Road to the 2019 Esso Cup: Halifax Fire

The Halifax Fire is making its first appearance as a club at the Esso Cup in Sudbury, but some of the players are quite familiar with Canada’s National Female Midget Championship.

Nine members of the Fire played with the Metro Boston Pizza team that hosted the Esso Cup in Bridgewater, N.S., last year. This veteran experience, combined with the skills and enthusiasm of the younger players on this team, generated 22 wins in 24 games for the Fire in their debut season in the NSFMHL.

Strong goaltending, a daunting offence and a tight defence kept Halifax humming the entire season. Head coach Lou Lanceleve said his squad rounded into playoff form at the Tournoi de hockey féminin de Québec in early February, going a solid 3-1-2 against competition from Ontario and the host province.

Exposure to fierce out-of-province competition prepared the Fire for the highs and lows that come with the postseason. While the Fire easily outscored their semifinal opponent, the Cape Breton Panthers, 19-4 in a three-game sweep, they fell behind 2-0 to the Northern Selects in the best-of-three NSFMHL final. However, Halifax rallied with three straight wins to defeat the defending Nova Scotia and Atlantic Region champions.

Not one opponent at regionals could douse the Fire. Halifax won all five of its games, capped off with a 5-2 triumph over the Northern Lightning to book its spot at the Esso Cup.

Lanceleve has a clear idea of what his players need to do to achieve success in Sudbury.

“Success for us is respecting the opposition but not over-respecting them,” he says. “I find that a lot of times teams come from this region and pay too much attention to who they’re playing instead of playing their own game. To me, if you accept that someone is going to beat you, you give them that extra step. I’m not willing to do that.”

HOW THEY GOT TO SUDBURY

Nova Scotia Female Midget Hockey League
Semifinal: defeated Cape Breton Panthers 3-0 (7-1, 6-1, 6-2)
NSFMHL championship: defeated Northern Selects 3-2 (4-5, 1-2, 6-3, 3-2 SO, 2-0)

Atlantic Regional
Preliminary round: 4-0 – first place (defeated Western Wind 5-1, defeated Eastern Ice Breakers 8-1, defeated Fundy Nationals 9-1, defeated Northern Lightning 5-4 SO)
Championship game: defeated Northern Lightning 5-2

REGULAR SEASON

Record (W-OTW-OTL-L): 18-4-0-2 (2nd in NSFMHL)
Goals for: 135 (2nd in NSFMHL)
Goals against: 38 (1st in NSFMHL)
Longest winning streak: 9 (Dec. 15 -Feb. 17)
Top 3 scorers:
- Ellen Laurence – 46G 24 70P (1st in NSFMHL)
- Jillian Duggan – 23G 26A 49P (5th in NSFMHL)
- Hannah MacNeil – 14G 20A 34P (8th in NSFMHL)

PLAYOFFS

Record: 10-3
Goals for: 67
Goals against: 25
Top 3 scorers:
- Ellen Laurence – 12G 20A 32P
- Jillian Duggan – 13G 9A 22P
- Chloe Delano – 10G 8A 18P

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY

First appearance

PLAYERS TO WATCH

AMELIA AWAD
plays with intensity … big-game goaltender … solid technical ability … finds a way to make the save

MADISON GRAY
Swiss army knife … plays a strong 200-foot game … plays tough minutes … calm and patient on the PP

ELLEN LAURENCE
dynamic forward … gifted goal scorer … has a nose for the net … tenacious checker … plays with confidence