Plourde's late goal lifts Aigles Bleues over Panthers in 4-3 heartbreaker

By Thomas Becker

The UPEI Panthers' home opener ended in heartbreak Friday night, as a late third-period goal from Erica Plourde lifted the Université de Moncton Aigles Bleues to a dramatic 4-3 victory.

The goal came at the 18:20 mark when Plourde took advantage of a puck battle in the corner that ricocheted off the boards, putting her in a one-on-one situation against Panthers goalie Sarah Forsythe. Plourde capitalized on the opportunity to give Moncton (2-1) the lead and secure the win.

The game was filled with action right from the start. Seven minutes into the opening period, Moncton struck first. Off a faceoff in their own zone, Elizabeth Galipeau battled for control of the puck through the neutral zone and fed a backhand pass to Elodie St-Jacques, who unleashed a wrist shot that sailed past Forsythe, putting the Aigles Bleues ahead 1-0. 

Not long after, Plourde initiated another offensive surge, firing a pass to Valerie Hache, who skated in alone and tucked a backhand past Forsythe, extending the lead to 2-0 at the 8:31 mark.

However, the Panthers (1-1-1) responded in a big way after head coach Sean Fisher called a timely timeout to refocus his squad. They answered back at 9:56 when Kaiya Maracle's relentless forecheck forced a turnover, allowing her to snap a wrist shot from the right circle that sailed past Moncton goaltender Annick Boudreau, cutting the deficit to 2-1.

UPEI then evened the score at 16:03 when McKinley Nelson set up Ashley McCutcheon with a pass from the bottom of the right circle, which McCutcheon tipped into the net. Just two minutes later, the Panthers pulled ahead when Brooke Henderson maneuvered past a defender and set up Hayden Lilly for a redirect that beat Boudreau to make it 3-2.

But Moncton would have the last word in the first period. With just 41 seconds left, Laura Tremblay received a pass from Lianne Desforges in the slot and fired it top shelf, tying the game at 3-3 heading into the first intermission.

The second period saw both teams tighten up defensively, with neither side able to break the deadlock. The third period also featured strong defensive efforts from both teams until Plourde's late-game heroics sealed the win for Moncton.

Boudreau secured the win with a solid 22-save performance, while Forsythe stood tall for the Panthers, making 24 stops in the loss.

The Panthers will be back in action Saturday night as they travel to Fredericton to face the UNB Reds at 7 p.m. Moncton will return home to host the St. Thomas Tommies.

Photo Credit: Janessa Vanden Broek