WHITE EDGES WHITE FOR INTRASQUAD SPLIT AT FALL FESTIVAL

JASON LA ROSE

CALGARY, Alta. – Mélodie Daoust (Valleyfield, Que./Montreal, CWHL) tipped in the game-winner on a late power play, giving White a 3-2 win over Red in the camp finale Sunday morning at Canada’s National Women’s Team Fall Festival.

The victory earned White a split of the two intrasquad games; Red scored a 4-2 win on Friday night.

With overtime less than four minutes away, Daoust parked herself in the slot and got her stick on an Erin Ambrose (Keswick, Ont./Toronto, CWHL) point shot, beating Red goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer (Bruderheim, Alta./Calgary, CWHL) through the five-hole.

Jillian Saulnier (Halifax, N.S./Calgary, CWHL) and Tara Watchorn (Newcastle, Ont./Boston, CWHL) had the other goals for White, while Jamie Lee Rattray (Kanata, Ont./Brampton, CWHL) added two assists.

Jennifer Wakefield (Pickering, Ont./Linköping HC, SWE) scored both goals for Red, which lost for the first time at camp after earning three wins in as many days.

White carried the play in a scoreless first period, outshooting Red 11-5, but Maschmeyer and White counterpart Geneviève Lacasse (Kingston, Ont./Calgary, CWHL) were up to the task.

Wakefield needed just 39 seconds of the second period to open the scoring, taking a feed from Marie-Philip Poulin (Beauceville, Que./Montreal, CWHL) and beating Lacasse in from close.

But Saulnier ripped a shot over the shoulder of Maschmeyer to tie the game at 4:35, and Watchorn got her shot through the Red netminder on the power play just 1:42 after that to put White ahead 2-1.

Wakefield struck again just past the five-minute mark of the third period, cruising through the slot and redirecting a feed from Poulin past Lacasse to bring Red even before the Daoust winner.

The combination of Wakefield and Poulin was deadly for Red throughout camp; the two combined for 14 points in four games, with Wakefield finishing her Fall Festival with back-to-back-to-back two-goal performances.

With camp done, players will return to their club teams for the 2016-17 season, and will continue to be evaluated in advance of the 2016 4 Nations Cup, which is scheduled for Nov. 2-6 in Finland.