in the blue paint (I asked four other media members who all said that the puck didn’t cross the line).

Chaos ensues after the ref calls the play dead, the refs convene at centre ice, the Stingers fans go crazy while waiting for the decision. The refs finally decided that the shot went in (it didn’t). It really seemed like the refs were peer pressured by the crowd to make that call.

Mix in some blatant missed calls on both teams, and you’re left with a game that wasn’t exactly decided by the refs, but their handprints are there. Chu has never been one to make excuses and that didn’t change after this game.

“It went both ways,” said Chu. “For us we always talk about controlling what we can control. The big part of what we do control is our ability to work hard, execute and do the little things really well. Unfortunately I think we got away from that a little bit.”

The Stingers struggled to generate momentum and chances in close against Trevisan. They were outshot 28-23 by the Carabins, and Stingers goalie Alice Philbert had to bail her team out a couple of times.

Graphic by Matthew Coyte

Shortly after tying the game up in the third period, the Carabins re-took the lead. A shot towards the front of the net took a strange bounce, the puck popped up and dropped right behind Philbert and into the net. Philbert would make 25 saves on 28 shots. Trevisan would make 21 on 23 shots.

Credit to the Carabins though, after getting outskated in game two, they came out and stuck to their game plan; heavy hockey. The Carabins won key puck battles, blocked a hell of alot of shots, forechecked hard and took advantage of their chances.

This ending is especially heartbreaking for Dubois. This was her last game in a Stingers jersey. The captain was lights-out all season and during this playoff series. Dubois is the defining player of Chu’s tenure as head coach. The same way Phil Hudon represented a new era of Stingers’ men’s hockey, Dubois embodied the winning culture that’s been built at Concordia over the past five years. The coach had nothing but praise for her captain post-game.

“She’s the one who’s going to make me cry when she leaves,” said Chu. “When she came [into the program], we were still figuring out how to win, how to build a culture, how to take things to the next level. She’s a huge reason why we got to this next level. Every day, from when she came in as a first-year, to this last game, she’s given us everything. She’s prepared, she works, she wants to win, she’s gritty. For us, that’s become the core of who we are. She’s the one who leads the team and she’s the strongest voice in that locker room. We’re going to miss her.”

This is a disappointing finish for the team. Not many people would have expected a 2020 U Sports national championship without the number one ranked team. Despite this, this season was important for the Stingers.

“Our biggest thing is to hold our head up high,” said Chu. “It’s going to sting for a while, but that’s okay. When we care about what we’re doing, we’re passionate, we put in the time and effort, it’s going to hurt when we don’t get the results we want. We wanted [the team] to feel like they should be proud of everything they’ve given up. They’ve given into this program this year. We’re really proud of them.”

The Carabins will play the McGill Martlets in the RSEQ finals later this week. Both teams will also advance to the U Sports national championship taking place in P.E.I. in March.

Notes:

  • The Stingers have been the most exciting Montreal hockey team this year. It’s sad to see them end the season this way, but you’ll never hear anyone say that they didn’t put their heart into every single game.
  • Claudia Dubois and defender Erica Starnino are the only fifth-year players on the Stingers. That means that most of the core that made the Stingers so deadly will be returning.

Feature photo by Britanny Clarke

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Concordia 5, Montreal 3: Stingers beat the Carabins in Game 2 of the RSEQ semi-finals

After the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team lost in game one of the RSEQ semi-finals to the Université de Montreal Carabins on Thursday, head coach Julie Chu promised that the game plan wasn’t about to suddenly change.

“I was really happy with how we played on Thursday,” says Chu. “We had a good reset day yesterday. Our players knew what was on the line. We just stayed the course.”

The first period of game two at UDEM’s CEPSUM arena didn’t start out great for the Stingers. The outlet passes weren’t hitting sticks, the Carabins were forechecking their way into long offensive possessions and the Stingers weren’t able to generate much momentum.

With six minutes left in the opening frame, defender Brigite Laganiere changed that.

Laganiere had a very strong regular season, putting up 18 assists while being relied defensively as the top defender on the team.

Despite the effort and consistency, Laganiere wasn’t able to score a goal.

During some neutral zone confusion, Laganiere took off alone against two Carabins players, wound up, and wired a clapper over the glove of Maude Trevisan.

From there, the Stingers took off.

Stéphanie Lalancette and Léonie Philbert added goals in the first period to extend the Stingers’ lead to 3-0 going into the second period.

“We weren’t putting in pucks 5-on-5,” said Chu. “That was a really important aspect that we had to find. Get to the net, create chaos, win some of those netfront battles. Being able to get there, maybe getting some of the bounces that go in.”

After the first period tallies, the Stingers promptly welcomed Carabins goalie Maude Trevisan to the second period when Belzile finished a nice lil saucer pass from Emmy Fecteau just 44 seconds into the frame. The Carabins would replace Trevisan with Aube Racine after the goal.

“Playing a fast game is always helpful,” said Chu. “We talk about transitioning quickly both ways. We’ve got talented teams in this league. The way you make teams or anyone uncomfortable is by using speed, taking away time and space.”

Olivia Atkinson would push the Stingers total to five goals early in the third. The Stingers would rattle off 32 shots. The Carabins would score a goal in the second and make a push with two goals late in the third period, but the Stingers lead never seemed in doubt.

