PHF Roundup: Season Eight, Week Nine

Games of the Week

I really couldn't decide which of the two Metro-Buffalo games should be the game of the week, because both were thrilling in their own ways. Saturday's game saw the Beauts win for just the second time this season.

Buffalo Beauts 4, Metropolitan Riveters 1

Saturday's game was a sorely-needed win for the Beauts, who were running a franchise record 10-game losing skid. The Beauts looked the best they have all season, despite being outshot by a miserable 42-16 margin, and Lovisa Berndtsson recorded her first career PHF win with 41 saves.

It was also Pride Night, which included many Beauts players entering the rink in Pride-themed apparel, local community organizations tabling at the rink, and drag performer and mental health advocate Damsel 'n' Disdress presenting a ceremonial puck drop.

Metropolitan came out swinging and outshot the Beauts badly in the beginning of the game. An early power play, however, swung the momentum in Buffalo's favor. Just 12 seconds into the advantage, Whitney Dove opened the scoring with a quick shot from the point.

Even with the lead, Buffalo still seemed a bit lackadaisical. Their fourth shot of the game, a rip from Jess Healey at the point, found the back of the net, giving the Beauts two goals on just four shots in the first period. Healey's shot was a low one that appeared to have deflected off a Riveters player's glove, then took a small bounce and trickled in five-hole.

Minttu Tuominen, who has proven to be an offensive threat this season for the Riveters, put Metro on the board with under three minutes to play.

As the game went on, the Riveters continued to stifle any chances the Beauts had. They did well to get in the shooting lanes and block shots and passes. Nearing the midway point of the second period (and the game), the Beauts had just one shot on goal in the period.

They proved, however, that it's not necessarily about how many shots you take; it's about how many go in. Courtney Maud scored to the left of Eveliina Mäkinen for a shorthanded tally, making it a 3-1 game and giving Buffalo a little bit of cushion.

Maud came down the ice with Mikyla Grant-Mentis on a 2-on-1. Grant-Mentis made a pass to Maud through the Riveters defender; while she couldn't get the initial shot off, but followed through as Mäkinen went down and finished the play.

The Beauts would think they'd scored again later in the period, but it was ruled no goal after video review. There was no conclusive video evidence that the puck completely crossed the goal line, even with multiple camera angles available. A fast-moving third period followed, which closed with an empty-netter from Claudia Kepler to cap it.

Lovisa Berndtsson made 41 saves on 42 shots faced. Her counterpart, Eveliina Mäkinen, had 12 saves on 15 shots faced – a prime example of just how lopsided the game could've been based on the shot differential. Ten different Beauts players recorded a point.

Other Weekend Action

• The Beauts and Whale squared off in rare midweek PHF action, with two games that had been rescheduled due to a Western New York blizzard. Both games were in Connecticut, with Tuesday's at the Milford Ice Arena and Wednesday's at the International Skating Center of CT. Buffalo struggled, dropping a 3-0 decision Tuesday before falling 7-3 Wednesday. Head coach Rhea Coad was not behind the bench in the first game as she finished out her suspension. She was also absent Wednesday, having returned to Buffalo. Kennedy Marchment had four goals in the two games, including a hat trick Wednesday. Justine Reyes (2G, 2A) and Kateřina Mrázová (1G, 3A) also each had four points. Buffalo's Claudia Kepler had two goals.
• The Riveters rallied back on Sunday for a decisive 8-2 win over the Beauts. The game included the Riveters scoring five goals in just 5:50 in the third period. Kelly Babstock and Madison Packer each had three points (2G, 1A). Six other Metro players had two points each. Katie Burt had 18 saves.
• The Whale and Six split their weekend series in Toronto. Breanne Wilson-Bennett, Brittany Howard, and Tereza Vanišová each had two goals in Saturday's 7-4 win for the Six. Marchment had two goals in Sunday's 4-1 win for the Whale, while Abbie Ives stopped 31 of 32 shots. Both games featured even shot totals: 25-25 Saturday and 32-32 Sunday. Toronto is now just four points back of the top spot in the league.
• A four-goal game from Loren Gabel on Saturday powered the Pride to a decisive 5-0 win over the Force. Christina Putigna had the other Boston goal, while Élizabeth Giguère and Kali Flanagan each had three assists. Corinne Schroeder recorded an assist in her league-high sixth shutout. The Force rallied on Sunday for a 2-1 overtime win, thanks to a game-winning tally from Jade Downie-Landry. Taylor Baker had the other Montreal goal, while Gabel buried her fifth of the weekend.

League Standings

1. Boston (12-2-1), 34 points
2. Toronto (10-2-2), 30 points
3. Minnesota (8-4-2), 26 points
4. Connecticut (7-6-1), 22 points
5. Montreal (6-6-1), 16 points
6. Metropolitan (5-11-0), 14 points
7. Buffalo (2-10-2), 8 points

League Leaders

• Goals: Brittany Howard (15)
• Assists: Allie Munroe (12)
• Points: Loren Gabel (24)
• Shots: Loren Gabel (82)
• PIM: Olivia Zafuto (25)
• GAA: Corinne Schroeder (1.73)
• Save Percentage: Corinne Schroeder (.952)

Other News & Notes

• The PHF recently announced the extension of its partnership with Discover Financial Services through the end of the 2022-23 season. Discover is now the broadcasting presenting partner of all games on ESPN+ and has debuted a weekly player video series, starting with this feature on Kaleigh Fratkin:

Upcoming Games

• Friday, January 27: Montreal at Connecticut, 7:00 PM Eastern
• Sunday, January 29: All-Star Game, 7:00 PM Eastern at the Mattamy Athletic Centre in Toronto

All-Star Rosters

Team Canada

• Kelly Babstock
• Ann-Sophie Bettez
• Sarah Bujold
• Catherine Daoust
• Jade Downie-Landry
• Kaleigh Fratkin (captain)
• Loren Gabel
• Élizabeth Giguère
• Mikyla Grant-Mentis
• Brittany Howard
• Kennedy Marchment
• Kati Tabin
• Saroya Tinker
• Emma Woods
• Goaltender: Corinne Schroeder

Team USA

• Jonna Albers
• Sydney Brodt
• Shiann Darkangelo
• Jillian Dempsey
• Kali Flanagan
• Taylor Girard
• Dominique Kremer
• Patti Marshall
• Sidney Morin
• Madison Packer (captain)
• Amanda Pelkey
• Natalie Snodgrass
• Allie Thunstrom
• Olivia Zafuto
• Goaltender: Abbie Ives

Team World

• Taylor Baker
• Ebba Berglund
• Fanni Gasparics
• Anna Kilponen
• Denisa Křížová
• Dominika Lásková
• Leah Lum
• Antonia Matzka
• Kateřina Mrázová
• Emma Nuutinen
• Lenka Serdar
• Aneta Tejralová
• Minttu Tuominen
• Tereza Vanišová
• Goaltender: Eveliina Mäkinen

(Photo: Mike Hetzel/Buffalo Beauts)