UPDATE: UPEI women's hockey team taking win streak into playoffs

HALIFAX, N.S. – The UPEI Panthers are hot going into the Atlantic University Sport women’s hockey playoff.

The Panthers defeated the Dalhousie Tigers 5-2 Saturday in the final contest of the regular season. UPEI has won three straight games.

“It’s gives us some momentum and, I think, a little bit of confidence,” head coach Bruce Donaldson said Sunday.

The sixth-seeded Panthers (7-10-7) will play the third-place St. Thomas Tommies (12-8-4) in the opening round.

Game 1 of the best-of three series is Tuesday at 7 p.m. in Fredericton, N.B., with Game 2 going Friday at 7:30 p.m. at MacLauchlan Arena B. The men’s hockey Panthers will play Game 2 of their series with the Saint Mary’s Huskies on Friday at 7 p.m. on ice A at The Mac.

“We just figured it might be a nice ambiance,” Donaldson said, “come in and cheer both programs on.”

Game 3, if necessary, would be Sunday. Time to be determined.

The Panthers are 1-2-1 against the Tommies this season, but the last game was a 2-1 shootout victory for UPEI on Feb. 2.

“We know we can compete against them, but we really need to do the little things well,” Donaldson said. “That last game was a really good confidence booster for the girls.”

The Tommies did defeat the Panthers 6-0 on Oct. 29 and won their last game of the regular season 3-1 Saturday against Mount Allison when St. Thomas scored three times on the power play.

“We need to pay real good attention to that,” Donaldson said. “They showed us if you stay in the penalty box, they’re going to kill you.”

Veteran Megan Sullivan will get the start in the Panthers crease.

On Saturday, Jenna Pellerin scored twice, once shorthanded and the other on the power play, to pace the Panthers. Jessie Brown, Leah Byrne on the power play and Rachel Colle also scored.

Maria Clinton and Ashtyn Bartlett each had two assists while singles went to Lindsay Johnston, Emma Martin, Byrne and Colle.

Lisa MacLean and Taylor Carr-Babineau staked the host Tigers to a 2-0 lead 4:08 into the second period, but Brown and Pellerin scored to tie the game 2-2 heading to the third period.

Sullivan made 23 saves for the win while Jessica Severeyns stopped 35 shots in the loss.

UPEI was 2-for-5 on the power play and killed all four of the Tigers attempts.