Jamie Lee Rattray, the leading scorer for the Clarkson University Women's Hockey team, will miss the Golden Knights games at Northeastern and Boston College this week as she represents her country in international play. Rattray will be participating with Canada’s U-22 National Team at the 2012 Meco Cup in Fussen, Germany on January 3-8, 2012.
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BLOG POSTINGS
Game 4 vs. Sweden - Jan 7th
"Today was a big game day against sweden, we knew it was going to be our toughest test yet. Generally the Swedes are fast and very skilled, and they didn't disappoint. Today it we did a pre-game skate because our game was a little later than the previous games. Pre game skate was the same as the morning against Germany, focused on puck movement and getting our feet moving. The energy was great and you could definitely tell it was game day. The start of the game was a little shaky for us but as soon as everyone got a shift under there belt it was canadian hockey from there, we played our game of hard work and getting the puck to the net, we definitely dominated most of the game. After the Swedes put in the first goal Davis came back with an amazing individual effort to tie it up. Going into the third tied 1-1 we knew it was important to get a good start for the third, after a couple near goals including a chance right off the centre draw the Swedes went back up after a lucky bounce off of our d's stick. Right after the Swedes went up we got right back to business and with 4 minutes left in the third we tied it back up from a point shot by melissa Channel, tallying her first international goal. Unfortunately we were called on an interference penalty a couple minutes before going into OT so then it carried over into OT. First shift unfortunately we caught a bad break and the Swedes scored off of a redirect. Its not over until its over now, under this round robin format anything can happen so we still have to have a good effort against the Fins, and then watch the scores. "
Jan 6th
"Game number three of the tourney and we were feeling pretty fresh after our day off yesterday, it was normal game day routine, off to the rink for our beach run and it was time for round 2 of the handball showdown. Same teams of course taking on each other for the championship. This time around the intensity was that much higher and the stakes were raised. Again the game went into OT and team black came out with the victory! This time we were awarded the cowbell trophy so we were officially crowned the champs. Our opponent tonight was the Swiss, and we knew we were in for a tough game, especially scoring goals as they have one of the best goalies in the NCAA. We got off to a quick start though with two quick rebound goals. Then continued our offense as we potted another 4 throughout the 2nd period, we needed to continue focusing on the little things that would make us successful like keeping our feet moving and creating space for ourselves in the o-zone. Overall it was another solid win that will contribute to our overall goal, but there also many things that we can take out of this game and work on. Tomorrow Sweden.
Jan 5th
"Today was our day off in between games at the Meco Cup, it was well deserved as we have been going hard for the past couple of days. It was a morning of rest, as we had 3 hours right after breakfast to either head off with family or on our own in the town of Fussen. Unfortunately my parents did not make the trip so it was a good time to hang out with some of my teammates. We decided to stay in the hotel and rest, the weather was also not the greatest outside so we did not want to make the long treck downtown. After a relaxing morning we had a quick lunch and team meeting then it was off to our team activity. Our team activity was a trip to the original disney castle here in Fussen, the castle of King Ludwig. It was an amazing experience to walk through this castle that had been built in the early 1860's. Many of the rooms consisted of uniquely painted walls and ceilings that the King had requested himself. After dying mysteriously during the castles construction King Ludwig's 6 million dollar castle was never finished, only the first and third floors were constructed. After our visit up to King Ludwig's castle we ran into a violent snow storm on the way down, the good news was that the we all made it down, although covered head to toe in snow, safely. We were then treated to an amazing dinner in Fussen that consisted of beef, potatoes and veggies a true kings meal. It was all topped off with apple crumble with ice cream and real whipped cream. Overall I can say it was a successful day off! we are back to it tomorrow with switzerland waiting to take us on. "
Game 2 vs. Russia - Jan 4th
"Its game day again here in Fussen, today we are up against the Russians. Game day started like the last, with a good breakfast and then off to the rink to get loose for the game. Except today it was a dryland session as oppose to an on ice session. Sometimes these dryland sessions are also called "beach runs" on game days, our beach runs are ran by our strength coach Adam Douglas. Generally beach runs consist of a good dynamic warm-up and torso work and usually end with a fun game, todays was no different. Todays dryland ended with a fun game of handball with a little twist, in this game of handball you were able to bring multiple teammates into the game. For example you could make a pass to one of your teammates on the side and they would have to make another pass back into the game to become an available player. It was colours against black, I was lucky enough to be on the black team that came out with the victory in sudden death overtime, it was the stanley cup of handball, it was the most intense game of handball I have been apart of, you would of thought we were competing for medals. It was back to the hotel for a quick snack, then some rest time before our game at 4PM local time. We knew what we were in for today's game, we knew that the russians were going to be physical and rough with us, and that's exactly how the game turned out. After a 5 goal first period it was a rough and chippy game, we were forced to keep our heads up. We continued to stick to our game plan of shooting and keeping it simple off of the rush, which had been successful for us in the 1st period. After the first period the goal scoring went down but not for a lack of effort as we had continuous pressure in the russian end. Overall a solid second win for us, and we will continue to get better as the tourney goes on."
January 3, 2012
"Finally it's the opening day for the Meco Cup here in Germany, excited to get the tourney started and see what our team can do against all of our opponents. Our first game is against the tournament host, which is always a fun and exciting game to play in because generally the crowd is loud and dynamic and it's always exciting when you beat the host nation. Game day started the same as any other game day, with a pre game skate. Pre game skate was held at the local rink here in Fussen on the Halle rink of Arena Fussen. Today's skate was a quick 30 minute skate, filled with intensity and puck movement to get the hands and feet going for the game tonight. You could tell we were ready to get the tourney underway. Later that afternoon around 4 local time it was time to board the bus and head to a nearby town called Sonthofen (which was about 45 minutes outside of Fussen) to play our first game. The game was held in a different community to try and spread the women's game. Got off to a pretty good start in the game, I was playing on a line with Jill Saulnier and Mallory Delluce, the same lines we had played with against Team Slovakia, was excited because we have been playing really well together. The first goal we saw was a great slapshot from Saulnier from the high slot, was a beauty. From here things started to come together; we stuck to our game plan and moved the puck quickly to attack the Germans. The second goal was scored off a penalty shot by Chelsea Karpenko in the second period after being tripped up on a breakaway. She made a great move to go five hole to the German goalie. The other goals were also beauties as Menard finished off a one timer in the slot and Nicole Kosta buried her own rebound late in the third to make it a 4-1 game. Overall, it was a great first game for us as we got our first win under our belts, couple minor things to tweek before we see the Russians next. We just need to keep shooting and the offense is going to keep coming. This was an amazing experience as the rink and the town are very unique, unique many ways..... like try using a bench that only has one door...right in the middle of the bench. Even with the single door still was able to manage as the forwards and the d both had to jump and our door opener had to be alert as the d and forwards were both coming her way. Overall after a cold 3 periods....the town of Sonthofen was a success as 2300 fans showed up for the game and we came out with the win."
