At the conclusion of the 2021-22 regular season, the Bisons hockey team finished in fourth with a record of 11-7-2-0 and 26 points, two points back of the UBC Thunderbirds and Alberta Pandas who were tied for second, with 28 points. Unfortunately, it was a quick appearance for the Bisons in the Canada West playoffs, losing two straight games in the best-of-three semifinal series to the fifth-seed Saskatchewan Huskies. It's an experience that head coach Jon Rempel hopes his team learned from.

"You want your team to compete and get better every year. I think we are doing that. We saw progress in this group last season that led me to believe that we skipped ahead a few steps in terms of the growth of this still very young group we have. I like our progression and the direction we are headed as a program," Rempel said. 

"It was a good learning lesson for the players that were here last year when we got bounced from the playoffs. They will have learned about what it takes to compete in Canada West, how to win playoff games, playoff series and how get themselves in a position where they are mentally and emotionally strong enough as well as being prepared physically. The players are motivated from the unpleasant feeling of being bounced in your own barn." 

This year, Manitoba welcomes back all three of the team's top scorers from last season, and 25 players overall. Halle Edwards – a physical presence on both ends of the rink – led the team with a total of 18 points, while the quick and intelligent duo of St. Mary's Academy graduates Sarah Dennehy and Kate Gregoire added 13 and 12 points, respectively. On the ice, Bisons fans can expect to see a team that Rempel describes as "assertive, purposeful and aggressive."

However, heading into the new campaign the Bisons will not be without a notable loss to their leadership group and their blue line. 

New leadership group
Captain Lauren Warkentin concluded her five-year of Canada West eligibility last season. Throughout her storied five-year Bisons career that includes 116 total games, the blue-liner earned a reputation as one of the toughest players, regardless of position, to line up against. 

The former All-Rookie complemented a playoff-seasoned Bisons roster in 2017-18 with her strong skating abilities and well-rounded play, making her a key contributor as the Herd completed a memorable campaign with the program's first national championship that season.

"She felt a tremendous amount of responsibility and pressure on herself, which you often see for a player in a leadership role," commented Rempel. "You always knew what you were going to get when it came to her compete level and that rubbed off on the group in terms of showing up to the rink everyday ready to compete and give your best effort."

With the loss of Warkentin, Rempel will look to a new leadership group comprised of Dennehy, Sam Sichkaruk, Katie Chatyrbok, Chloe Snaith, Kylie Lesuk, Jena Barscello and Camryn Gillis this season. 

"Trust and accountability are traits that every team needs to learn. We have spent more time in the past few years ensuring that the culture is what it needs to be and how that will allow us to be successful in a lot of different areas. This group overall is taking some strides forward this year and are invested in creating a healthy culture. It has been great to see." 

Because of a roster that's still somewhat young, only three players were added this offseason in impact recruitsDana Goertzen, Norah Collins and Louise Fergusson. 
"All three of these players are strong physically and they have a high compete level. The group of them like to attack downhill and provide us with a 'shoot-first' mentality which is part of the reason we recruited them to our program. All were leaders on the teams they came from and provide traits to the team that will only help us down the road." 

The Bisons women's hockey team will begin their Canada West campaign on the road in Vancouver this weekend with a pair of games against the defending conference champions, the UBC Thunderbirds. This comes after a busy pre-season that saw them travel all throughout Europe, while also taking on Saskatchewan, Minnesota State, Minnesota and St. Thomas. 

"We have tested ourselves in the preseason much more than we have in the past which was important for this group. As a team, you have to put yourself in positions were you are uncomfortable so that you're learning how to defend and how to play against teams that can move the puck efficiently. The biggest thing I can highlight is I feel we have the ability to recognize what we do well right now, what we don't do well and what we need to work on as we move through certain blocks of the season."