T6 takes over first place, Whale and Whitecaps clinch playoff spots
The Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) playoff picture got a little more clearer following weekend action where the Toronto Six and Boston Pride secured top-two rankings, and both the Connecticut Whale and Minnesota Whitecaps clinched berths in the Isobel Cup semifinals. The Montreal Force, Metropolitan Riveters, and Buffalo Beauts also picked up wins to stay competitive down the final stretch.
Here’s a closer look at the results, top performers, and notable highlights:
FRIDAY FEBRUARY 24, 2023
Game 67
Boston Pride 2
Metropolitan Riveters 6
Box Score | Highlights
The Riveters earned their first win of the season over Boston led by four multi-point performers including Kelly Babstock with two goals and one assist and Madison Packer with a goal and an assist.
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2023
Game 68
Toronto Six 1
Minnesota Whitecaps 0
Box Score | Highlights
Elaine Chuli turned aside all 36 shots faced for her second shutout of the season and Tereza Vanišová scored the game’s only goal as Toronto handed Minnesota their second-straight 1-0 loss.
Game 69
Buffalo Beauts 3
Montreal Force 1
Box Score | Highlights
Mikyla Grant-Mentis scored two goals including a shorthanded breakaway and Samantha Ridgewell won her second-straight start for Buffalo in the Beauts’ third-straight road victory.
SUNDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2023
Game 70
Buffalo Beauts 2
Montreal Force 6
Box Score | Highlights
Montreal’s offense scored a season-high six goals in the final home game of their expansion season including two from both Jade Downie-Landry and Sarah Lefort.
Game 71
Toronto Six 7
Minnesota Whitecaps 1
Box Score | Highlights
T6 took over first place with a sweep of the Whitecaps in their final road game of the season led by a goal and two assists from Michela Cava, plus two goals from Shiann Darkangelo and Tereza Vanišová.
Game 72
Metropolitan Riveters 3
Connecticut Whale 6
Box Score | Highlights
Connecticut exploded for five goals in a third period span of 5:57 including a hat-trick from Justine Reyes and Taylor Girard’s second of the game to win their regular season home finale over the Riveters.
STANDINGS THROUGH 72
After 72 of the record 84-game regular season schedule complete, the top four teams have been solidified for the 2023 Isobel Cup Playoffs however final seeding is still to be confirmed over the remaining two weeks. The Toronto Six (16-4-2) are now in first place following their six-point weekend and have a total of 48 points with two games remaining. They have secured a top-two finish along with the Boston Pride (16-3-1) who have 46 points and four games still to play. The Connecticut Whale (10-8-2) caught the Minnesota Whitecaps (10-8-2) and now both have 32 points with four games remaining where placement between the third and fourth seed will be determined. The three non-playoff teams all gained three points this weekend to remain within five points of each other and can still toggle their positioning over remaining games. The Montreal Force (8-13-1) are in fifth place with 22 points and two games to play, followed by the Metropolitan Riveters (7-13-0) in sixth place with 19 points and four games outstanding, and the Buffalo Beauts (5-13-2) in seventh place with 17 points and four games to go.
RIVETERS WIN FINALE BUT PRIDE TAKE SERIES
Despite Friday’s loss, Boston collected their fourth season series win with a 3-1 head-to-head record over the Riveters in 2022-23 claiming nine of a possible 12 points. The Pride outscored their opponent 13-7 and held an overall shot advantage of 13, large in part to the 20-shot differential in their first meeting since the Riveters narrowly outshot them in each of their last three games. This year’s results improve Boston’s all-time record to 25-12 against their Founding Four rivals.
TORONTO SWEEPS SEASON SERIES IN MINNESOTA
If Toronto and Minnesota meet again this season it will be in the playoffs, and T6 will surely enter the matchup with confidence after winning all four of their games against the Whitecaps to secure 11 of a possible 12 points. The Whitecaps single point came in an overtime loss on opening day. Toronto outscored them 14-5 and outshot them in three of the four games amassing a plus-10 shots on goal differential. Since Minnesota won the very first meeting between the teams during the shortened 2021 campaign it has been all Toronto with nine-straight wins.
BUFFALO AND MONTREAL SPLIT SERIES
The first ever season series between Buffalo and Montreal is in the books and ends with both teams winning twice but the Beauts edging the Force 7-5 in points based on the shootout decision on opening night. Montreal outscored Buffalo 14-12 on the scoreboard, and outshot them in the last three games since the opener for a total differential of plus-22. This marks the second series split of the season for the Beauts after earning one with the Whitecaps last weekend. For the Force, it’s also the second split of their expansion season where they’ve been on the losing side of the points.
