Jason La Rose
The Moncton Rockets certainly look ready to welcome the nation’s best to Dieppe.
Earning the automatic berth as Esso Cup hosts wasn’t enough for the Rockets, who got in through the front door by winning their first Atlantic Region championship since 2015.
Moncton was the class of the Maritime Major Girls Hockey League (MMGHL), going 34-4-2 in the regular season thanks in large part to a league-best 175 goals.
The Rockets took command early, winning their first six games and 13 of their first 15, and finished strong with victories in eight of their last nine.
Their first-place finish earned them a bye into the New Brunswick playoff final where they made quick work of the Western Flames, outscoring the Flames 18-4 in a three-game sweep to secure their place at the Atlantics.
Moncton jumped out to a 3-0 start at the regional tournament in Charlottetown to book its place in the final, and got a pair of goals from Anabelle Daniel in a 3-2 win over the Northern Selects to end a decade-plus wait for an Atlantic championship.
It’s fitting that Daniel provided the offence in the team’s biggest game of the year; the 14-year-old Dieppe native—the Rockets’ youngest player—has been the catalyst all season, leading the MMGHL in scoring in the regular season (37-36—73 in 40 GP) and adding 18 points (10-8—18) in eight playoff games.
Moncton wasn’t bad at the other end of the ice, either; Morgan Redmond (1.57 and .918) and Claire Frenette (1.81 and .913) both posted sub-2.00 goals-against averages and save percentages north of 91%.
The Rockets will try and change history on home ice—since the Esso Cup began in 2009, a host team has never won Canada’s U18 Women’s National Club Championship, and only two (Red Deer in 2015 and Sudbury in 2019) have reached the gold medal game.
HOW THEY GOT TO DIEPPE
Maritime Major Girls Hockey League N.B. final: defeated Western Flames 3-0 (3-2, 6-1, 9-1)
Atlantic Regional Preliminary round: 2nd place – 3-1 (defeated Western Wolves 2-1, defeated Eastern Stars 4-1, defeated Eastern Ice Breakers 4-0, lost to Northern Selects 2-1) Final: defeated Northern Selects 3-2
REGULAR SEASON
Record (W-L-OTL): 34-4-2 (1st in MMGHL) Goals for: 175 (1st in MMGHL) Goals against: 69 (3rd in MMGHL) Longest winning streak: 10 (Nov. 22-Jan. 4) Top 3 scorers: - Anabelle Daniel (37G 36A 73P – 1st in MMGHL) - Audrey Poirier (15G 38A 53P – 4th in MMGHL) - Lauren Ward (21G 24A 45P – 11th in MMGHL)
PLAYOFFS
Record: 7-1 Goals for: 32 Goals against: 10 Top 3 scorers: - Anabelle Daniel (10G 8A 18P) - Thea MacFayden (6G 5A 11P) - Audrey Poirier (0G 10A 10P)
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
2010 – Moncton Rockets – 5th place | 1-4 | 13GF 17GA 2014 – Moncton Rockets – 6th place | 1-4 | 11GF 27GA 2015 – Moncton Rockets – 6th place | 0-5 | 5GF 30GA
UNIVERSITY COMMITMENTS
Audrey Poirier (Brown University)