Women’s Hockey (0-0 RSEQ Playoffs)

Vs McGill (0-0 RSEQ Playoffs) on Wednesday, February 22, 7:00 p.m. at the uOttawa Minto Sports Complex

@ McGill on Friday, February 24, 7:00 p.m.

With the regular season now behind them, the uOttawa Women’s hockey team will put their skills to the test against the RSEQ regular season champion McGill Martlets. The series will begin on uOttawa ice on Wednesday before taking the short bus ride to McGill for game two on Friday evening.

With 17 rookies in their line up for the 2011-2012 campaign, the Gee-Gees turned out an up and down regular season that saw them finish fourth in the five team RSEQ division. However, their strong play through January allowed them to clinch that fourth and final playoff spot.

The Martlets dominated the regular season series between the two, winning all five games in decisive fashion. The Gee-Gees were shutout on three occasions, and were outscored 24-2 in total. The Martlets are also entering the post season sporting the country’s best power play percentage, goals against average and save percentage during the regular season.

McGill also boasted the most goals scored in the RSEQ with 96 during the regular season. However, with the regular season behind them and a playoff spot in possession, the Garnet and Grey are out to prove that the post season is a brand new start that could see anything happen.

“Defensive zone coverage is going to be one of the most important aspects,” said Gee-Gees head coach Yanick Evola. “Being able to play the body and not chase the puck in 1-on-1 and 2-on-1 situations is important because McGill is very skilled, so we are going to need to be playing smart hockey.”

The importance of a sound defensive game cannot go understated in the first round for the Gee-Gees who are going up against the top five regular season scoring leaders in Melodie Daoust, Ann-Sophie Bettez, Katia Clement-Heydra, Leslie Oles, and Cathy Chartrand of McGill.

“You can’t just play the puck against them because they have some sweet hands,” said Evola. “They are really smart and really fast, so that aspect of our game will be very important and we have to make sure we are ready for it.”