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Hatt scores winner as Huskies defeat Aigles Bleues 3-1 in quarterfinal game one
Posted: Feb 14, 2023

Hatt scores winner as Huskies defeat Aigles Bleues 3-1 in quarterfinal game one

Photos Box Score
Scoring Summary
1st - 09:54 - Alexia Desforges (Moncton)
2nd - 08:05 - PP - Kara Maclean (Saint Mary's)
3rd - 08:26 - PP - Miranda Hatt (Saint Mary's)
3rd - 18:02 - EN - Shae Demale (Saint Mary's)
Game Leaders
Moncton
G: Alexia Desforges - 1
A: 2 Players (#8, #14) - 1
Sh: Erica Plourde - 5
Sv: Annick Boudreau - 21
Saint Mary's
G: 3 Players (#8, #17, #21) - 1
A: Shae Demale - 2
Sh: 3 Players (#5, #15, #20) - 4
Sv: Ridleigh Hansen - 18
Team Stats
Full stats

Saint Mary's forward Miranda Hatt scored the game-winning goal, while Shae Demale added a goal and an assist, as the Huskies took down the visiting Moncton Aigles Bleues 3-1 in game one of their quarterfinal playoff series on Tuesday night at the Dauphinee Centre.

Both teams got out to fast starts but it was the visiting side that seemed to have the slight edge out of the gate. An early slashing penalty by Kate Gallant (Brooklin, ON) gave way to the first powerplay opportunity of the series. The Moncton advantage was looking to get on the board early but a pair of nice saves by Ridleigh Hansen (Red Deer, AB) kept the game scoreless through the first five minutes.

The Aigles Bleues kept their foot on the gas and were able to maintain offensive zone time after the powerplay and jumped out to a 9-1 shot advantage through the first nine minutes. It was just before the midway mark of the period that we saw our first goal. A 2-on-1 for Moncton saw Erica Plourde's (Pigeon-Hill, NB) shot bounce off the pad of Hansen out for Alexia Desforges (Clarence-Rockland, ON) who smacked home the rebound.

Saint Mary's wouldn't let that deter them but instead jumpstarted them back into the game. The Huskies were finally able to get pucks to the net but Annick Boudreau (Memramcook, NB) was able to knock them all aside. Some sustained pressure by the Huskies late in the period almost saw them tie the game. A clean faceoff win back to Maddy Corbett (Sydney, NS) saw her wrist shot go past Boudreau but off the crossbar with just 10 seconds left.

Saint Mary's led 10-9 in shots but trailed by one after the first period.

One of the best chances of the second period saw a Moncton blue line shot hit a Huskies defender and bounced right to Mai-Ann Dorval (Moonbeam, ON) who fired the deflected puck on net but Hansen slid over to make a great save.

Seconds later on the same shift, Emilie Lalancette (St Andrews West, ON) took a penalty for tripping which would give the home side their first powerplay chance. It didn't take long for them to capitalize. A cross ice pass from Shae Demale (Red Deer, AB) bounced off the skate of an Aigles Bleues player and right to Kara MacLean (Antigonish, NS) who fired a shot off the left post and in to even the game at one.

Moncton had a great opportunity late in the period to retake the lead when Plourde made a nice pass into the slot to Lianne Desforges (Clarence-Rockland, ON) who snapped the one-timer on net but was denied by Hansen.

Shots were 17-13 in favour of the Huskies at the second intermission.

Just six minutes into the final period Moncton's Elodie St-Jacques (St-Jerome, QC) went to the penalty box for roughing. The Huskies would take advantage of this powerplay as well. This time it was Miranda Hatt (Eastern Passage, NS) who used the defender as a screen and fired a hard wrist shot inside the post to give SMU their first lead of the game.

"I just saw that the powerplay was changing up and I had an opportunity and I just shot it and it went in," said Miranda Hatt, post-game. "I honestly was shocked it went in, I didn't really see a shooting lane but it worked out."

With just a few minutes left in the game the Aigles Bleues were pressuring for the equalizer. A Lianne Desforges shot from the top of the slot caught a piece of the shoulder of Hansen before sailing over the net. That's as close as Moncton would come. Shae Demale added an empty netter as Saint Mary's took game 1 by a score of 3-1.

Huskies forward Shae Demale was named Subway Player of the Game with a goal and an assist, while Alexia Desforges was named Subway Player of the Game for the visitors. 

"It's so important," said Demale post-game of winning game one of the best of three series. "We wanted to take advantage of home ice from the start, and get that first win.

The Huskies will look to close out the best-of-three series on Thursday night in Moncton, with puck-drop scheduled for 7 p.m.

"I think in my 12 years here, we've faced them in the playoffs five or six times, and they're always tough up there, it's a fun rink to play in but it's tough to get a win," said Huskies head coach Chris Larade post-game. "We've just got to keep things simple, I think if we outwork them, we've got enough skill that we'll be okay."

 Recap by Troy Langstaff / Saint Mary's Huskies Athletics