SASKATOON, Sask. – The University of Saskatchewan Huskies bested the visiting Calgary Dinos 4–1 on Friday night (Feb. 6) at Merlis Belsher Place, keeping the Dinos at bay as the two Canada West foes jockey for position near the top of the East Division standings.
The win improves Saskatchewan's record to 18-5-2, as the Huskies are now 8-1-1 over their last ten games and move into a tie with Mount Royal for first place in the East. Calgary, meanwhile, drops to 17-7-1, having lost six of its last ten contests and falling three points back of the division lead.
Saskatchewan's victory was driven by strong play at both ends of the ice. Over the 60-minute affair, Huskie forwards broke in behind the Dinos' defence five times, leading directly to two of the Dogs' four goals—one from Connor Roulette and another from
Raphael Pelletier. Defensively, Saskatchewan stifled Calgary shooters throughout the night, limiting the Dinos to just 16 shots on goal. Of those, Huskies starter
Nolan Maier turned aside all but one to earn the victory, delivering another steady performance for the Dogs. Including Friday's result, the former Saskatoon Blade has now recorded wins in all five of his starts since joining the Huskies in early January.
After both teams settled into the opening minutes, the Huskies' offence broke through with a pair of goals just past the midway point of the first period. The opener came off the stick of Roulette, as the first-year forward stole the puck at the Calgary blueline, skated free down the left wing, and snapped his 14th goal of the season past Dinos netminder Carl Stankowski. Just two minutes later,
Liam Keeler and
Carter Stebbings broke in behind the Calgary defence on a partial odd-man rush, with Pelletier burying the rebound after Stebbings' initial attempt was turned aside.
Holding a 2–0 lead after 20 minutes, the Huskies continued to dictate the pace in the second period and consistently found ways through the Dinos' blueliners. Just past the two-minute mark,
Dawson Holt sprung a streaking Stebbings, who attempted a deke before colliding with Stankowski. Despite the contact, officials awarded Stebbings a penalty shot, though Stankowski stood firm to deny the fourth-year Business student and keep the deficit at two.
The intensity ramped up through the middle portion of the frame. Following a Kaiden Bugera boarding penalty that sparked a heated exchange between Calgary's Matt Corbet and Saskatchewan's Jarett Penner, officials assessed both players ten-minute misconducts, with Corbet also receiving a game ejection. Despite the momentum swings, it was the Dinos who capitalized late in the period, as Brenden Lee scored on the power play with 57 seconds remaining to cut Saskatchewan's lead to 2–1 heading into the intermission.
Undeterred by the late goal, the Huskies resumed their pressure in the third period. At the 10:18 mark, Saskatchewan's persistence paid off when
Rhett Rhinehart fired a long stretch pass to Holt at the offensive blueline. Holt cut into the slot and snapped a glove-side shot past Stankowski to restore the two-goal advantage. The marker gave Holt his 14th point over a nine-game stretch since returning from the Christmas break and his 33rd point of the season, leading all Huskies scorers. Calgary pushed for a comeback in the final minutes, but
Cole Jordan sealed the outcome with a 200-foot empty-net goal to make it a 4–1 final.
The Huskies and Dinos will rest and reset for game two of the weekend on Saturday, with puck drop scheduled for 5:00 p.m. at Merlis Belsher Place.