Stingers goalie Alice Philbert stood out tonight, stopping 20 of 23 stops. In-between fighting for looks through traffic and making a fleury of in-tight

“Alice, and all of our players, do a great job of reseting and refocusing,” said Chu. “She’s been going out there and playing some big, awesome hockey for us”

“We’re really pumped for tomorrow, to get a chance to play hard against a great cross-town rival.”

Game three of the RSEQ semi-finals will take place on Sunday, at the Ed Meagher Arena at 3 p.m.

Notes:

  • Julie Chu is playing her cards close to the chest on her plan for game three. “Staying the course” might be an accurate retroactive slogan for the Stingers 2019-20 season.
  • Game three is going to be very cool, show up.

Feature photo by Mackenzie Lad

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Carl Neill: a Stingers odyssey

It’s not unusual for Carl Neill to spend plenty of time handling the puck—he’s the Stingers’ top defenceman.

Even for a defenceman, in the first period against the Nipissing Lakers, his teammates were making sure to feed him the puck as much as they could.

Finally, near the end of the period, the puck went from Neill’s stick to the back of the net. It was a powerplay goal, like many he’d scored before. But this time, the celebration by his teammates was something special.

“I’m really, really proud of him, we all are,” said Neill’s coach, Marc-André Élement.

Neill’s goal was his 84th point as a member of the Concordia Stingers. He had just moved into first place, as the highest scoring defenceman in Stingers history.

“It’s a great honour,” said Neill, who sits just one short of the team’s all-time assist record as well. When he learned he was approaching both records after just three seasons with the team, the stingers alternate captain was shocked.

Carl Neill reflects on his three years as a Concordia Stingers

“I know Concordia’s been around forever,” said Neill. “I imagined there’s some guys a couple hundred years back that must have got a few points so I never really thought of that.”

Maybe he was surprised, but anyone that’s watched him over the last three seasons shouldn’t be. He’s dominated the university game since day one. He’s been one of the country’s best blueliners and made his mark in the Stingers’ history books.

In his three years Neill has collected awards on and off the ice, all-star nominations, and a collection of impressive stats that any player would be proud of.

He has played overseas representing his country, gone to the national university hockey championships, and done it all with the flare to his game that’s allowed him to be one of the top players in the league.

Neill joined the Stingers with a shining resume in junior hockey. He was captain of the Sherbrooke Phoenix in the QMJHL, where he set records just like he’s started to do with the Stingers.

His 178 points rank fourth all-time in Phoenix history while his 139 assists are second overall. Among defencemen though, he is the sole leader in both, along with goals (39).

Sherbrooke was also where he would end up meeting his best friend, future roommate and Stingers teammate Chase Harwell.

The two played three seasons together with the Phoenix and joined forces again a few years later at Concordia. Harwell’s face lights up with a big smile whenever the topic of his teammate and former captain comes up.

“He’s my best friend,” said Harwell. “We grew up together. He’s a great guy, I’m just so happy to see him have that success. He deserves it.”

Chase Harwell and Neill have played together as teammates for six seasons at the junior and university levels combined

His impressive junior career was enough to get him drafted into the NHL. In the fifth round of the NHL entry draft, the Vancouver Canucks chose Neill. He went on to play in several professional training camps before deciding to take the U Sports route and earn a degree before trying to head to the pro leagues when things didn’t work out in terms of the NHL.

Looking back, there’s no doubt in his mind that he made the right choice by going down the U Sports path.

“I made the right decision coming here,” said Neill. “Coming out of junior, not knowing much of what U Sports is Marc told me it was a good program here. I had faith in him and he had faith in me. It coupled well. I’m really happy about my decision. I’m happy I didn’t go to McGill [instead].”

While it’s been gaining traction and notoriety, U Sports isn’t a league that every player knows about coming out of junior. Neill was entering a completely new world and system of hockey. He’s become a major advocate for the league now, but three years ago, it was a leap of faith.

From the moment Neill walked into the Ed Meagher arena, the expectations were sky-high for him. He was the marquee rookie of a strong class of first years. His coach expected him to come in and become a number one defenceman early on.

“He’s going to be the guy who leads the power play, he’s going to be the quarterback,” said Élement just before Neill’s rookie season in 2017. “I’m pretty sure he’s going to be one of the top defencemen in the league.”

Despite any internal or external pressure to come in and be a top player in a new league, Neill played like a veteran from his very first game.

A cerebral player, he was a key contributor in what would be an explosive offense that season. He showed the vision and ability to rush the puck up ice that earned him NHL attention and became an instant player that opposing teams had to gameplan for.

“He certainly lived up to the expectations,” said former stingers captain Philippe Hudon. “He never second-guessed his decision to play U Sports hockey, and coupled with his desire to become a better hockey player, he was an immediate impact to our team and has done wonders since then.”

Neill would end up leading the entire country in scoring by a defenceman with 31 points in 28 games. His team was one of the top eight in the league, earning a trip to the national championship for the first time in over 30 years for Concordia.

Neill has been the back bone of the Stingers’ defensive group since he joined the team back in 2017

While Neill and the Stingers ended up losing, the defender was rewarded for his impressive rookie season. He was named to the OUA East first all-star team as well as the U Sports all-rookie team.

