Saskatoon Stars come up short in Esso Cup final

The Saskatoon Stars will not be bringing the Esso Cup home to Saskatchewan this year.

The Stars lost in the final of Canada’s U18 AAA girls national championship 7-3 on Saturday night to the Edmonton Junior Oilers in Lloydminster, Sask.

Read more:

• Saskatoon Stars advance to Esso Cup final with 3-2 win over North York
• Lloydminster rallies from 3-0 deficit to defeat Saskatoon Stars 4-3 at Esso Cup
• Saskatoon Stars lose 4-3 after a shootout to Jr. Oilers at Esso Cup

The Junior Oilers got things going early and never looked back as Paige Smith, Evie Hanson and Keira Grant all scored goals within the first 13 minutes of the game to give it a massive 3-0 lead early in the game.

Trailing 3-0 with the first intermission nearing, Halle Duchene scored with 4:07 remaining in the first period to cut the Junior Oilers lead to 3-1.

When the second period started, the Stars built off the late momentum it carried into the first intermission. Ayla Anderson scored early to make it 3-2 and bring the Stars within striking distance.

Unfortunately for the Stars, the Junior Oilers offensive firepower was just too much for it to overcome.

Ciara Lang, Candence Richards, Daniella Martorana and Madison Stark all scored in the second period to extend the Junior Oilers lead to 7-2 and chase the Stars all-star goaltender Tarynn Sutter, replacing her with Taya Christie.

Although the game was out of reach on paper, the Stars didn’t go away quietly.

Avery Barry scored for the Stars 5:14 into the frame to lessen the lead to 7-3, but that is as close as the girls from Saskatoon would get.

The Junior Oilers victory capped off an impressive tournament for the team from Edmonton.

The Junior Oilers ran the table and went undefeated at the Esso Cup, winning all seven games they played in Lloydminster.

For the Stars, its tournament saw them finish with a 3-0-2-2 record in their seven games played over the last week.

This years Esso Cup was the first time the Stars had attended the tournament since 2019 and it was also the first time they had played in the final since 2018.

In the 2018 edition of the tournament, the Stars lost to another team from Edmonton, the St. Albert Slash.

The run to the final for the Stars caps off an otherwise impressive season for the team.

The Stars won the Saskatchewan provincial championship and had to come from behind and defeat the Eastman Selects out of Winnipeg in a best-of-three championship series.

Next year’s Esso Cup tournament will be played in New Brunswick.