Jason Hills
For MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON — MacEwan Griffins goaltender Lindsey Johnson will likely go on to win many more games in her Canada West career, but there's no doubt her first one will go down as one of her most memorable.
Johnson made 35 saves in a thrilling come from behind, 3-2 shootout win over the Regina Cougars, Saturday afternoon at the Downtown Community Arena.
Down 2-0, late in the second period, Jesse Jack scored with 29 seconds left. Then Maria Ayre scored with 4:38 remaining in the third to send the game to overtime before Allee Isley scored the only goal of the shootout as MacEwan put forward a complete team effort in the win.
The Griffins snapped a four-game losing streak with the result and improved to 3-13-0 this season, while Regina falls to 5-9-2.
"When Allee scored in the shootout, oh my gosh, it was pure euphoria, and I was just so proud of our effort," said Johnson, who denied all six shooters she faced in the shootout. "It was a team game, a team win. There wasn't just one person who stole us that game, it was a consistent effort from everyone and Allee had that beauty shot to end it.
"We really needed this win. It was a tough start … but we were able to push through, and to see my team battle for an entire 60 minutes, that's been our biggest battle all season, and we didn't give up."
After a disappointing effort in a 5-1 loss on Friday to Regina, the Griffins found themselves down 2-0 in the first period after Kaylee Dyer opened the scoring 28 seconds into Saturday's game on a point-shot deflection and Jenna Merk scored nearly 13 minutes later on a carbon copy goal. But that didn't deter the Griffins, who controlled the play for the majority of the first 40 minutes, despite being down.
"I thought the majority of the game we were able to dictate the pace," said Griffins head coach Chris Leeming. "The two goals were redirects on point shots, and we had to face an uphill battle, but I thought the girls came together and it was a real character game overall. They didn't quit on each other."
Jack's goal with just 29 seconds left cut Regina's lead to 2-1, but the Cougars were out for blood to regain their two-goal lead in the third period.
They outshot MacEwan 21-3 in the final frame, but Johnson was completely locked in. She made several big stops, including two off of Lauren Focht from point blank range to keep the Griffins in it.
Maria Ayre tied the game with 4:38 left, scoring her fourth goal of 2023-24 to break the program record for the most by a rookie in a Canada West season (Derek Harback photo).
Ayre's second goal of the weekend, and fourth of the season tied it late in the period when the rookie forward flew down the right wing and snapped a shot, five-hole on Cougars goaltender Arden Kleiwer, who made 19 saves in the loss, to tie it at 2-2. The tally broke the program's single season rookie goals mark of three, set by Aryn Chambers and Hailey Maurice in 2021-22.
"The way I play best is with a blank mind," said Johnson of her busy third period. "I wasn't worrying about anything. I wasn't worried about what was going on, or the score of the game, or how many shots I was facing. I was just focused on making the save.
"For me, it felt like I maybe made two saves that whole period, because I was just so dialled in that you're not even noticing you're making saves, you're just executing movements."
After a scoreless overtime, it was a goaltending battle in the shootout, as Isley was the only one to score. She walked in and beat Kleiwer with a clean snapshot over the shoulder.
"I was thinking, just shoot. You always try to dangle in practice, and it doesn't work, so I told myself just to go in and shoot, because I have a good shot, and that's what I did, but it was all a big blur to be honest," said Isley.
"After such a disappointing loss (Friday), it was really a pride thing. We really wanted to battle back and get this win against them. It was a great feeling and such a big win for us."
After the Griffins had been unable to beat Regina goaltender Arden Kliewer on five previous shootout attempts, Allee Isley beat her with a snapshot over the shoulder to give MacEwan the win (Derek Harback photo).
After Isley's shootout winner, instead of a flurry of players rushing to her and Johnson on the ice to celebrate, there seemed to be a delayed celebration.
"I wasn't completely sure we had won. In my head I was like OK, she scored, but do they get another shot? I had forgotten that we had started with a save by me," laughed Johnson.
"Next time, I'll put that in the back of my mind and do a full pad celebration to centre ice."
It's been a tough first half of the season for the Griffins, as they've battled with consistency, but this big comeback win can certainly bring a lot of energy, positivity, and belief within the team.
"For a long time, we've been really close, but we haven't been able to execute for a full 60, and we've let the other teams back into the game," said Leeming.
"The hope is we can really build on this, because it was a real character win for our team."
MacEwan will battle their cross-town rival, the Alberta Pandas in a home-and-home series next weekend with Friday's game at the Downtown Community Arena (7 p.m., Canada West TV).
