Inferno take first game of weekend over Stars

Rebecca Johnston and Jessica Campbell scored twice and the Inferno overcame a late push by Montreal to take the first of three games this weekend over the Stars, 4-1.

The game began with a scoreless first period in which Calgary outshot Montreal by over a 2:1 margin (13-6), but Charline Labonte stopped them all. At one point, the Inferno thought they had broken through after a laser of a shot by rookie Jessica Wong beat Labonte up high, but the goal was waived after officials found the net had come off of its moorings.

Once the second period began, however, it didn't take long for Calgary to score in earnest; just 59 seconds in, a sharp wrister by Johnston gave the Inferno a 1-0 lead. Despite a flurry of great scoring chances and two power play opportunities for the Stars, Calgary doubled its lead on Campbell's first goal of the night late in the middle frame.

Emmanuelle Blais cut the lead in half in the third period, but that was all the Stars could muster offensively. Johnston and Campbell finished the night with a pair of empty net goals to make it 4-1. Rhianna Kurio and Brittany Esposito had two assists apiece.

Brian and Labonte each ended their night with 27 saves. Shots were 31-28 in favor of the Inferno. Calgary went 0-for-3 on the power play, while Montreal ended the night 0-for-4.

They do it all over again at 11 a.m. Mountain (1 p.m. Eastern) tomorrow, with the Stars hoping to make good on some of the chances they missed Saturday night.

• This game will be streamed live on cwhl.ca. Fans can buy a streaming package for $10 and receive up to two games a week for the rest of the season.
• Keep an eye on Caroline Ouellette, who had a couple of quality chances against Brian tonight but couldn't quite solve her. Also keep an eye on Kim Deschenes, who missed high or wide on a couple of chances but was playing well from what I caught via Twitter.
• For Calgary, Wong did have the disallowed goal and does not have one yet in the CWHL (despite 10 assists), so expect her to want to make good.
• Campbell is on a three-game scoring streak and hasn't scored fewer than two goals in each of those games. She scored five goals last weekend against Toronto, including a hat trick Jan. 18.
• Brian has gotten the bulk of the starts this season, but depending on how things go Sunday, I'd like to see Camille Trautman get some time in net to end the trip. The rookie goalie has a .927 save percentage and 1.76 GAA in four games played this year.