2018 Esso Cup

WHALEY SCORES TWICE, CANADETTES PULL AWAY FROM PIONNIÈRES

JASON LA ROSE

BRIDGEWATER, N.S. – Paige Whaley led a balanced offence with two goals and an assist, and the Brampton Canadettes scored five goals in the final 22 minutes to secure an 8-2 win over the Pionnières de Lanaudière on Wednesday afternoon at the 2018 Esso Cup.

The Pionnières pulled to within a goal when Maya Labad blasted home a power-play goal at 15:48 of the second period, but Brampton added two goals before the end of the middle frame, and three more in the third.

In all, 12 different Canadettes recorded at least a point. Gracey Gee also scored a pair of goals, Taylor Larsen added a goal and an assist, and Emma Potter chipped in with four helpers.

Brampton started fast, opening the scoring less than a minute in; Whaley parked herself at the side of the Lanaudière net and redirected a shot from Tamara Giaquinto past goaltender Leila Lotke for an early lead.

Gee made it 2-0 in the final minute of the first period, shovelling in a loose puck in front.

She added her second goal just shy of the five-minute mark of the second, outracing the Pionnières to a shorthanded dump-in and beating Lotke to the blocker side. That was all for the Lanaudière goaltender, who was replaced by Sarah Vanier.

The Quebec champions got on the board two minutes after the goaltending change when Mégane Larrivée got a point shot past Brampton goaltender Hannah Szczepanowski, and the goal from Labad made it 3-2.

But Brooke Greenwood redirected a slap pass from Giaquinto past Vanier at 18:54, and Larsen buried a rebound on the doorstep with 27 seconds left in the middle frame, sending the Canadettes to the dressing room up 5-2.

The Pionnières outshot Brampton 12-11 in the third period, but it was all Canadettes on the scoreboard.

Whaley got her second at 6:03, converting a rebound, Erin Gibbons finished a centering feed from Makayla Le at 11:31, and Brooke Carriere snapped in a power-play goal from the slot at 13:32 to cap the scoring.

The win means the Brampton will head into the final day of preliminary-round play in third place with seven points (1-2-0-1 record).

It closes the round robin against the St. Albert Slash on Thursday afternoon (12 p.m. AT), while the Pionnières will take on host Metro Boston Pizza in its prelim finale (7 p.m. AT).