For the second game in a row, the Canadian national women’s team has gone with the all-rookie line on the opening shift.
And it seems to be working, because also for the second game in a row Canada has come up with a win — this time 4-1 over Finland.
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The rookies, centered by Okanagan Hockey Academy alumna Emily Clark, came out with a burst of energy which was followed by a goal off the stick of Meghan Agosta (Ruthven, Ont./Hockey Canada) 35 seconds into the game. Clark saw 12:23 of ice time in this game and had one shot on net. Teammates Agosta and Mélodie Daoust (Valleyfield, Que./Montreal, CWHL) led the way for Canada with a goal and an assist each.
“It’s always great to get another win under our belts. I was really happy with our first and second periods, I thought we put a lot of pucks on net,” said Laura Schuler, head coach. “Moving forward, we need to continue to focus on playing our game and working on the details that will continue to make us successful.”
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Canadian goalie Shannon Szabados (Edmonton, Alta./Hockey Canada) had shutout the Finnish squad until the 7:17 mark in the third period when Riikka Vanilla’s third swat at the puck managed to get past her.
Canada will play the number one ranked team in the world the U.S. on Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 7:10 p.m. (PST).