Boston, Toronto, Minnesota each sweep weekend series
The Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) regular season schedule is now two thirds complete following one of the busiest weekends of 2022-23 that featured all seven teams in action over seven games. The league’s top three teams all won both of their games including the Boston Pride against the Metropolitan Riveters and Connecticut Whale, the Toronto Six over the Buffalo Beauts, and the Minnesota Whitecaps against the Montreal Force.
Here’s a closer look at the results, top performers, and notable highlights:
FRIDAY FEBRUARY 3, 2023
Game 52
Connecticut Whale 1
Metropolitan Riveters 2 SO
Box Score | Highlights
Minttu Tuominen scored the winner in the third round of the shootout and Katie Burt turned aside 33 shots to backstop the Riveters to their second win of the season over Connecticut.
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 4, 2023
Game 53
Buffalo Beauts 0
Toronto Six 3
Box Score | Highlights
Shiann Darkangelo scored Toronto’s first two goals to pace the offense in front of goaltender Elaine Chuli who earned her first shutout of the season with a 26-save performance against Buffalo.
Game 54
Metropolitan Riveters 0
Boston Pride 5
Box Score | Highlights
Corinne Schroeder continues to re-write the record books with her seventh shutout of the season for Boston who was led offensively by Loren Gabel and Jillian Dempsey with a goal and two assists each against the Riveters.
SUNDAY FEBRUARY 5, 2023
Game 55
Minnesota Whitecaps 4
Montreal Force 1
Box Score | Highlights
The trio of Jonna Albers, Liz Schepers, and Sidney Morin each scored a goal and an assist for Minnesota, contributing to a string of four unanswered tallies in a road win over Montreal.
Game 56
Connecticut Whale 2
Boston Pride 5
Box Score | Highlights
Loren Gabel extended her lead atop the PHF scoring race with a four-point performance including two goals and two assists for the Pride who win their season series over the Whale.
Game 57
Buffalo Beauts 2
Toronto Six 7
Box Score | Highlights
T6 broke a 2-2 tie after the first period with five unanswered goals against the Beauts, spreading out the offense led by a career-high four points from Emma Woods and three from Lexi Templeman.
MONDAY FEBRUARY 6, 2023
Game 58
Minnesota Whitecaps 3
Montreal Force 2
Box Score
Denisa Křížová’s second period goal was the difference as the Whitecaps held off the Force in a Monday matinee in Saint-Jérôme to make up for Saturday’s postponement.
STANDINGS THROUGH TWO THIRDS
Breaking down the PHF regular season schedule into thirds, we’re now in the final frame of the record 84-game set with just five more weekends and 26 total games left to play in 2022-23. The Boston Pride (14-2-1) remain in first place after collecting all six points this weekend to build their total to 40. The Toronto Six (12-2-2) and Minnesota Whitecaps (10-4-2) both kept pace with six-point sweeps of their own and remain in second and third place with 36 and 32 points respectively. The Connecticut Whale (8-7-2) picked up just a single point and hold onto fourth place with 26 points, followed by the Metropolitan Riveters (6-12-0) who gained two points over their two games and are now tied with the Montreal Force (6-9-1) with 16 points. The Buffalo Beauts (2-12-2) remain in seventh place with eight points.
T6 SWEEPS SEASON SERIES WITH BEAUTS
Toronto becomes the second team in the PHF this season to earn all 12 points against their opponent, beating Buffalo four times in regulation. T6 outscored the Beauts 10-2 at home this weekend and 8-5 over two games on the road Dec. 16-17 for a season total of 18-7 and a plus-11 differential. T6 outshot the Beauts by six and nine in both home games which ranks as their second and third best differentials in the shot department this season. They also gave up a season-low 17 shots on Sunday. Over three seasons, T6 holds an 8-1 record against their cross-border rivals.
BOSTON KEEPS BRAGGING RIGHTS OVER CONNECTICUT
Since meeting in the 2022 Isobel Cup Final, Boston and Connecticut have wrapped up their four-game regular season series with the defending champions claiming victory on three occasions including both games at Warrior Ice Arena. The Pride earned nine of a possible 12 points against the Whale this season and outscored them 18-10. Despite the outcomes, the Whale produced a shot differential of plus-51 over four games and twice peppered the Pride for 50 or more. The all-time regular season series between the Founding Four clubs still heavily favors the Pride 28-9, however last year it was the Whale who won three of four battles before falling in the final.
MINNESOTA TIES FRANCHISE RECORD IN MONTREAL
The Whitecaps are the PHF’s hottest team with three-straight weekend sweeps and six wins in a row since the calendar turned to 2023. The six consecutive victories ties a franchise record set over the course of the team’s first six games in their inaugural 2018-19 Isobel Cup winning season. Their first trip to Montreal completed a 3-1 season-series triumph over the Force where they earned nine of a possible 12 points. Minnesota’s last loss came at the hands of Montreal on Dec. 18, but in total outscored their opponent 13-9 over four games and outshot them all four times accumulating a plus-46 differential.
WHALE SPLIT WITH FORCE
Another season series wrapped up just before All-Star weekend between Connecticut and Montreal. The two teams split their first four games in this historic campaign, but the Whale came out on top by a 7-5 margin in points, which is a critical advantage based on their current standings. The Whale narrowly outscored the Force 14-12 over the four games but were outshot in three of those four meetings. Connecticut has only been outshot in four of their 17 games so far this season.
