Rockets soar past competition in women's hockey league

They only have four games under their belts, but the players on the Red Rockets are firing on all cylinders so far this season in the Whitehorse Women's Hockey League.

The team improved its record to an impressive 3-0-1 after a 7-2 victory over the Blue Stealers Wednesday at the Canada Games Centre's Olympic arena.

"I think my team did really well," said Rockets' defenceman Amanda Ford about Wednesday's game. "The other team is a tough team to play against, they put up a good fight. I really enjoyed it."

The Rockets have been on a tear since the season started in early October.

The team won its first two games and then tied its third contest.

Wednesday's win maintained the Rockets status as the only undefeated squad in the women's hockey league, which has four teams in total in its inaugural season.

Despite the high score at the end of the game, Wednesday's contest started off as a real goaltenders duel.

Both teams had a number of chances, throughout the first half of the opening period, only to be denied thanks to solid netminding performances by the two starting goaltenders.

After more than 15 minutes of scoreless hockey, the Rockets notched the game's first goal, which came courtesy of mother-daughter duo Cheryl and Chantelle Rivert.

Chantelle scored the goal after cutting across the front of net and firing a backhand past the Stealers' goalie.

Players on the Rockets bench cheered enthusiastically after the goal was scored, pounding their sticks against the boards to show their support.

Not long after the goal, the Stealers came back with a great chance of their own on a high shot that Rockets' goalie Alex Whitelaw managed to get a shoulder on, deflecting it out of harms way.

With the period winding down, Erica Bourdon provided some added security for the Rockets, scoring the team's second goal after Chantelle made nice drop pass to set up her up.

Bourdon made no mistake firing a perfectly placed low shot that eluded the Stealers goalie.

Players on the Stealers showed some adversity of their own, cutting the lead in half before the conclusion of the first 20 minutes.

The team's first goal was scored unassisted by Taryn Parker.

The second period was the Rockets' finest of the game, which was highlighted by three goals.

Not only did the Rockets increase its overall lead to four goals, but the squad also shut out the Stealers for the entire 20-minute frame.

Goal scorers for the Rockets in the second period included Shantelle Samuel, Annie Morrisson and Pam Harris.

Chantelle scored again for the Rockets in the third period and Emilie Nugent increased the team's lead to 7-1 on a breakaway.

Regardless of the lopsided score, the Stealers never backed down and the team notched its final goal with less than one minute remaining in the contest. Once again, Parker scored the goal, which was assisted by Andrea Buckley.

The game ended on a save made by Whitelaw, that she was able to control the rebound and freeze the puck.

Ford, who finished the game with one assist, said the Rockets have continued to improve and credits their success to good communication.

"We talk a lot, which I've noticed that a lot of teams don't talk to each other," she said.

"I think that's one of our biggest strengths is that we always just keep on talking to each other and always encourage each other. Communication is a key."

Shawna Tizya is a forward on the Stealers.

This was Tizya's second game playing on the team, which won its last contest 5-3, thanks in part to two goals that she netted.

Tizya, who played on the 2000 Arctic Winter Games female hockey squad, said she thought the Stealers played well on Wednesday.

"I thought it was a pretty tight game, but they have some faster skaters," she said.

"But I believe if we keep trying our hardest we will be able to start winning games and get back on track. Each game gets better as we go."