Off the ice, he was presented with the Guy Lafleur award for his combination of success in the game as well as in the classroom. All in all, a good start to his university career.

His second season, the team lost their top two scorers, including league MVP Anthony Beauregard. Instead of an offensive step back, or sophomore slump, Neill kicked it up a notch. Despite a less productive team, he upped his season totals to 33 points, good enough for second in the country among defencemen. He was named to the OUA East all-star team and earned OUA defenceman of the year honours.

On top of that, he was selected to the FISU games to represent Canada in Russia once his season ended. He was among the team of top university players that won bronze at the tournament.

At the start of the year though, another of Neill’s talents was recognized. He was named an assistant captain for the team and his leadership became a major part of his role on the team. The message constantly repeated by teammates is that Neill takes care of people.

As much as his sarcastic prodding and joking are a part of him, he is someone who truly cares for the wellbeing of his teammates.

He helped recruit former teammates like Harwell and Hugo Roy and made sure they and their fellow rookies were brought into the fold immediately and never had to feel like outsiders.

“Obviously he’s an amazing hockey player but on the other side he’s just a great dude,” said Harwell. “If a guy needs a ride, he picks them up. If a guy is having trouble at home or with his girlfriend, he’s there for you. He’s the guy you want on your team.”

Neill’s goal was always to make the guys comfortable, to show them the ropes and have his teammates enjoy an environment where they felt supported and relaxed.

“It’s important to have that on a team,” said Neill, listing past teammates like Hudon who helped him as a rookie. “I came here my first year, not really knowing what was going on. It’s good to pass the torch and help the boys along.”

He’s the kind of player that teammates light up when asked to talk about him. The respect for Neill in the Stingers locker room is evident.

While this past season may not have been as statistically dominant as the last two (20 points in 25 games), Neill had plenty to celebrate.

He played a preseason game as a member of a Quebec U Sports all-star team against the top prospects of the Montreal Canadiens and etched his name across the Stingers record books.

“All the credit goes to him and his work ethic,” said Élement.

Neill now sits 12th all-time in scoring in Stingers history in addition to sitting second all-time in assists and leading among defencemen.

And for the first time, his Stingers future is uncertain. Neill has turned down pro offers every season. He has focused on finishing his degree before turning to the professional world.

Where he’ll be next year, whether it’s at Concordia or on a new team in the pro sphere, is unclear.

If he is wearing a non-Concordia jersey next season, those around him think he’ll be just as successful in that league as he has been in U sports.

“I certainly think he can bring that same impact at the pro level,” said Hudon. “He has tremendous hockey sense. [He’s] capable of effectively fending off attackers as much as anchoring the blue line. Not to mention his high skill level and smooth skating abilities.”

If it’s Neill’s last run with the Stingers, there would be no better way to cap it off than another run to nationals. Despite an up and down year for the team that has been plagued by injuries, the Stingers are red hot heading into the postseason.

Neill called the mood in the room similar to the excitement of his first year where they made their run to nationals.

He definitely has his mind set on getting back there and his teammates can tell.

Neill amassed 84 points in 81 games as a member of the Concordia Stingers

“He wants it bad, he’s pushing even harder,” said Harwell. “It motivates the guys to go even harder as well.”

Looking back to the end of Neill’s first season, when asked if he felt like he was a number one defenceman as his coach had suggested, the rookie said not yet, but maybe next year.

Since then he’s become a franchise leader for defensive scoring, collected all-star nominations, academic awards, represented his country, and made his mark on the team.

When asked the same question at the end of this season, he had a similar answer.

“I don’t know, there’s a lot of number one defencemen in our league. I guess it depends on the night,” said Neill.

After all of this, it is probably safe to say that Neill can call himself not only a number one defenceman, but one of Concordia’s all-time greats.

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“Rhythm of community”: Combatting stress through music

All students are welcome to the weekly drum circles in the Multi-Faith and Spirituality Centre.

The Multi-Faith and Spirituality Centre is home to weekly community drum circles. Irene Feher, a Concordia University music professor, and Dylan Gitalis, who is learning facilitation techniques from a program with Music for People, both lead the event. Feher teaches voice, and joined the Drum Circle last year. The ultimate goal of these weekly music jams is to combat stress and isolation, and to build community.

“I believe so strongly in the power of music to enrich lives in so many ways,” Feher said. “Drumming grounds us, connects us, and the physical activity [is good for the body]. I feel the physical, emotional, cognitive and social benefits of drumming.”

Every Monday from 6 to 7 p.m., students from all programs are welcome to this event.

Although the event takes place in the Multi-Faith and Spirituality Centre, Feher said that the drum sessions are secular.

“We use the universal language of music, and don’t practice any particular style,” said Feher.

Feher continued that they don’t necessarily drum in Indigenous or African style, although the students are using African drums.

Feher explained that students attending the event use the “rhythm of community,” and the drumming styles emerge spontaneously, with the moment.

“I want us to reflect the mosaic at Concordia, this wonderful community we have of people from different religions and backgrounds,” said Feher.

The event usually garners around 10 to 12 students, but the room has the capacity for about 20 people.

