Clarkson Cup: Les Canadiennes Avenge 2016 Final Loss, Ice Inferno 3-1

Montreal Captures Fourth Clarkson Cup in Ottawa

SportsJordan Stoopler — Published March 6, 2017

Led by a two-goal performance by captain Marie-Philip Poulin and solid goaltending from Charline Labonté’s, Les Canadiennes bested the Calgary Inferno 3-1 Sunday afternoon at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa.

It was Montreal’s first Clarkson Cup championship since 2012.

“It was such a great team performance,” said Caroline Ouellette. “We are so proud of the 60 minutes we put together. We wanted to have a good start and put pressure on them and that’s what we did.”

“Everyone showed up and was ready,” said Poulin. “It’s been 365 days that we have been waiting for that game.”

Les Canadiennes were beaten handily 8-3 by the Inferno in last year’s Clarkson Cup final. It was a learning experience that Montreal ultimately benefitted from.

“I feel like yesterday I was here talking to you guys saying that I messed up and felt so bad for my team,” said Labonté. “When you lose that badly, you need to take something away from it and learn and that’s what we did.”

Unlike last year’s final, Les Canadiennes began the game with force, sending drive after drive in the direction of Inferno goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer. Montreal was rewarded with a power-play opportunity, but could not generate much of anything. They made up for it quickly on their second chance.

Canadiennes forward Katia Clement-Heydra cut towards the middle of the ice before roofing a shot over the glove of Maschmeyer. Her goal gave Les Canadiennes a 1-0 lead.

“Katia’s goal got us going for sure,” said Poulin. “There was a lot of energy on the bench.”

It was Poulin who doubled Montreal’s lead at the 5:24 mark of the second period. She blazed her way into the Inferno zone before firing a seemingly innocent shot on goal. The puck made its way through Maschmeyer and in to put Les Canadiennes ahead 2-0. The tally would prove to be the game-winning goal, a feat Poulin has gotten used to achieving.

“Who else could do it,” asked Labonté. “It’s her, that’s what she does. She was my MVP, that’s for sure.”

MVP honours ultimately went to the Canadiennes goaltender. She made 26 saves in the final on her way to her first Clarkson Cup championship. Labonté’s colleagues praised for her strong performance after the game.

“Charlie played unbelievable tonight—[she] is a great teammate and an outstanding goaltender,” said Ouellette. “We wanted to win for her. She played with confidence and had great rebound control—In the third period, she kept us in the game.”

Calgary did storm back in the third period, spending increased time in the Montreal zone. The Inferno outshot Montreal 12-5 in the period. Their hard work led to a goal by Jillian Saulnier but ultimately, it was too little too late.

“We came out a little flat in the first and just took too long to get things going,” said Inferno captain Brianne Jenner. “We had a chance at the end, but sometimes it doesn’t go your way.”

“They were all over us for two minutes,” said Labonté. “You can see my teammates doing absolutely everything they could to stop the shots that were flying from everywhere. That’s what our team is all about.”

Poulin iced the game, scoring into an empty-net with just under two minutes left in the game. Celebrations would soon ensue as Canadiennes players, coaches and support staff flooded the ice. A much different portrait than the one painted one year ago.