Stingers 2, Martlets 1: Concordia nabs early series lead
A hard-hitting rivalry match tipped in favour of the Stingers women’s hockey team
The Concordia University women’s hockey team picked up the crucial first win of its best-of-three Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) semifinal series against the McGill University Martlets, downing their rivals by a score of 2-1 on Thursday, Feb. 28 at Ed Meagher Arena.
Concordia head coach Julie Chu emphasized the need to improve upon the team’s performance in Game 2 on Saturday, March 1, but also acknowledged the importance of a win.
“I think we're happy we got the win, but I don't think we're happy with the way that we played and the effort we gave, in all honesty,” Chu said. “But we're never going to underscore a win because those are hard to come by, especially [against] McGill.”
Before the match, Concordia honoured goaltender Jordyn Verbeek, defender Léonie Philbert, and forwards Jessymaude Drapeau and Émilie Lussier for their nominations to the 2024-25 RSEQ all-star team. Chu was also recognized for her fifth RSEQ Coach of the Year award. Poetically, several of these players would deliver the game’s biggest moments.
Philbert kicked off the action in the first period when her quick exchange with forward Émilie Lavoie in front of the net saw Drapeau emerge from a scrum with the puck. With a flick of her wrist, Drapeau notched the first Stinger goal of the playoffs for a 1-0 lead five minutes in.
The second period brought more excitement as the referees swallowed their whistles and let the duel on the ice continue. Martlets forward Olivia Pridham tied the match with a quick wraparound move to slide the puck past Verbeek. But Stingers forward Rosalie Parent quickly answered for the Stingers, scoring just her second goal of the entire season to restore the lead four minutes later.
Despite a physical, hotly contested game, just two penalties were called during play, with both teams failing to capitalize on their lone power play. Drapeau commented on the difference and its effect on Concordia’s motivation.
“It's different from this year, honestly,” Drapeau said. “We've been used to playing on the power play all night long and I think we got one power play, so it was really different. So we need maybe to adjust our intensity and momentum, go get the momentum somewhere else.”
In the third period, it was Verbeek’s time to shine, as she and McGill starter Sophie Lajeunesse traded saves while the clock ticked towards zero. Verbeek made several fabulous saves to prevent an equalizer, none more crucial than her final one. With just seconds left on the clock, Martlets forward Taylor Garcia broke through Concordia’s defence and found herself one-on-one with Verbeek. However, Verbeek’s blocker save denied Garcia’s shot and McGill’s chance at overtime.
Verbeek, who made 19 saves, welcomed the scrappy nature of the match.
“I think anything can happen in playoffs and I think it was fun that the refs were letting things go because we got to play our game and play physical,” Verbeek said. “You see it in the PWHL (Professional Women's Hockey League) that there's a lot more physicality.”
In the aftermath, Chu kept her focus on the Stingers’ keys to victory in the potential series-clinching Game 2.
“For us, the takeaway is we've got to be better on some of those details of full-out effort,” she said. “If we do that, then we're going to win some more battles. We're going to have a little bit more of that hunger to chase down some of those rebounds, and then some of the opportunities we have to bury them in the back of the net.”
Concordia will attempt to finish off McGill in Game 2 of the semifinal series when the Martlets host the Stingers at Place Bell on Saturday, March 1. Puck drop is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