Using drum circles as a therapeutic form of stress-relief has been studied before. One 2010 research paper published in the Canadian Journal of Music Therapy found that more than half of drum circle participants – who were all young adults in school – reported that their drum circle group helped the participants with stress, anger and lack of motivation. The same study found that some of the participants reported “therapeutic gains” in terms of their self-confidence and self-esteem.

“It’s an opportunity for students to come together, release their stress, have fun, and create sound in the moment,” said Feher. Feher explained that drum circles and music have been used for thousands of years to foster community.

When students engage in this activity, they eventually reach a state of flow, as Feher explained. Also known as “being in the zone,” when someone reaches that stage, they are extremely focussed on what they’re doing, and are no longer thinking about their everyday stresses.

“When you are completely engaged and immersed in an activity you enjoy, you become completely engaged in the present moment, and time slips away,” said Feher.

Feher explained when one is in a state of flow with a group of people, a connection is created between all of them; from there, students become freer to try different rhythms.

No previous experience in music is required in order to participate in the activity. There is no registration and the event is completely free. The weekly drum circles will be running until April 6, 2020.

 

Graphic by Salomé Blain

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Concordia 5, McGill 4: Stingers win OT thriller to force game three

Plenty of coaches and teams love to preach character and attitude, to the point where it becomes a cliché. 

Then games like game two between Concordia and McGill happen and the definition becomes clearer.

In one of the most intense, exciting Stingers games in recent memory, Concordia mounted a comeback to force a decisive game three in this opening round of the playoffs.

Looking like underdogs early in the game and facing elimination with a loss, the team never slowed down or looked to have quit throughout the game, regardless of their cross-town rivals’ advantages at different points in the game.

“No one doubted us in the room. There was good vibes in the room and good vibes on the bench too,” said Stingers defenceman Carl Neill.

Neill and his team trailed 2-0, 3-1, and 4-2 throughout the game and climbed right back into things each time. Neill said they embraced their “us against the world” mentality and just pushed through a number of roadblocks in the game.

The Stingers battled a slow start and some self-inflicted damage caused by penalties leading to McGill goals in the first period. They dug themselves a hole that got deepened by factors that would be hard to lay at their door.

For example, captain Philippe Sanche was hauled down at the opposing net but somehow earned a penalty himself for that.  Then there was the penalty shot.

Philippe Sanche was mixing it up physically all night

McGill was awarded a penalty shot late in the second period, leading 3-2. After the shot, a no-goal call was made, only for the referee to change his mind seconds later and call it a McGill goal—something coaches and players had never seen before. There are no goal reviews in U Sports so reversing calls is not something that usually happens.

The puck looked to have stopped on the line or against the post but once the no-goal call was overturned, McGill’s Michael Cramarossa skated over to Concordia’s bench for an extravagant celebration right in the Stingers’ faces, earning himself a ten minute misconduct penalty.

Several stingers players called this the true turning point of the game. Concordia was already outshooting McGill and controlling much of the play in the second. But suddenly, down 2 goals and headed into the third, they had some extra motivation right in their face.

“I don’t want to say it’s childish, but at a certain point, you’re in the playoffs,” said Neill. “I believe in the hockey gods and karma, so I wouldn’t be doing anything like that. If that’s your thing go for it. But I’ve never seen that turn things in your favour.”

The Stingers of the third period were something else. The team began to use its speed to push McGill, breaking through the neutral zone and creating strong rushes on the fly. McGill was suddenly getting beat back more and more and by the end of the game, the Stingers nearly doubled the visitors shot count with 50.

“We’ve been working for two weeks on our neutral zone regroups and I think we applied that really well tonight,” said the Stingers’ hero of the game, Anthony Beauchamp who made an impressive play to set up the Stingers third goal before tying the game at four with a goal of his own midway through the third.

Jake Fletcher battles for the puck against McGill’s Nikolas Brouillard

The Stingers never-say-die attitude carried them through the third and much of the second. Smiles could be seen across their faces and there was no doubt that the teams matched each other physically in a heavy hitting matchup like this. When Stingers winger Chase Harwell spent some time berating and challenging McGill’s entire bench, it didn’t seem out of place thanks to the Stingers maintaining what Neill calls their swagger.

“I’m proud of the guys,” said Sanche. “If you want to be successful, especially in the playoffs, you have to be in their face. You can’t go down, it’s do or die. That happened tonight.”

As the Stingers dominated the third and forced overtime, everyone appreciated the team effort, but Beauchamp was the clear focus of the win.

One of the Stingers’ fastest players, he has consistently been referred to by teammates as one of their hardest workers as well. When he was on the ice, McGill often found themselves scrambling to keep up with his speedy breakouts and forceful rushes.

“He started on the bottom line and climbed his way up [the lineup tonight], so I’m really proud of him,” said Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement.

So who better to finish this underdog comeback? On a rush into McGill’s zone in overtime, a McGill player ended up on his knees as defenceman Gabriel Bilodeau skated in with Beauchamp suddenly unguarded.

As the pass slipped over to him, Beauchamp closed his eyes and ripped a shot with everything he had. His teammates knew it was the game winner before it had the time to even bounce back out of the net. The Ed Meagher arena exploded in cheers as coaches jumped up and down and the bench emptied of players on their way to swarm their teammate.

