Stingy U18 AAA Eastman Selects blast into finals
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A dominant regular season has continued into the playoffs, as the Eastman Selects locked up a spot in the Manitoba Female Hockey League’s U18 AAA final with a 4-0 victory over the Yellowhead Chiefs March 8.
The Selects have been excellent at keeping the puck out of their own net so far in the playoffs, only allowing four goals in six playoff games while notching a perfect 6-0 record en route to the finals.
Given those numbers, it’s no surprise to see goaltenders Addison Tomes and Isabelle Labossiere at the top of the goalie statistics list for the playoffs, with each netminder starting three games and picking up two shutouts so far in the post-season.
“I think we’ve really honed in on taking care of our jobs defensively,” Selects assistant coach Lauren Warkentin said after the game three victory.
“It really helps when you have two really solid goaltenders, but I think our team has played really well in front of them.”
Eastman have been the best defensive team in the league all season, allowing only 33 goals in 32 regular season games, 20 better than the second place team.
“(Since) the start of the year, we really focused on who we are as a team,” Warkentin said.
“We thought we’d come in and kind of slide under the radar and be the underdogs. We’ve instilled really good characteristics in the girls and they’ve really encompassed that; being a good teammate, playing well for their teammates and playing hard night in night out.”
Delainey Rigaux is the standout offensive force for the Selects, scoring six goals across the team’s six playoff games, while chipping in four assists.
It was a tough road trip for both teams, as they played in Shoal Lake March 7 for game two, with Eastman winning 4-3 thanks to a late game-winner from Rigaux, before piling back into the team bus for a 3.5 hour trip home that night.
Eastman will play either the Winnipeg Ice or Winnipeg Avros in the final, with the two city clubs locked in a battle in the other semi-final, with the Ice nabbing a 2-1 series lead. Game four of the best-of-five series takes place after press time March 12.
“Whichever team we do end up playing against will be a tough challenge,” Warkentin said. The Ice and Avros finished in second and third place in the regular season standings.
“I think the girls have confidence in themselves and I think that’s one of the main things that will propel us through the series.”
The Selects will have home ice advantage in the finals after finishing the regular season in first place.