Les Canadiennes start, finish strong in 5-4 OT win vs. Markham

It wasn’t always easy, but Les Canadiennes ended up with the two points in a 5-4 overtime win against the Markham Thunder at the Complexe Bell in Brossard. All four games between these two teams have gone into extra time this season, even though this one didn’t always look like it would.

Kayla Tutino scored the OT winner 2:24 into the extra frame when she put a perfect shot off the post and in behind Erica Howe with Karell Emard providing the screen. It was Montreal’s fifth straight win.

Montreal came out strong, opening up a 3-0 lead in the first half of the game.

Emard opened the scoring for Les Canadiennes, tipping in a Cassandra Poudrier point shot on the power play

“Cass saw me and we practiced that play and she said if I can see you I’m going to try it so all I really did is put my stick out and it went in and I don’t really know where it went after that,” Emard said.

Only 29 seconds later Ann-Sophie Bettez sprung Emard and Marion Allemoz on a two-on-one. Emard fed Allemoz who beat Howe five-hole to give Montreal a 2-0 lead.

Bettez and Emard would combine again at 6:50 of the second period. Erin Ambrose, playing her first game with Les Canadiennes after being acquired on Wednesday, sprung Bettez who ran a give-and-go with Emard. Bettez had the easy tap-in at the side of the net.

But Markham would fight back.

Jamie Lee Rattray, who would be named the game’s first star, proved why she is one of the best players in the world. Rattray would end the game with two goals and two assists and she got her two goals in a 1:33 span late in the second period.

Her first goal was a give-and-go with Laura McIntosh to cut the deficit to 3-1. Just over a minute later, Markham went to the power play and it was McIntosh who found Rattray on the back door to make it 3-2 before the end of 40 minutes.

Then just 3:20 into the third period, Rattray would find Kristen Richards to tie the game up at 3-3.

“I don’t think anything changed,” said Emard, who also ended the game with four points. “We got into cruise control mode instead of trying to pass people on the highway. We came out really strong and we wanted to establish who we were and I think we got really comfortable.”

To their credit, Montreal would fight back. On a 5-on-3 power play midway through the third period, a bouncing puck would find Cathy Chartrand who fired home her fourth goal of the season to give Montreal another lead, this time at 4-3.

But Richards would tie the game again on another beautiful feed from Rattray with just 1:46 remaining setting the stage for overtime.

Montreal would end the third period and start overtime on the power play when Richards was called for delay of game. Richards covered the puck for a whistle just outside of the crease in order to create a face-off but Markham was able to kill it off.

Erica Howe was brilliant for the Thunder, making 44 saves as Les Canadiennes outshot Markham 49-25. Emerance Maschmeyer got the start for Montreal.

The two teams face-off again at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday at the Michel Normandin Arena at the Claude Robillard Sports Complex.

Notes

• Montreal, who was already missing Kim Deschênes after she got hurt last weekend against Toronto, lost Jordanna Peroff in the first period. She collided with Jessica Hartwick at the defensive blue line and couldn't put weight on her right leg as she left the ice. She went right to the room. Tracy-Ann Lavigne took over for Peroff on the line with Allemoz and Emmanuelle Blais.
• Ambrose, who was playing her first game with Montreal had two assists. Nachi Fujimoto was the player Ambrose replaced in the lineup.