FIFTH SHOOTOUT TIES PHF RECORD
For just the second time in PHF history there has been a total of five games decided by a shootout. On Friday night the Riveters joined the Force with two shootout wins each so far in 2022-23. The last time that two different teams won two shootout decisions in a season was the Beauts and Whale in 2017-18. The Whale maintain the single season record with three shootout wins in the inaugural 2015-16 campaign, also the last time there were five shootout games in a season. Katie Burt backstopped the Riveters to victory over the Whale and has accounted for both of the team’s shootout triumphs. She joins Montreal’s Tricia Deguire for a share of the PHF single season record along with Amanda Leveille when she was with Buffalo, Connecticut’s Sydney Rossman, Boston’s Brittany Ott, and the Whale’s Jamie Leonoff all with two.
FORCE RAISE OVER $7,000 FOR INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE NEST
Saturday’s game postponement didn’t stop the Force and the fans at Aréna régional de la Rivière-du-Nord from raising funds to support the local Indigenous not-for-profit Iakwahwatsiratátie. The team moved the franchise’s first theme jersey event to Sunday and generated over $7,000 by auction to support the language nest in Kahnawá:ke Mohawk Territory. The jersey worn by Brooke Stacey, who comes from the nearby First Nation Reserve, generated over $1,000. The jerseys were designed by artist Ganadiyoh Jada Hopper.
MONDAY FUNDAY
Today’s matinee between Minnesota and Montreal marked just the sixth time in PHF history that a game was played on a Monday. There’s been at least one over each of the past five seasons beginning with a President’s Day contest on Feb. 18, 2019 where Boston beat the Riveters 8-1. The teams played again the following season, Jan. 20, 2020 on Martin Luther King Jr. Day where the Pride skated to a 5-3 victory. Boston also beat Buffalo 7-1 in the final game played during the shortened Lake Placid season on Feb. 1, 2021. Last season the Beauts beat Toronto 3-0 in the Buffalo Believes Outdoor Classic on Feb. 21, 2022, which was President’s Day in the United States and Family Day across Ontario. The 2022 Isobel Cup Final was also played on a Monday where Boston triumphed over Connecticut 4-2 in Tampa Bay on Mar. 28, 2022.
TWO FIRST CAREER PHF GOALS
A pair of first career PHF goals were scored on Sunday afternoon in Toronto. First up was Beauts newcomer Madi Nichols who found the back of the net at 12:10 of the opening period which tied the score 2-2. It counts as the second point in 16 games this season for the Nazareth College graduate. Then at the 1:02 mark of the third period, T6 newcomer Daryl Watts scored her first which registered as the team’s sixth in the 7-2 victory. The 2020 Patty Kazmaier Award winner who graduated last season from the University of Wisconsin now has two points in four games since making history as the first PHF player to sign a contract with terms under next season’s record $1.5 million salary cap.
BEAUTS SIGN KNOTT
Before Sunday’s game, Buffalo announced the official signing of forward Maggie Knott for the remainder of the 2022-23 season. The 24-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ontario attended Mercyhurst University where she graduated as Lakers captain in 2020. Over the course of her collegiate career she played 142 games, compiling 96 points including 31 goals and 65 assists, and was teammates with current Beauts Emma Nuutinen, Summer-Rae Dobson, and Samantha Fieseler. Knott has previous professional experience with the PWHPA in 2020-21.
ALL-STAR MOMENTUM
Loren Gabel and Corinne Schroeder sure carried the momentum from their standout performances over All-Star weekend back into battle with Boston. The showcase MVP who tallied three goals and one assist with PHF Team Canada last Sunday led all skaters with seven points in two games including three goals and four assists. Canada’s top All-Star netminder stopped 82 of 84 shots in her two games between-the-pipes for the Pride, including a record seventh shutout of the season.
POTENT PRIDE POWER PLAY
Boston’s power play precision is one of the team’s most recognizable signs of improvement over last season. This year’s unit currently ranks second in the PHF with a .207 efficiency having capitalized 12 times with the advantage. During the 2021-22 campaign they scored just four power play goals and ranked last with a dismal .056 conversion rate before going 6/9 in the playoffs. This past weekend the Pride went 3/7 on their power play opportunities with captain Jillian Dempsey scoring two of those goals to take over the league-lead in the category with four.
LEVEILLE TOPS 60 CAREER WINS
Another milestone for Minnesota’s Amanda Leveille was achieved on Sunday with her 60th career regular season win. This figure not only tops the charts among all-time PHF goaltenders but more than doubles the next highest netminder. After turning aside 28 of Montreal’s shots in the 4-1 victory, she stopped another 27 in Monday’s 3-2 result for win number 61. She’s now recorded minutes played in 93 all-time regular season games and is on pace to reach the incredible century club this season.
PHF SCORING RACE
Boston’s Loren Gabel now has 31 points in 15 games and also leads in goals scored with 17 while riding a four-game goal-streak. Toronto’s Brittany Howard has 24 points in 16 games and ranks second with 15 goals. Connecticut’s Kennedy Marchment also has 24 points but in 17 games and has extended her league-leading point-streak to 11-straight games. Pride captain Jillian Dempsey is fourth in league scoring with 22 points in 17 games, followed by teammate Élizabeth Giguère who has 20 points in 13 games including 14 assists which is tied with Gabel for the league-lead. Toronto’s Kati Tabin and Minnesota’s Sidney Morin are tied for the lead among defenders with 15 points in 16 games each.
The PHF regular season continues with just one weekend series in Toronto where T6 hosts Montreal in the next chapter of the league’s all-Canadian rivalry. All the action is available live on ESPN+ and TSN+ as well as in French on TVA Sports.
Cover photo by Arianne Bergeron
