Les Canadiennes Win First Home Game Over Toronto

Canadiennes Captain Marie-Philip Poulin Dazzles in 2-1 Win Over Furies

SportsJordan Stoopler — Published October 23, 2016

“Every time we need a goal, we can count on her,” said Canadiennes goaltender Charline Labonté. “She’s going to step up her game and do her magic. The puck just sticks to her stick.”

Poulin received a breakout pass from Karell Emard as she entered into the offensive zone. She then weaved her way around Furies defender Renata Fast before firing a wrist shot between the legs of netminder Christina Kessler.

“In tough games, she’s always the one that kind of seems to find a way to pull out a win for her team,” said Furies captain Natalie Spooner. “Our line was trying to shut her down but she still found a way.”

Les Canadiennes were rusty early on, often finding themselves pinned in their own end for long stretches. Toronto made them pay at the 6:04 mark of the initial frame. A failed breakout attempt by les Canadiennes quickly led to a turnover of the puck. Carolyne Prevost recovered and fed a backhand pass to linemate Emily Fulton, who fired a perfect shot from the hash marks past Labonté.

“It’s never the way you want to start a game but it was a nice screenshot,” said Labonté. “It happens. I don’t think we were at our best in the first. We had to readjust.”

Labonté pointed to nerves resulting from the home opener as a potential reason behind her team’s poor start. The group improved as the game wore on after making some minor adjustments, she said.

“You never want to trail in a game,” said Poulin, the game’s first star. “We faced adversity and we responded early in the second. “

Les Canadiennes did respond with panache only 27 seconds into the second period. Defender Cathy Chartrand directed a puck on net that hopped in the air. Poulin swung away at the rising puck and connected for the equalizer. Poulin claims to have never played softball or baseball before, and merely hoped that the puck would hit her stick.

Despite only facing 13 shots, Labonté was required to be sharp all throughout this tight-knit affair.

“It’s my job to make the saves, whether I get 40 shots or 12 shots,” said Labonté. “I have to stop the puck. It’s a bit of a mental game for me. It’s my job to keep my team in the game.”

“Knowing that you have a goalie that always saves your mistakes is nice,” said Poulin.

“We are very lucky to have Charlie. She made unbelievable saves throughout the game. She gave us energy every time she made those saves.”

Les Canadiennes will look to improve upon their perfect 3-0 record when both teams meet again on Sunday afternoon.