Muskie girls roughed up in Altona

A weekend trip to Altona, MB was one the Muskie girls hockey team would like to forget, after the club lost three straight at the W.C. Miller Aces Girls High School Hockey Tournament.
The Muskies won a blowout to kick off the tournament but were at least doubled up in their following three games.
“We obviously didn’t get the results we wanted, but the kids played well,” head coach Lynn Kellar said. “It was just one of those weekends where we couldn’t get the bounce, and it didn’t go in.”
Things started well enough in Manitoba for the Muskies, with a whopping 10-0 win over Garden Valley Collegiate. Taylor Meyers and Lauren Krukoski each registered a hat trick in the match, with Carlee Bosma earning two goals and Nina Bird and Kristen Penner each contributing with one apiece.
Things took a turn for the worse in their second game, as they fell 2-1 to Sturgeon Heights. The girls were unable to capitalize on six power plays offered to them, with Penner scoring the only goal from Bird and Krukoski.
Their third game saw higher scoring, but again the Muskies came out on the losing end, with St. James earning a 8-4 victory.
Bird scored twice, with Meyers and Bosma adding a goal each.
The Muskies capped the tournament with a rematch with Sturgeon Heights, which was more of the same as the girls lost 3-1. Lauren Pierce scored the lone Fort Frances goal from Jessica Barker and Bird.
The game was again marked by Sturgeon Heights’ time spent in the box, taking nine penalties to the Muskies’ four.
In spite of the string of losses, Kellar said the quality of play—the important element in non-league games such as the four in Altona—was satisfactory. “We played a consistent four games from start to finish. The kids played hard. That was the biggest thing we were looking for,” he noted.
While the tournament was low on positives, it did mark a coming out of sorts for Bird. Best known for her tall, imposing force on the blueline, Bird was moved from defence to the wing this season after taking into account her history of knee injuries and reduced mobility, the team’s defensive depth and “knowing the fact that she can finish would be an asset up front on the wing,” Kellar said.
She flourished over the Manitoba weekend, registering at least point in each game, notching three goals and five assists and leading the Muskies in points.
“So far, we like what we see,” Kellar said.
Also important for the team’s long-term progress was the play of goaltender Sara Trendiak. Trendiak sat out a few weeks with a knee injury after the team’s home tournament, and posted the 10-0 shutout in her first game back with the Muskies, as well as starting the 8-4 loss to the St. James Saints.
Katie Stearns started in the weekend’s other two games.
The girls’ next action is in Dryden next weekend, starting with a league game against the Eagles on Thursday night, followed by a six-team weekend tournament.
The Muskies are catching something of an unfavourable draw, playing their first game against the Beaver Brae Broncos on Friday at 2 p.m., followed by a game against the Eagles at 5:30 p.m.
“It’s not a favourable draw in my opinion, but we’ll play,” Kellar said. “It’s a chance for us to elevate our game and see what we can do in back-to-back games like that. Like I said, if we play the way we can and do the things we’ve done lately, I like our chances.”
He added playing six periods of hockey so close together will be a good test of the team’s conditioning—particularly with a portion of the team fighting off the ’flu.
The girls’ next home date is Tuesday, Dec. 11 against the Broncos.