Montreal Carabins – Page 2

Women’s team dominates second half in 3-1 win over the Carabins

In their third and final match-up against the Université de Montréal Carabins on Sunday, the Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team dominated huge chunks of the second and third periods to claim the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) championship. Sophie Gagnon, Marie-Pascale Bernier and Claudia Dubois all scored for the Stingers in game three, as the team managed to once again hold off a late surge from the Carabins.

Stingers win their first RSEQ title since 2005. Beat the Carabins by a score of 3-1. @theconcordian pic.twitter.com/aQzyCXfGig

— Matthew (@Matthew_Coyte) March 4, 2018

Head coach Julie Chu has won medals at Olympics, World Championships and the 4 Nations Tournament as a member of the United States national team. Now, she’ll add RSEQ champion to the list. This is her first banner as coach for the Stingers, and for her, this title is huge.

“This was about our team coming together as a family and executing in the end and doing a great job. That’s what happened today, and that’s what I’m proud of,” Chu said after the game.

The Stingers will return to nationals after finishing fourth last year. Photo by Mackenzie Lad.

The Concordia Stingers women’s hockey team forced game three on Saturday after beating the Carabins 3-2 in game two.

Game three was scoreless after the first period of play. The Stingers and Carabins generated quality chances, but goalies Katherine Purchase of Concordia and Marie-Pier Chabot of the Carabins turned away every opportunity.

The Stingers shot chart. By Nicholas Di Giovanni

The Stingers’s first goal of the game came from Sophie Gagnon, who had been playing with high energy throughout the series and was rewarded when she planted herself in front of Chabot on the power play. Stingers forward Stéphanie Lalancette set up in her usual power-play position, just inside the face-off circle, and tee’d off a slap shot. Chabot made the initial save, but Gagnon managed to bang home the rebound.

In game one of the series, the Stingers were unable to generate those types of quality chances and let the Carabins dictate the pace of the game. In games two and three, the team used their speed to control the puck up high in the offensive zone. That’s where the Stingers were able to begin their attacks, and it’s part of the reason they won the title.

“What [the team] does every single day to work and be committed to the process, that’s why we’re successful right now,” Chu said.

The Carabins came into this game as the superior physical team, and had previously used their size to outmuscle the Stingers.

Late in the second period, the Carabins responded with a goal of their own. A rebound from Purchase turned into a scramble, and the Stingers goalie was unable to track the puck before Marie-Pier Dubé jammed it into the net. The game remained tied going into the third period.

Coming out of the gate hot was a big talking point for the coaches and players after the two previous games. Only 53 seconds into the third period, the Stingers delivered. Audrey Belzile forced a turnover in the neutral zone for a two-on-one break with linemate Marie-Pascale Bernier. Belzile slid the puck over to Bernier, who appeared to fan on the shot, but got enough on it to slide it past a sprawling Chabot.

Two minutes later, it was Claudia Dubois who added the third goal for the Stingers. Dubois forechecked the Carabins defenders hard, won the puck from the corner and brought it behind the net. She made a quick turn for the wraparound, and just waited for Chabot to open her pads up before firing the puck five-hole.

After that, the Carabins brought the attack. They pulled Chabot with two minutes left in the game. Belzile took a penalty at the same time to give the Carabins a six-on-four player advantage. The Stingers penalty kill went to work, throwing themselves in front on everything.

Time wound down, and the Stingers cleared the bench to celebrate their first RSEQ title since 2005. Friends and family of the team joined them on the ice as Concordia Athletics Director D’Arcy Ryan presented them with their medals.

The Stingers captains being presented with the banner and trophy @theconcordian pic.twitter.com/g71L3T0IXP

— Matthew (@Matthew_Coyte) March 4, 2018

Standouts from the game include Purchase, Chabot and Stingers forward Keriann Schofield, who turned in an impressive performance of drawing penalties and being a general disturbance for the Carabins.

The Stingers will now get set for the National Championships, to be hosted by Western University in two weeks. According to Chu, the team will get Monday off, but they will be back on the ice on Tuesday to prepare.

Main photo by Mackenzie Lad.

Keriann Schofield was the hero for Concordia with the winning goal

A high-scoring game ended with an overtime goal by Concordia Stingers forward Keriann Schofield, propelling her team to a 5-4 win against the Université de Montréal Carabins on Nov. 10 at the Ed Meagher Arena.

“That’s a good example of an emotional game,” said Stingers head coach Julie Chu. “You never want to go down two goals and claw your way back, but that’s hockey. Everyone went out there and got the job done.”

The Stingers dominated the play in the opening 10 minutes, however, it was the Carabins that found the net first. Montréal took the lead after a shot by forward Estelle Duvin went right past the glove of Stingers goalie Katherine Purchase.

A few minutes later, the Carabins extended their lead when forward Laurie Mercier drove to the net and sent another shot past Purchase’s glove. The Carabins escaped the first period with a 2-0 lead.

After allowing two goals on seven shots, Purchase was pulled in favour of rookie goalie Alice Philbert, who started the second period.

Stingers forward Claudia Dubois attempts to score on a rebound. Photo by Alex Hutchins.

“There were a lot of reasons for changing Purchase that go beyond the two goals,” Chu said. “She’s been great for us this season and will continue to be great for us. It was great to see Alice play her first game, and she stepped up for us.”

In the second period, the Stingers found their offensive touch and scored three goals. The first goal came from a beautiful passing play from forward Sophie Gagnon to forward Claudia Dubois, who backhanded the puck past the glove of Carabins goaltender Maude Trevisan.

Just minutes later, on a Stingers power play, forward Lidia Fillion tipped home a shot from Dubois to tie the game at 2-2. Stingers forward Marie-Pascale Bernier then gave the team a 3-2 lead with just over three minutes to go in the second period.

In the third period, the Stingers extended their lead to 4-2 after a goal from forward Audrey Belzile, but the team quickly lost energy, and the Carabins stormed right back to tie the game. Montréal forwards Catherine Dubois and Annie Germain scored the two goals that tied up the game and sent it to overtime.

“We really try to focus on one shift at a time, and it’s really hard to do,” said Chu about her team losing energy near the end of the game. “We want to make sure we can reset after a good shift and reset after a bad one. That allowed us to continue to push in overtime.”

Despite an uneventful first four minutes of overtime, the Stingers found a way to win with Schofield scoring a nifty goal, sliding the puck past the left toe of Trevisan.

“I was on the offensive side of the puck just hoping to get a pass, and when I did, I just walked around the goalie and saw a small space and put it in,” Schofield said.

With the win, the Stingers improve to 4-0-1 and now stand alone in first place in their division. They will play the McGill Martlets on Nov. 12 at the McConnell Arena.

Main photo by Alex Hutchins.