MU alum Agosta part of Canada’s 3-on-3 win

Kristian Biega, News editor

Mercyhurst women’s hockey alumna Meghan Agosta gave Lakers a reason to celebrate as part of Team Canada in the 2020 Elite Women’s 3-on-3 game that took place on Jan. 24.

Team Canada scored a 2-1 win over the USA as part of the NHL All-Star Skills Competition in St. Louis.

Being a part of NHL’s All-Star Skills Competition is no small feat, but is a testament to Agosta’s experience and skill. According to a press release by the NHL about the announcements of the US and Canadian rosters on Jan. 15, both combined rosters of nine skaters and one goaltender “have won a combined 39 Olympic and 108 World Championship medals.”

The roster for Team Canada consisted of Mélodie Daoust, Ann-Renée Desbiens, Renata Fast, Laura Fortino, Rebecca Johnston, Sarah Nurse, Marie-Philip Poulin, Natalie Spooner and Blayre Turnbull.

The long-standing rivalry between Canada and the US is always fierce, but that drive for victory was clearly evident in the 3-on-3 match.

Rebecca Johnston of Team Canada started the game strong by scoring only 54 seconds into the first period. Melodie Daoust followed with another score in the second period for a 2-0 lead. Team USA returned with a goal from Hilary Knight at 4 minutes, 24 seconds in the second period, but 15 saves from Canada’s goal-tender Ann-Renee Desbeins’ defense kept them ahead.

With a final save from Desbeins, Team Canada took home the win against Team USA. The 3-on-3 tournament was the third year that women participated in NHL’s All-Star Weekend.

According to an NHL press release on Jan. 25, women-only events, especially 3-on-3, were rare to see in years past. However, the 2020 teams “managed to showcase their speed and talent, their passing ability and shooting touch” during the game.

The game consisted of two 10-minute periods with a running clock and was aired nationally NBCSN in the United States and CBS, Sportsnet and TVAS for Canadian viewers.

During her impressive career at Mercyhurst, Agosta set many Mercyhurst and NCAA offensive records including being the leading scorer all-time in Division I women’s hockey history. While competing for the Lakers, Agosta was twice named a first-team All-American, was Player of the Year in College Hockey America four times, has earned three Olympic gold medals and one silver medal as a part of Team Canada. Agosta was inducted into the Mercyhurst Athletic Hall of Fame in 2018