“That’s why we play hockey. Everyone in the room got goosebumps after that,” said Beauchamp with a smile.

 

Photos by Cecilia Piga

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McGill 2, Concordia 1: Stingers ready to face do-or-die pressure after loss

The Stingers found themselves in a hole at the end of Thursday night.

It wasn’t an insurmountably deep hole and they’d faced plenty of pressure like this throughout the season—but the hole remains nonetheless.

“It’s not one game that’s going to bury us. We’re going to be fine. We just have to go back to the basics […] and work our balls off,” said Stingers captain Philippe Sanche after the team’s loss in game one of the OUA East playoffs.

A 2-1 loss certainly wasn’t the result that they were searching for against cross-town rival McGill, but if they want to find a different result in their do-or-die matchup on Saturday night at home, they’ll need a different start.

While the game started with the back and forth pace that comes with matchups between Concordia and McGill, the Stingers spent much of the first half of the game looking flat and lacking energy.

McGill controlled play heavily through the first period and it took Stingers goalie Kyle Jessiman making a collection of show stopping saves to keep the team together.

Carl Neill dekes around McGill’s Taylor Ford

The normally speedy, physical team looked to be missing some of the keys to what made them such a dangerous force this season.

“[The physicality] was ok. I wanted the guys to be a little bit more physical on them. That’s what we addressed between the second and the third,” said Stingers head coach Marc-André Élement. “If we do that we’ll have more success. We have to limit their time and space.”

The sleepy start mixed with some unfortunate and questionable calls by the referees left the Stingers chasing the game; a dangerous place to be in a best-of-three playoff series where every second matters so much.

“It’s always a little bit nerve-wracking to start the playoffs. You got that little bit of anxiety, it takes you a while to settle in. Especially if it’s your first year in the league,” said Stingers forward Tyler Hylland.

The team’s youth and inexperience started to show as they took the time to get used to the hard, fast, tight game that comes with postseason hockey.

Of the nineteen players that saw the ice for the Stingers, nine were in their first U Sports playoff game. Another six had only ever played two playoff games in the league. Only Sanche, centre Jean-Philippe Beaulieu, defencemen Carl Neill and Alexandre Gosselin had more experience than that heading into game one against McGill.

Those nerves did get pushed off eventually.

Tyler Hylland lines up for a faceoff

“We’re a young team, [after the first] guys were feeling more confident and in the game. We kept our game simple,” said Élement.

Midway through the second, the team started to find itself and its style a bit more. Hylland scored his first U Sports playoff goal and the play began to shift the Stingers’ way.

They dominated possession in the third period, missing chances by inches. The closest they came to evening a game in which they had trailed 2-0 came as Neill ripped a heavy shot just off the post in the game’s final minute.

Though they failed to find an equaliser in their late-game push, the control that the Stingers played with in the third felt like something they could carry over.

“If we play like we did in the third, we’ll be right back in that series Saturday,” said Élement.

It’s pressure time now though. The team will need to win at home in game two in order to keep their season alive and force a decisive game three back at McGill on Sunday.

The Stingers are now faced with two words they’ve become accustomed to this season: pressure and adversity.

They’ve been injured (missing up to eight players at times), dealt with suspensions, a young class not having a full lineup to play with, and more. It’s been a rocky season with plenty of obstacles. That’s exactly why the team feels ready for this moment.

“It’s never a good thing to have a perfect season. It helps build a team’s character to go through adversity during the year,” said Hylland. “If you face adversity as a team and you’re used to it, you know how to handle it and respond. We’re facing adversity again, it’s nothing new to us, we know how to respond.”

He pointed to the reigning Stanley Cup champions, the St. Louis Blues. The blues were last in the league standings at point and were continuously counted out before eventually winning the cup.

The Stingers have no options. It’s time to take any lessons learned this year and put them to good use with everything on the line. They should be laser focused and ready to play Saturday night.

“It’s the biggest game of the year. There’s not a nervous feeling in the room,” said Hylland.

 

Photos by Kyran Thicke

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Reimagining the Guadagni Lounge: a taste of things to come

Faculty, alumni and students brainstorm to decide what the future has in store for the G-Lounge.

Motivated to make better use of the G-Lounge, which, as a huge empty space, is bursting with potential, faculty, alumni and students met on Jan. 30 for the second phase of its consultation: Reimagining the Guadagni Lounge. The goal of the consultation was simple: revisit ideas shared during the first consultation, give an opportunity for people to make new suggestions, and finally start putting these ideas into motion – fortunately, this is in the process of changing. Starting in September with the opening of the Loyola Art Hive, a space within the lounge dedicated to cultivating a sense of community through art making.

The Guadagni Lounge, better known as the G-Lounge, is a large, light-filled space located in the Central Building (CC) of Concordia’s Loyola campus. The formerly student-run space known for its “chill” atmosphere and cheap eatery has since become a humdrum place where students sit around makeshift tables made of wooden barrels to pass time between classes.

The event kicked off with an opening word from the Dean of Students, Andrew Woodall, about the importance of including students in all aspects of the revitalization of the G-Lounge. Led by Concordia Masters student Tejaswinee Jhunjhunwala, the consultation was split into activities where participants were pushed to mingle and exchange ideas about what they envision for the lounge.

