MONTREAL – Jade Downie-Landry scored one goal and added a pair of assists as the McGill University women's hockey team opened their 2019-20 preseason in convincing fashion with 4-1 victory over the Moncton Aigles Bleues in a Friday matinee at McConnell Arena.
 
With the win, the McGillians improved their lifetime undefeated record against Moncton to 8-0-0, having outscored their opponents 45-5 since they first met in 2007.

Four different goal scorers found the back of the net for McGill, which had a lopsided 33-12 edge in shots, including a 12-4 margin in the final stanza.

"Our first period was okay but we were more organized in the second period," said Martlets head coach Peter Smith, who begins his 20th season behind the bench. "Our fitness level is good and that came to the forefront in the third period."

Downie-Landry, a psychology senior from St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Que., paced the Martlets with one goal and a pair of assists. The 5-foot-9 centre set up sniper Lea Dumais for a second period winning goal to put McGill ahead 2-1 at 14:59 before scoring an insurance marker to make it 3-1 at 4:03 of the third. She added another helper on Marika Labrecque's power-play goal to close out the scoring at 10:45 of the final period.

Kellyanne Lecours had opened the scoring when she beat Moncton goaltender Audrey Berthiaume at 5:30 of the first period. But the visitors knotted the score at 1-1 just 36 seconds later when Janie Poitras tallied.

Dumais, Labrecque and Anna MacCara, a freshman from Yellowknife, N.W.T., each registered two points for the host team.
 
The Martlets went 1-for-1 on the power-play and staved off both shorthanded situations.

McGill goaltender Andrea Lacroix Le Gall, a freshman from St. Isidore, Que., native made 11 saves on 12 shots, to earn her first career victory at the university level.

Audrey Berthiaume took the loss for Moncton, conceding four goals on 33 shots.
 
Moncton will face the Guelph Gryphons on Saturday, Sept. 14, at 3 p.m.

The Martlets will be back on the ice in less than 48 hours as they prepare to host the Gryphons Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. at McConnell Arena.

MARTLET MURMURS: The Martlets new leadership group is guided by team captain Emilia Cotter, a fifth-year rearguard from Toronto. She will be aided by three alternate captains, including a pair of fifth-year centres -- Shana Walker of North York, Ont., and Nicole Howlett of Tsawwassen, B.C., -- along with senior Jade Downie-Landry.

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