Joshua StorieAlberta Pandas
After being locked in a three-way dogfight for top spot in Canada West with Regina and UBC, the Pandas were able to secure top spot and a first round bye in the last weekend of the season with a sweep of the lowly Mount Royal Cougars. The Pandas will now look ahead to their matchup with the Manitoba Bisons, a team they’ve had success against in the regular season, winning three of their four match ups while only conceding a single goal. Once again, the Pandas will rely on stingy goaltending in their quest to defend their CIS championship, as Lindsay Post had another excellent season, posting a 1.34 goals against average and eight shutouts in 23 games.
UBC Thunderbirds
After being knocked off in the semifinals last year by the Manitoba Bisons, the Thunderbirds return to the final four once again as a top two seed, hoping to not fall victim a lower seeded team for the second consecutive year. They face off against the much-improved Regina Cougars, and if their regular season match ups are any indicator, the series should be closely contested. The two teams split their four games in conference play, with only one game being decided by three goals or more. The Thunderbirds will look to their two solid goaltending options for success, as Danielle Dube and Samantha Langford both posted goals against averages under two during the regular season, and combined for five shutouts.
Manitoba Bisons
The Bisons arrive in the final four after a hard-fought quarterfinal victory over the Saskatchewan Huskies, with the decisive game three taking five overtimes to decide. Thankfully, the Bisons will have a week to catch their breath and prepare for a Pandas squad that has had their number this year. The series could be decided by offence, or specifically, a lack of offence, as both teams only boast a single scorer in the top 20 regular season scoring list. Both teams were above average defensively, but the Pandas were on another level this year, surrendering an average of only 1.4 goals per game during the regular season. Couple that a Bisons offence that barely managed two goals a game in the regular season, and the Pandas look to be the favourites on paper going into the series.
Regina Cougars
The high-flying Regina Cougars are returning to the final four after being ousted in last year’s quarterfinals by the Manitoba Bisons. The key for the Cougars all year has been their offence, which led Canada West in goals this past season, and features the high-scoring trio of Kylie Gavlin and Jaycee Magwood up front, and also features the conference’s leading goal scorer in defence in Alexis Larson. Workhorse goaltender Toni Ross will be called upon often in the series, as the Cougars gave up the second most shots in Canada West this past year, a fact that their opponents, the UBC Thunderbirds, will be looking to exploit.
Prediction
Based on regular season match ups and championship pedigree, the Pandas should hold the edge over the Bisons. The Pandas’ stingy defence should have no trouble stifling an anemic Bisons offence, and the green and gold should be the favourites to advance. UBC and Regina present fans with a very compelling matchup, with the two best offences in Canada West facing off. Ultimately, UBC’s slightly better defence and goaltending should give them the edge moving forward, but don’t count out the Cougars by any means. Look for a Pandas-Thunderbirds matchup in the Canada West final.