Going back to the drawing board, everyone began brainstorming; some recurring suggestions included bringing back an affordable food facility, setting up a space for students to jam and create art, and overall just putting the space to good use for students at Loyola.

The abrupt closure of the bustling student-run café inside the G-Lounge in the summer of 2018 and the subsequent lockdown of the space left generations of Concordians feeling nostalgic.

“The space here has meant so much to so many people,” said a former student at the consultation. “We’ve even had members get married between these walls, it’s important that this space remains for students and the community.”

Several people said they think that the spacious hall was not only a great spot for students to buy a diverse range of affordable food, but was also an important space for them to socialize and it was even dubbed a rocking student hangout.

After being split into smaller groups, people were asked to write down their “craziest” and “most ambitious” ideas. Suggestions that were repeated by several people included having a student-run coffee bar with affordable food options, using the space for movie screenings, and opening a student bar. Everyone was also asked to write down what hindrances each idea is likely to face; lack of funds is one of the more significant restraints that people almost unanimously agreed on.

“Ideas are cheap,” said Woodall, recognizing that money may be an obstacle. “We still have to consider what can realistically be done.” Be that as it may, no one hesitated to pick up a sharpie and jot down all of their ideas.

The future of the G-Lounge is still to be settled, but the level of engagement and motivation present during this second consultation is at the very least something to be hopeful about.

More costly ideas for the lounge include:

  • Student bar
  • A pool table
  • Farmers market
  • Satellite Hive
  • A fully equipped kitchen (dishware, mugs, utensils)
  • Additional sinks
  • Cooking classes
  • Table tennis
  • Video games
  • Rock climbing wall
  • More couches
  • Induction plates

On the more affordable side:

  • Leave a book, take a book station
  • Informative posters
  • Movie nights (i.e. putting the projector and screen to use)
  • Board games
  • Kettles
  • Weekly free snacks, coffee and/or breakfast
  • Educational food program
  • Compost bins

The ones that just need to be shared:

  • Bring your pet corner
  • Nap areas
  • Silent disco or instruments
  • Pre-game tailgate
  • Weekly activities with Concordia’s “lab rats”

 

Photo by Laurence Brisson Dubreuil

Categories
Sports

Ottawa 3, Concordia 1: Penalties kill the Stingers against the Gee-Gees

I just want to start off by rescinding a take I made on Twitter before Sunday’s game between the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team and the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees. 

The last time I saw Ottawa play Concordia was a 6-2 Stingers win in early January. On Sunday, I went on Twitter and commented on how Ottawa (currently the #3 seed in the RSEQ) would be a better match-up for the Stingers than Montreal or McGill.

I’d like to take that back now.

The Stingers took six penalties and just seemed to be a step behind all game against the Gee-Gees. To Ottawa’s much deserved credit, they did everything that the Stingers usually do so well. They got shots off in dangerous areas, disrupted the Stingers zone entries, and drew penalties when it mattered.

The Gee-Gees (21 points) are now riding a five-game win streak and moved past Montreal (20 points) in the standings.  They look like a team with a purpose. They move the puck extremely well, play with speed and work their special teams with efficiency. This is a dangerous team. With two games left in their season, they could technically even pass McGill (24 points) for second place.

Ottawa clearly had fresher legs after their Friday game against the Carabins was cancelled due to weather. Stingers head coach Julie Chu wasn’t making any excuses though.

“I don’t know if it was fatigue,” said Chu after the game. “I didn’t like the jump at the beginning of the second period. We just took penalties…We took six penalties, and they were all deserved. For a team that’s really good like Ottawa, they got good goaltending, they work hard, they can put pucks away.”

Stingers captain Claudia Dubois picked up her third goal of the weekend on a power play goal early in the first period. She’s up to 12 on the year now. After that, Ottawa controlled most of the pace.

“We had our power play opportunities in the first, we scored one which was good,” said Chu. “The key is in the second we had two breakaways, a pretty good rush and another backdoor play. I’d say four really good scoring chances. We have to put one or two of those away.”

Alice Philbert made the saves she could, but Ottawa hammered away around the net. Despite being outshot by the Stingers 30-22, the Gee-Gees looked like the more dangerous team. Sophie Gareau, Christine Deaudelin, and Melina Roy were Ottawa’s goal scorers.

The Stingers only have one game left in the regular season, a Valentine’s Day match against the last-placed Carleton Ravens. Even with playoffs looming, Chu isn’t looking past the regular season quite yet.

“We have our eyes set to do everything possible to make sure our team is feeling good and playing great hockey,” said Chu. “We have a big game against Carleton, and we’ll shift our focus after that […] That’s been one of our keys this year is that we haven’t been looking way down the road. We haven’t been talking about RSEQ championships, or nationals, or playoffs. We’ve been taking it one game at a time, and today was a big part of that.”

NOTES:

  • The RSEQ is in a blender. If I’m Julie Chu and the Stingers, there’s no clear advantage to any of the potential matchups. Ottawa is getting hot at the right time. Montreal is a tough, experienced squad with a proven track record, McGill is relentless on the forecheck. Every series is going to be a marathon, and I can’t wait to see what happens.

