Ooks blank Queens
Ooks 2 Queens 0
The NAIT Ooks have always seemed to have the RDC Queens number.
Even when they were near the bottom of the league they cause the Queens fits and things haven’t changed.
The Queens dominated play Thursday, but came out on the wrong end of a 2-0 decision against the Ooks in Alberta Colleges Women’s Hockey League play at the Arena.
“It’s very disappointing, especially when you’re playing well and need the two points,” said Queens head coach Rob Weddell. “We outplayed them and I thought deserved to win the game.”
The Queens, who are fighting for their playoff lives and sit three points back of the fourth place Grant MacEwan Griffins, held a 30-19 edge in shots on goal and held a wide territorial edge. However, they couldn’t solve goalie Meghan Witt.
“We got a lot of shots from outside and at times had a tough job fighting through to the net, but still we had some chances and she was able to get a pad on a couple of shots that were going in,” said Weddell. “She stole that one for them.”
Meanwhile, the Queens got a solid effort in goal from Grace Gaska, who is becoming more and more comfortable after joining the Queens following the Christmas break.
Gaska was attending the University of Calgary and playing rec hockey when she got an e-mail wondering if she’d consider returning to RDC to backup Kendra Lakeman.
“They were looking for another goaltender and considering all my courses transferred I figured I’d come back,” said Gaska, who last played at RDC during the 2008-09 season. “It’s been good, although I’m still in the practice mode. The pace of the game and how hard the shots are is different than what I was used to while playing rec, but I’m beginning to get into the swing of things.”
Gaska was forced to made several solid saves and couldn’t be faulted on either goal.
Karena Pyle made it 1-0 at 2:41 of the first period, just seven seconds after the Queens killed off a questionable too many players on the ice penalty. The Queens then dominated play until the Ooks Nicole Gregoire connected on a screened shot at 18:32 of the third period on a power play.
“A couple of unfortunate ones. The first came to her in the slot and I didn’t see the second one at all.,” explained Gaska. “But we didn’t score and the other goalie played well.”
Weddell was anything but pleased with the calls that led to both goals.
“That definitely was not too many men on the ice,” he said. “Then Megan (Abt) gets a holding the puck during a clutter of players at the blueline when it could have easily been called a hand pass. But we can’t do much about it now. We need to play as hard tomorrow (at NAIT) and show a bit more, in fact much more, grit in front of their net.”
l The Queens have five games remaining including tonight’s contest at NAIT . . . They face the undefeated Mount Royal Cougars twice, including Feb. 10 at the Arena, and finish off with a home-and-home against MacEwan . . . Witt and RDC’s Chantal Froehler were the players of the game.
drode@reddeeradvocate.com
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