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“I think we have put too much emphasis on some kind of rivalry with Montreal,” said Pacina, who will turn his attentions to getting his team ready to play the Vanke Rays (10-3-1), one of two new CWHL teams this season from China. “They’re really, really tough. Just like Montreal, they have five or six really good players. We want to play the best teams constantly. We love that.”

The Inferno will host the Rays at WinSport Arena on Saturday, Jan. 20 (6:30 p.m., WinSport Arena) before the same two teams meet for a rematch the next day (12:30 p.m., Joan Snyder Arena).

“It doesn’t necessarily matter who the other team is — we just need to keep sticking to our systems and our philosophies,” said Esposito of what she and her teammates need to do to return to their winning ways.

KEEP THE BEAT

More than $3,000 was raised during Saturday’s ‘Keep the Beat’ game in support of the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

Pierri was instrumental in organizing the fundraiser to bring awareness to the importance of maintaining a healthy heart.

“It’s always a little bit emotional,” said Pierri of the event that has raised more than $16,000 over four years. “I was more happy and proud than anything.”

Six months before moving to Calgary from Montclair, N.J., to play for the Inferno in the fall of 2013, Pierri’s father, Al, died of a heart attack at the age of 57.

“A few years before that I lost my cousin,” said Pierri, recalling that Tori Rubino was just 22 when she passed away in her sleep from a heart condition. “It seems like right after that we lost my dad. He was playing hockey and had a heart attack on the ice.”

The annual ‘Keep the Beat’ game has helped Pierri remember her dad and cousin while also getting the message out about recognizing the signs of a potential heart condition.

“It’s really important to me,” Pierri said. “It’s just a way to honour them and keep them here with me.”