Feature photo by Britanny Clarke

Categories
Sports

Concordia 4, McGill 1: Stingers dispatch Martlets in seventh annual Pink in the Rink game

Photo by Cecilia Piga

On the seventh annual Pink in the Rink match, the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team came out on top with a 4-1 win over the McGill Martlets. The Pink in the Rink game serves as a fundraiser for the CURE Foundation for breast cancer.

“It’s incredible what our players do,” said head coach Julie Chu after the win. “The amount of effort that they put into it. They work the men’s game, make sure to decorate the rink, bake stuff, try to promote it, and raise as much money as possible. On top of preparing as student-athletes for their classes and their games. It’s a really important game and it’s awesome to see what a great job they do with it.”

While the season series between Concordia and McGill has been extremely close, this game felt different. The Stingers, all wearing pink laces, came out flying, disrupting passing lanes, blocking shots, and making life just generally unpleasant for McGill goalie Tricia Deguire. Sandrine Lavictoire scored her first goal of the season to open up the game in the first period with a shot from the point that made its way through traffic and into the back of the net. Captain Claudia Dubois would add another one for the Stingers after she finished a nice passing play from linelinemate Audrey Belzile. Dubois would score another goal in the second period off of a great effort play by Belzile.

While Belzile’s been getting some points out of her play (7pts in her last 8 games), her effort is not rewarded on the scoresheet nearly enough. This game, it was. The Stingers have a much harder time beating the Martlets if she isn’t making the type of effort plays that she did. Her two assists both game from using her awareness and skill to set up Dubois. The first was a behind-the-back-no-looker from the corner, right to the stick of Dubois for the tap-in. The second apple was pure hustle. With Stephanie Lalancette just looking to ice the puck, Belzile outraced the McGill defenders, got the icing waved off, collected the puck, turned, and fired a pass right to Dubois for the easy tap-in as she crashed into the boards.

It was plays like those that had Chu praising her team’s effort.

“Last weekend, there were two areas that we didn’t do well in,” said Chu. “The first was our backcheck. That was something we worked on a lot, we watched the video on it. The other was releasing shots and releasing pucks quicker. Those were our keys to success, and we were able to capitalize on them.”

McGill would add a goal of their own thanks to Marika Labrecque’s slot wrister that beat Stingers goalie Alice Philbert. She would finish the game with 26 saves on 27 shots. The second-year goalie now has 11 wins on the season. Amélie Lemay would add a power play marker to make it four on the night for the Stingers.

This was the type of win that shows the rest of U Sports that the Stingers aren’t just the top-ranked team in the country because they play in a tough division. McGill is a great team (although this game they were missing key player Jade Downie-Landry), and for the Stingers to win the way they did sends a message.

After claiming the RSEQ title last weekend against Carleton, the Stingers have done all they can to show that they’ve separated themselves from McGill and Montreal. With only two games left in the season, the only thing left for this team is to finish strong and see who the #4-seed in the RSEQ will be for the playoffs.

NOTES:

  • No notes this time, but enjoy this photo of Julie Chu and her daughter Liv.
    Photo by Matthew Coyte

 

Feature photo by Cecilia Piga

Categories
News

Concordia hears student’s shuttle concerns

Faculty members and students get together to discuss the neverending shuttle bus issue.

Concordia students and faculty members gathered on Tuesday, Jan. 18 to discuss an ongoing issue at the university: the shuttle bus.

Among those present at the conference were Roger Côté, Vice President, Services at Concordia, Desmond O’Neill, the university’s Manager of Transportations, Mail and Facility Management, representatives of the Facebook page Spotted: Concordia, as well as a number of engaged students.

Complaints as well as solutions were discussed.

Spotted: Concordia posted on their page about the event, informing students that the faculty was willing to listen to their ideas on how to improve the shuttle services. The representatives read the comments aloud to those in attendance.

The comments ranged from the lack of communication between the drivers and the shuttle bus riders to critiques of the digital screen at the bus stop and how it is seen as practically useless. Above all, attendees insisted that the bus is unreliable and inefficient. Many concerns and ideas that were raised were repetitive and similar.

Professors, as well as students, commented on the bus’ schedule—it is not coordinated with classes, nor does it account for the busiest times of the day, which leads to the bus being often overpacked. Students also mention its infrequency, and the absence of buses during weekends is inconvenient for students living in residences.

But, perhaps the most common complaints were about the riders’ inability to open the windows, and one particular driver’s dangerous driving. They remained unnamed, but the numerous nods indicated that everyone knew who the driver was.

While one driver was praised for their friendliness and kindness towards the students, another was criticized for their blatant road-rage, and as a result, their careless driving.

One student seemed especially exasperated.“One time, we almost curbed a biker,” he said.

“Once they got in a fight with another driver on Ste. Catherine, and practically chased them down the street,” a professor said. “It was not pretty.”

Ideas put forth for possible solutions included installing free wifi on the bus for students to study during traffic jams, improving the Concordia app for tracking purposes and informing students about possible issues with the bus. Additionally, the possibility of increasing the number of buses was also considered—more specifically, having them come every 15 to 20 minutes.

As the conference neared its end, O’Neill was asked if he had ever calculated the number of people who took the shuttle.

