CANORA - The Parkland Prairie Ice, a first-year U13 girls hockey team, was formed in time for the 2022/23 season to give area girls and district audiences the opportunity to enjoy girls hockey.
The team’s roster is filled out by girls from a number of area communities, including: Canora, Norquay, Sturgis, Kamsack, Preeceville and Yorkton.
The players enjoyed their first game action as a team in the best possible way; winning five straight games to capture first place at a tournament held in Melville Dec. 10-11.
The head coach is Nicole Korpusik of Norquay, who was a member of the first University of Regina Cougars female hockey team during her playing days.
The Melville tournament began on Saturday when the Ice hooked up with Parkland Fire, the host team, and skated away with a 6-3 win. Since it was their first game action as a team, Korpusik admits she wasn’t sure what to expect.
“My jaw hit the floor from the drop of the first puck, the leadership was incredible and the teamwork blew my mind,” said Korpusik “Our passing was incredible and the girls took every opportunity to make plays and include each player on the team.”
In their first game together, the players showed a strong ability to handle adversity.
“When the Fire scored against us it wasn't a hang-your-head moment, these girls would rally around each other and bounce back.”
Harper Danchilla and Avery Lammers of Yorkton led the offence with two goals each. Single markers came from Ryea Harper of Canora and Rowyn Johnson of Norquay.
The second game was later in the day against the Warman Bearcats, which was a dominant 9-0 shutout for the Ice and goalie Ty Northrop of Norquay.
“We had almost every player contribute on the scoresheet, whether it was through goals or assists. It was awesome to see,” marveled Korpusik.
Danchilla and Lammers once again contributed a total of four goals to the cause with two each. Tessica Mydonick of Canora and Morgan Olson of Sturgis each scored twice, while Makayla Johnson of Preeceville contributed one goal.
The action started early on Sunday, with an 8:30 a.m. faceoff against the Warman Bengals.
“The girls played gritty which resulted in having to work a little harder and be disciplined because we spent some time in the penalty box that game,” reported Korpusik. “Those penalties were mostly the result of hard work, not unsportsmanlike play, so I'll take it. We came out on top with a 5-1 win.”
For the third straight game, Avery Lammers scored a pair of goals. Singles came from Ryea Harper, Rowyn Johnson and Isabelle Smith of Yorkton.
The final round robin game was against the Hamiota Huskies from across the border in Manitoba. Based on the standings, the Ice players knew they had qualified for the final game before the puck was dropped.
“But this didn't stop our girls from playing their hearts out. Again we had a great mix of numbers on the score sheet and came out with a 7-2 win and an undefeated round robin record.”
Harper Danchilla scored four goals and Morgan Olson added a pair, with Avery Lammers rounding out the scoring.
Korpusik said they were given about an hour “to rest and fuel up” before hitting the ice for the championship final, pitted against the host Parkland Fire for the second time in the tournament. The final score was 4-1 for the Ice.
“We knew they'd come out flying. . This was their tournament and they would be hungry for a win. The Fire scored first but our girls responded quickly and the first period ended with both teams on the board with one each. Our girls were showing signs of fatigue and had to dig deep. The passes weren't coming as easily and the shots weren't finding the mesh as they had before. We fought through frustrations, blisters, sugar lows, headaches and fatigue. We supported each other and we persevered, we came away as champions with a 4-1 victory!”
Avery Lammers was the offensive leader in this game with a pair of goals. Tessica Mydonick and Cassidy Wolkowski of Canora each found the net to provide the Ice with their margin of victory. Ty Northrop was the winning goalie for all five games, and made an offensive contribution as well with a pair of assists over the weekend.
“I couldn't be more proud of these girls,” shared Korpusik. “Sticking together is easy when you're fresh and winning but when you're tired, hurting and frustrated your true colours as a player and a team come out. These girls stuck it out, never quit and supported each other through the adversity - that's why they are the champs.”
Jackie Guidry, tournament organizer, was pleased to see the teams from the Parkland area in Saskatchewan and Manitoba “having good, competitive games” during the tournament.
“We need to continue to increase the awareness of female hockey all over Saskatchewan so girls can continue to build lifelong friendships and skills while playing with and against other girls.”
Korpusik is quite impressed with the accomplishments of her players during their short time as a team, especially since they only had two practises together before the Melville tournament.
“Each of the girls on this team play on a house team in either Preeceville, Canora, Kamsack or Yorkton which means during the regular season we are competitors. This could make building a new team challenging. There are five different team schedules to try to work around in order to plan practices, so finding times that work for everyone and ice time that corresponded with open schedules was logistically challenging. Luckily, we have an incredible manager, Jaime Johnson, who has worked tirelessly to find opportunities for us. I am proud to say our players have bonded quickly both on and off the ice.”
The Ice now get to enjoy the Christmas break, before preparations begin in the New Year for a tournament in Portage la Prairie, Man. from Jan. 13-15.
