(SASKATOON, SK) The No. 3 seeded UNB REDS will face the No. 6 Toronto Varsity Blues on Friday in the opening game for both teams at the U SPORTS women’s hockey championship in Saskatoon.

The game will take place at 10:00pm Atlantic time.

“Talking from experience, playing against them last year, we have a lot of players who played against a very similar Toronto team,” said veteran REDS goaltender Kendra Woodland. “We're grateful to be able to take that experience in.”

The Varsity Blues earned a silver medal in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) final, falling to the Waterloo Warriors 2-1 in overtime.

The REDS have been in Saskatoon since late Monday, practicing in preparation for Friday’s quarter-final, which will be UNB’s first game since winning their third consecutive Atlantic University Sport Championship.

“We’re feeling pretty good,” said team captain Payton Hargreaves after a practice earlier this week. “We had a good skate this morning. All of our legs were going, and we had some good habits on the ice. We had really good energy, too. We've set our goal right from the beginning of the season: to win nationals. So, this first game is big, but I know we're all set to go.”

The REDS practiced Wednesday and Thursday too.

“After the conclusion of the AUS final, we looked at this as an opportunity to get a few ice times to build going into this tournament,” said REDS interim head coach Kyle MacDonald. “We had three back in Fredericton and started the journey here with another three.” 

“I would say our first practice here in Saskatoon was one of our best practices of the year,” he continued. “The players deserve a lot of credit for that. When you think of all the travel that went into getting here, to show up and be that sharp the past three days is very promising.”

This is the REDS' third consecutive appearance at the U SPORTS championship.

“I think we've just been focusing on the team and the comradery within the dressing room first,” said Woodland. “It comes from within the team, and that's been most important for us with our success so far.”

“We weren't focusing on the external factors, we were just focusing on what we can control and what each person in that dressing room can contribute to each game,” added Hargreaves.

The 2024 championship tournament opened Thursday and runs through Sunday at the University of Saskatchewan campus.

“The team is proud and excited to represent the AUS, but we’re not satisfied just yet,” said MacDonald.

The team has strived for a national championship win since the beginning of the season.

“I think the past two years, we've just been content with winning AUS,” said Hargreaves. “This year, there's a different vibe in the dressing room. We all know that we aren't just content with winning AUS; we want to make it all the way. So, yeah, there's a good vibe in the dressing room that just feels different than the past two years, and we're all excited about it.”

“Landing fourth and seventh [in previous U SPORTS championships] the last two years have definitely not been where we wanted to be, per se,” said Woodland. “But like I said before, we are taking those experiences and applying them to our goals now. We have higher expectations as a program and as a group, so we’re definitely really excited moving into this third nationals.”

The tournament will be broadcast live on CBC Sports’ digital platforms, and Sunday’s championship game will be aired on TVA Sports.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY: Madison Tucker/UNB Athletics