Joey Payeur
It might as well have been over after the first goal but the Muskie girls’ hockey team decided to pile on some more for fun.
Grade 9 rookie Annalise Hayes had a hat trick to lead Fort High to a 6-0 victory over the Kelvin Clippers (Winnipeg) to secure a third-straight gold medal at the Sturgeon Heights Huskies’ pre-season tournament.
“The Sturgeon Heights tournament is a great pre-season tournament,” said Muskie head coach Scott Clendenning, who watched Hayes lead the team in goals for the weekend with six.
“Every line got into the games, and we were utilizing all lines for the penalty kill and the power-play,” he noted.
“The girls played with energy and commitment, and that’s what we want to see.
“This weekend was the start of a very solid foundation for this season,” Clendenning added.
“When it came to game time, they were all business.
“We have a great bunch of girls and they conducted themselves with maturity both on and off the ice,” he lauded.
The Muskies might as well have been renamed “The Untouchables” as they steamrolled to a 5-0 record while outscoring their opponents 30-0.
Hayes scored twice five minutes apart in the first half of the first period against Clippers’ goalie Jaiden Crosby, then tacked on her third of the frame with 44 seconds left after Kaily Greengrass had made it 3-0.
Jenna Clendenning netted the only goal of the second while Jessica Coran tallied early in the third.
Calie Clendenning needed to make only 11 saves to earn her third shutout of the weekend for the defending NorWOSSA champs and OFSAA quarter-finalists.
The netminding tandem of Clendenning and Kate Parsons (two shutouts), along with the Muskie defence, were stifling all tourney—allowing only 60 shots in the five games (12 per game) and not a single goal against.
“Calie and Kate both are very seasoned goaltenders,” said Clendenning. “They are relaxed and play with commitment and confidence.
“Defensively, we have a strong and aggressive [group of] six,” he added.
“The pairings are clicking and all defence are getting into the play offensively.
“Other teams did not have many opportunities in gaining [our] zone and setting up any quality chances on us,” he noted.
Losing four of their top nine forwards from last season prompted questions about how the Muskies would replace that much offence.
But with an average of six goals per game during the tourney, those concerns were answered emphatically.
“We are very fortunate to have very skilled players,” said Clendenning.
“They all can play and they are very adaptable to any situation they are put in.
“We still have work to do but what we saw this weekend is a good indicator that, by mid-season, we should really be clicking,” he remarked.
Fort High opened play with a 6-0 shutout of the Springfield Sabres (Oakbank).
The score was only 1-0 after two periods on Claire Sandelovich’s marker before the Muskies exploded for five in the third.
Jessica Coran had two of those while Hayes, Amy Penner, and Amber Jourdain added one apiece to back up Calie Clendenning’s 10-save outing.
Next to go down were the Oak Park Raiders (Winnipeg), who also struggled to generate any sort of attack in the Muskies’ 5-0 triumph.
Taylor Croswell and Greengrass scored in the first, Penner and Janelle Kaemingh bulged the twine in the second, then Hayes capped the offence with a goal in the third.
Parsons stopped all 18 shots she faced.
Then in the quarter-finals against the host Huskies, the Muskies blew any shot at suspense right out of the water with a six-goal first period in an 8-0 rout.
Fort High owned Sturgeon Heights in every department, including a jaw-dropping 43-4 advantage on the shot clock to give Calie Clendenning one of the easiest shutouts of her high school career.
Penner and Greengrass each netted a pair of goals in that one, with Jourdain, Sandelovich, Kaemingh, and Hayes adding singles.
The Muskies’ most difficult test came in the semi-finals against the St. Mary’s Academy Flames.
Jourdain scored goals in the first and second period, with Greengrass adding the other in a 3-0 victory.
Parsons had 17 saves to earn the win.
The Muskies next host their six-team home tournament this weekend, looking to win it for the second-straight year.
Fort High begins play Friday at noon against the St. Thomas Aquinas Saints (Kenora) before meeting the Portage Collegiate Institute Saints (Portage la Prairie) following opening ceremonies at 6 p.m.
The Muskies will take on the Miles Macdonell Buckeyes (Winnipeg) on Saturday at noon, then wrap up the preliminary round at 7:30 p.m. against the Kenora Broncos.
The playoff round begins Sunday, with the final set for 1:30 p.m. at the Ice For Kids Arena.
