HKY: Calgary Dinos duo make colossal impact in week 13
Mercier, Gutenberg named CW Players of the Week
CALGARY – Calgary's Sydney Mercier and Connor Gutenberg were named the Canada West Hockey Players of the Week by the conference on Tuesday.
Mercier scored four of the Dinos' six goals this weekend, helping them to a sweep of the Regina Cougars. She assisted on another, putting her stamp all over the series.
The rookie got her team on the board Friday, burying a shorthanded chance out front to even the score. An Alli Borrow breakaway gave the Dinos the game-winning mark as they improved to 10-8 on the season.
Mercier stole the spotlight Saturday, posting a hat trick in a tight contest. She opened the scoring with a tip in front of the net. Then, after the Dinos fell behind 2-1, Mercier streaked into the zone, deked through two defenders then fired a shot over the shoulder of the Cougars' goaltender to tie the game.
She wasn't done there. Minutes later, Mercier pounced on a puck as her teammate battled for it, made a quick drive to the net and peppered her shot home.
The forward laid the groundwork for another close victory, completing the all-important weekend sweep as teams joust for playoff position with a few weeks left in the regular season.
Mercier and the Dinos will be back in action Friday for the much-anticipated Crowchild Classic against the Mount Royal Cougars at the Saddledome at 4 p.m. MST. The two teams will meet for rematch Saturday at 6 p.m. MST, which you can catch on TELUS Optik TV. Both games will be available on Canada West TV.
Game log:
Jan. 20: 1 goals in 2-1 W vs REG
Jan. 21: 3 goals, 1 assist in 4-3 W vs REG
Meanwhile, Calgary's Connor Gutenberg had a five-point weekend to put an exclamation mark on the Dinos' offensive outburst against the Regina Cougars.
Gutenberg was buzzing Thursday, getting on the board just 19 seconds into the game. The forward tried to tuck home a rebound before wrapping it around the net to give the Dinos an early lead.
He then made a beautiful feed to teammate Arjun Atwal in the second to put the Dinos up 3-1. The second-year added an assist later in the game as the Dinos blew out the Cougars, 9-2.
Gutenberg set the tone again Saturday, opening the game's scoring three minutes in. He sniped one from the top of the right circle that quickly found the back of the net. He added another in the third to help his Dinos tie the Canada West record for most consecutive wins at 17.
Gutenberg and the Dinos will have the chance to break the record at the much-anticipated Crowchild Classic against the Mount Royal Cougars Friday. Puck drop is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. MST at the Saddledome. The two teams will meet for rematch Saturday at 7 p.m. MST. You can catch all the action exclusively on Canada West TV.
Game log:
Jan. 19: 1 goal, 2 assists in 9-2 W at REG
Jan. 20: 2 goals in 8-2 W at REG