WHALE AND RIVETERS KEEP ALL-TIME RIVALRY CLOSE
The Whale’s win over the Riveters on Sunday earned them a 2-2 season series split but a 7-5 points advantage by virtue of their two regulation victories and single point in the Feb. 3 shootout decision. Connecticut outscored their opponent 15-10 and outshot them in all four games by a combined total of 37. The Founding Four teams have a history that dates back to the inaugural 2015-16 season with the Riveters holding an 18-17 head-to-head record. Three of the Whale’s four completed season series have been splits including two where they’ve emerged with a 7-5 lead in points. The Riveters also split their season series with Toronto but lost 7-5 in points.
FORCE AND WHALE WRAP UP AT HOME
Montreal’s historic first PHF season isn’t over yet, but their tour across the province of Quebec has come to an end with the weekend’s final home games of 2022-23. The Force finished with an overall home record of 4-8 winning single games in Montreal, Sept-Îles, Rivière-du-Loup, and Boisbriand while inspiring thousands of new fans. The Whale also wrapped up the home portion of their schedule which included 10 games at International Skating Centre of Connecticut where they played to a 6-4 record. They also won once at Milford Ice Arena and lost in Pittsburgh as the home team of the neutral site contest.
T6 AND RIVETERS PLAY FINAL ROAD GAMES
This weekend marked the final road games of the season for both T6 and the Riveters who will play their remaining games on home ice. T6 finished with a 9-3 road record overall and managed to win at least one game in every building around the league. The nine road victories are a new franchise record after playing to a 6-4 mark during the 2021-22 campaign. The Riveters finished 4-8 when playing on the road, producing single victories in Buffalo, Connecticut, Montreal, and Toronto. This marks a one-win improvement over last season’s 3-7 road record.
HIGHEST SCORING DAY IN PHF HISTORY
Count Sunday, Feb. 26, 2023 as the highest scoring day in PHF history where the six teams in action combined for 25 total goals. Contributing to the figure was Toronto’s fourth seven-goal game of the season, Montreal’s first six-goal game in franchise history, and Connecticut’s second-straight six goal output that featured the best third period performance in franchise history with five goals. Five goals in a single period is also the team’s best since Oct. 23, 2016. 24 goals was the league’s previous single day best, first recorded on Jan. 24, 2021 and then matched on Dec. 17, 2022.
FIRST CAREER HAT-TRICK FOR REYES
Connecticut’s Justine Reyes recorded her first career PHF hat-trick on Sunday becoming the eighth player in the league to score three or more in a single game this season. The newcomer’s trio was the fastest of the bunch scored over a third period span of 5:10 to boost her season goal total to eight. The 26-year-old from Chino Hills, CA has 15 points in 20 games and is the second member of the Whale to achieve the feat this season following top scorer Kennedy Marchment on Jan. 18.
TWO FIRST CAREER PHF GOALS
This weekend’s series in Boisbriand produced a pair of first career PHF goals on both sides of the ice. On Saturday it was Buffalo’s Kristina Schuler who buried a rebound at 10:08 of the first period which held as the game-winner in the 3-1 victory over Montreal. The goal was also the first PHF point for the Clarkson University graduate in her third game since signing with the Beauts at the deadline. Then on Sunday, Force forward Alyssa Holmes recorded her first PHF goal and point at 6:06 of the third period which counted as Montreal’s fifth goal in the 6-2 win over Buffalo. The product of the University of Vermont was playing in her 22nd game of the season.
PHF SCORING RACE
Boston’s Loren Gabel continues to lead the PHF in all three major offensive categories including points with 35, goals with 19, and assists with 16 across her 18 games this season. Connecticut’s Kennedy Marchment is second with 29 points in 20 games, followed by the Whale’s Taylor Girard with 25 points in 20 games tied with Toronto’s Brittany Howard who returned to action after missing four games to injury and has 25 points including 15 goals in 18 games. Pride captain Jillian Dempsey ranks fifth with 24 points in 20 games. On defense, Toronto’s Kati Tabin leads the way with 17 points in 22 games, followed by Minnesota’s Sidney Morin with 16 points in 20 games.
SCORING STREAKS
Connecticut’s Kennedy Marchment has now increased her league-leading point-streak to 14-straight games which is twice the length of top scorer Loren Gabel’s active streak of seven games for the Pride. Toronto captain Shiann Darkangelo has increased her streak to five games, followed by Montreal’s Jade Downie-Landry and Whale forward Caitrin Lonergan both at four games, and Connecticut’s Taylor Girard and Toronto’s Tereza Vanišová both at three games.
The PHF regular season continues next week with Minnesota at Boston, Montreal visits the Riveters, and Connecticut comes to Buffalo. All the action is available live on ESPN+ and TSN+ as well as both Force games in French on TVA Sports.
Cover photo by Kayla Franz