“There’s about three-quarter of a million people who take the shuttle per year,” he answered confidently. “We are working on maintaining the service, and enhancing the safety.”

“There seems to be a convergence on the issues,” Côté said. “We will make sure to get to a mutual agreement and respond to each and every one of your demands.”

 

Photo by Britanny Clarke 

Categories
Arts

Happening in and around the White Cube this week…

Hidden sculpture on Mackay & Maisonneuve?

We’re all familiar with the magnificently mesmerizing sculpture outside of the Hall building. If you haven’t stopped to stare at it while it’s moving, I really recommend that you do. But that isn’t what this is about.

On the opposite corner, on Mackay St. and De Maisonneuve Blvd., nestled between the construction and M4 Burrito, is another sculpture, one that I didn’t really know existed until I read the sign covering it, protecting it from the adjacent construction. Although this sculpture doesn’t move, it is home to a clock!

Commissioned by the Bank of Montreal in 1966 to “beautify an air vent” connected to the metro, Claude Théberge’s untitled sculpture completely blends into the environment, even when it isn’t hidden for its own protection.

Théberge also has similar mural-sculptures at De l’Église metro and Viger Square, as well as several other 2D works around the city. All three pieces are made from concrete, which was poured into styrofoam moulds to determine their shape. The slabs are carved with funky geometric designs reminiscent of cubist paintings.

This untitled wall was likely only erected to decorate the surrounding area, which is filled with people bustling to and from the university’s buildings, hardly noticing its presence.

Concordia is home to many such artworks from local artists and alumni, faculty and staff. Among these are Geneviève Cadieux’s metallic leaves on the exterior of JMSB, Holly King’s chromatic print in the tunnel to the EV building from the metro entrance, which is commonly mistaken for a painting, and the bronze busts in the Hall building’s ground floor.

According to Art Public Montréal, public art is intended to be discrete, “affirming their formal, conceptual or temporal characteristics,” and can be found permanently installed outdoors and indoors in common areas, typically in relation to or in contrast with the surrounding environment.

While public art does play a role in decorating the city, and our campus, what’s the point of art that blends in? What then, differentiates public art from good architectural and urban design? 

Categories
Sports

Stingers basketball teams split double header against McGill

Photo by Cecilia Piga

Men’s Basketball

Before the U Sports winter break, we did not see much of Sami Jahan.

Since coming back from the break, the rookie point guard has certainly put his stamp on this team as a bonafide starting guard of the future.

Coming into this season, the depth of the Concordia Stingers men’s basketball team was a major question mark. Throughout the season different rookies have been stepping up—whether it be Ali White, Nathaniel Boisvert and now Jahan.

The Stingers took the first of the two matchups in four days by a score of 68-67. While veterans Olivier Simon, Cedrick-Bryan Coriolan and Sami Ghandour all had solid outings—it was the bench and role players who played a key role in the Stingers’ victory.

Photo by Cecilia Piga

In Thursday night’s match, Jahan finished with a team high 17 points and five assists. He made some incredibly clutch shots down the stretch and proved that he can hang with the big boys. He showed off some incredible handles as well.

Second year guard Nathaniel Boisvert went 3/3 from 3-point range finishing with nine points in the contest.

However it was Cedrick-Bryan Coriolan who stole the show on Thursday. It was a tightly contested game the whole way through until Coriolan made an incredible highlight reel play, finished off by Jahan that ultimately put the nail in McGill’s coffin.

Saturday’s match-up at McGill was much of the same story. A tight game with neither team really able to pull away on the scoreboard. The game needed an extra frame to decide a winner, where Jahan put on a performance to remember.

The Stingers won on Saturday by a score of 89-83 with some more late game heroics from Coriolan and Jahan.

Jahan made some clutch free throws down the stretch and finished the game with 28 points—a career high for the rookie. Veterans Simon and Oge Nwoko also chipped in offensively with 21 and 15 points respectively. Nwoko also added 13 rebounds to his statline, finishing with a double-double.

 

Women’s Basketball:

Photo by Cecilia Piga

Unfortunately for the women’s basketball team, they did not have the same fate as the men in their two matchups with the Martlets.

In the Thursday game, the Stingers led by five at half time but things fell apart for them in the third quarter where they were outscored by the Martlets by 11.

After a lights-out shooting performance in the first half, the Stingers went ice cold in the second, shooting just over 28 per cent––a far cry from the 38 per cent they were shooting in the first half.

While they did end up adding another loss to their record, a major positive coming out of the game was Nelly Owusu’s performance. She went 6/10 from the field and finished the game with a career and game high 17 points.

Owusu was the second highest ranked recruit last year behind the Stingers’ own Myriam Leclerc and after sitting out all of last year and half of this year with an injury, it was very nice to see what the second year player can do.

While the result was the same on Saturday, the story was certainly a different one. It looked like the Stingers were simply just overpowered by McGill. They played incredible defence forcing tough shots from the Stingers all afternoon.

Again, Owusu led the way in points for the team with 12, however the points were hard to come by for the rest of the team as the Stingers lost 75-53.

The Stingers have now fallen to the bottom of the RSEQ conference with the two losses but have played at least two fewer games than McGill and UQAM, the teams directly above them in the standings.

Feature photo by Cecilia Piga

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