Lethbridge – The Pronghorns women's hockey team is back from a very successful road trip to Manitoba. They beat the Bisons 3-2 and 2-1, snagging 6 points from the two games.
 
This weekend, they will look to carry that momentum from Manitoba and play host to Canada West's top team, and #9 CIS ranked UBC Thunderbirds. The T-Birds also earned two wins on the road last weekend in Saskatchewan against the Huskies, winning by scores of 2-1 and 3-1.
 
The 'Horns come into the weekend sporting an 8-11-2-1 record. The T-Birds rock a solid 11-6-3-2 record.
 
The puck drops on the first game of the series on Friday at 7:00pm and then on Saturday at 1:00pm for the weekend closing contest. Both games can be viewed on www.canadawest.tv.
 
The T-Birds clearly seem to be the clear-cut favourite this weekend, based on how the standings sit. However, early in the season, the 'Horns were able to pick up two wins on the road when they took on the Thunderbirds in Vancouver. If they can get back to that early season form that saw them collect five wins before their first loss, this weekend will produce some exciting, close hockey games.
 
The 'Horns have the better power play, operating at a 15.7% efficiency rate, good for third in Canada West. UBC struggles with the extra man, only cashing in on 9.1% of their opportunities, last in Canada West. The tables turn when you look at the penalty kill.  Overall, UBC has the fourth ranked kill in Canada West, impressively nulling 88.9% of power play chances against them. They are even better at killing on the road, jumping to third in the division, and 91.3% efficiency. The 'Horns are two spots behind in sixth, killing off 83.9% of their penalties. At home, they are at the bottom of Canada West, dropping to only killing 76.7%.
 
Special teams are unlikely to have a large influence on the games, though, as the 'Horns and T-Birds are third and fourth least penalized teams in the division, respectively. The 'Horns spend 9.3 minutes in the box per game, and the T-Birds are virtually identical at 9.8 PIM/gm.
 
Logan Boyd of the T-Birds, a second-year forward, scored last weekend to bump her season total to 7g, 6a, for 13 points and a +10 rating. She has some grit to her game as well, mixing in 16 PIM. Rebecca Unrau leads UBC offensively, with 11g, 9a for 20 points and a +9 rating.
 
Jenae Culp, a fourth-year forward for the 'Horns had a great weekend against the Bisons, scoring two goals to get her season total to 5g, 1a and 6 points, with a -6 rating and 32 shots on goal. Lauren Fredrich leads the 'Horns, with 7g, 6a for 13 points and a -3 rating.
 
Next weekend, the 'Horns will play the Mount Royal Cougars in a home and home series. They will be on the road in Calgary on Friday, and return home to Nicholas Sheran Arena on Saturday. Both games go at 7:00pm and are available on canadawest.tv.
 
 
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