X75 Productions

Category: Women’s Hockey

  • 2022-23 PHF Team Preview – Connecticut Whale

    2022-23 PHF Team Preview – Connecticut Whale

    2021-22

    Record: 15-3-2 47pts

    Playoffs: Lost in Isobel Cup Final

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    Key Losses

    Hanna Beattie, D

    Kaycie Anderson, F

    Emily Fluke, F

    Key Additions

    Mallory Souliotis, D

    Tori Sullivan, F

    Lenka Serdar, F

    2022-23 Preview

    3 Questions:

    Key players last season, what will be their encore performance?

    Two impact players for the Connecticut Whale last season were Taylor Girard and Kennedy Marchment. Girard scored 11 goals and added 13 assists for 24 points on the year. This was good enough to earn the PHF Newcomer of the Year award. While Marchment scored 13 goals on the season, while adding 20 assists for 33 points on the year. She earned the well deserved MVP award for the season. Both players will be entering their second year in the PHF, and will hopefully avoid the dreaded “sophomore slump.” It will be interesting to see what situations Head Coach Colton Orr puts them in or whether or not they will be on the same line this season.

    Key past players, what will be their impact on a new look Whale team?

    This offseason saw the return of two impact players from the 2018-19 Whale season: forward Katerina Mrazova, and goalie Meeri Raisanen. Mrazova during the 18-19 season played 15 games, amassing 6 goals and 6 assists for 12 points on the season. It led the team in both goals and points. She also notched a goal and an assist in the one playoff game played. While Meeri Raisanen started 12 games for the Whale. Her record was 2-9-1, with 1 shutout, she has a 3.03 GAA and a .908 save percentage. While the record is not the best, she kept the Whale in a lot of games that they had no business being in, and an injury unfortunately cut her season short.

    They now return to a completely different team then their first go around. New coach, new players, a completely new system. While Raisanen will fight for the starters job with Abbie Ives, have to wonder where Mrazova will fit into the lineup.

    How far will the Whale go?

    Seems like a dumb question, considering the simple answer is however far the team can go, one game at a time. I bring this question up because last season saw a lot of firsts for the Whale. They ended the regular season on top of the standings for the first time, and they reached all the way to the Isobel Cup Finals for the first time in their franchise history. With the defeat at the hands of the Boston Pride, it feels like the Whale have some unfinished business. GM Alexis Moed has constructed a really good team that, on paper, should once again reach the Isobel Cup Finals. There is a real sense that the expectations heading into the season is Cup or Bust.

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  • 2022-23 PHF Team Preview – Buffalo Beauts

    2022-23 PHF Team Preview – Buffalo Beauts

    2021-22

    Record: 6-14-0 15pts

    Playoffs: Eliminated in First Round

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    Key Losses

    Emma Keenan, D

    Taylor Accursi, F

    Carly Jackson, G

    Key Additions

    Mikyla Grant-Mentis, F

    Emma Nuutinen, F

    Kassidy Suave, G

    2022-23 Preview

    3 Questions:

    How impactful will the loss of Carly Jackson be felt?

    During the 17 games she started last season, she had a record of 6-11-0 with a 3.25 GAA and a .903 save percentage. However, no one will dispute how impactful Carly Jackson was for the Buffalo Beauts, as she kept them in multiple games during the season. Carly Jackson has now joined the Toronto Six for the season upcoming. Now the goaltenders for the Beauts are a returning Lovisa Berndtsson and newcomer Kassidy Suave. Berndtsson went 0-3-0 with a 4.36 GAA and a .886 save percentage, while Suave is a PWHPA veteran. Who takes over between the pipes this season?

    There is no Taylor Accursi this season, who steps up?

    Taylor Accursi was informed that she would not be returning to the Beauts this season upcoming. What does that mean? Well, the captain of the Beauts the last two seasons, had played 66 games, scoring 29 goals and adding 24 assists for a total of 53 points. Now, it could very well be that she gets signed later on as the season goes but for now, the Beauts are losing an impact player. So what now? Someone is going to need to step up and make up for lost points. One player that can be counted on would be Mikyla Grant-Mentis. However, who else is going to step up? Second year player Jenna Suokko? Autum MacDougall? Anjelica Diffendal? Any of the newcomers? Should be very interesting to see what shakes out.

    How impactful will Mikyla Grant-Mentis be?

    Speaking of Mikyla Grant-Mentis, one of the largest contract signings in PHF history is taking her talents to the Buffalo Beauts. This will actually be her second run with Buffalo. For those who didn’t know, she played with the Beauts back during the 2019-20 season. Where she played 2 regular season games, scoring twice and adding an assist. During the playoffs that season, she played 1 game, scoring a goal and getting an assist as well. She then on to have 2 great years with the Toronto Six, scoring 18 goals and nabbing 21 assists for 39 points. She also secured an MVP award during the 2020-21 season. She has a PPG of 1.56 during her PHF career, and there’s no doubt that she will get her points. Who will be along side her to help her conquest in Buffalo?

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  • 2022-23 PHF Team Preview – Boston Pride

    2022-23 PHF Team Preview – Boston Pride

    2021-22

    Record: 10-5-5 32pts

    Playoffs: 2022 Isobel Cup Champions

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    Key Losses

    Mallory Souliotis, D

    Tori Sullivan, F

    Amanda Boulier, D

    Key Additions

    Allie Thunstrom, F

    Elizabeth Giguere, F

    Olivia Zafuto, D

    2022-23 Preview

    3 Questions:

    How impactful will the addition of Thunstrom be for the offense?

    One of the major additions to the Boston Pride is an impact player in Allie Thunstrom. During her 4 seasons with the Minnesota Whitecaps, she played in 64 games for the Whitecaps, tallying 47 goals and adding 19 assists for 66 points. Also, she is a Isobel Cup Champion during the 2018-19 season, and also earned the MVP award in 2019-20. Thunstrom is also one of the fastest skaters in the PHF, and she’ll bring that speed and goal scoring ability to a potent offense. The question is who will be her line mates, and how will the opposing defenses stop them?

    What kind of season is in store for Wenczkowski?

    This is now the third season for Taylor Wenczkowski, during her previous two seasons, she has played 27 games. In those games, she has scored 9 times and added 7 assists for 16 points. She really came into her own as an impact player during the playoffs in Florida. During the three games down in Florida, she scored 3 goals, including the Cup clinching goal. She provides great depth scoring that teams need during crunch time. What kind of season is in store for her? She’s done enough to earn more playing time, and much like Thunstrom, you have to wonder who her line mates will be when the season kicks off.

    Can the Pride three peat as champions?

    Heading into last season, I asked whether or not the Pride were good enough to repeat as Champions. The simple answer was yes. They finished 3rd during the regular season, and came on strong during the playoffs to hoist the trophy for the second time in a row and third time in history. Now, they are looking to three peat, and hoist their 4th trophy in their franchise history. Why is the three peat milestone huge? Firstly, in the realm of women’s hockey, colleges like Middlebury were NESCAC three peat champions, Northeastern three peated Hockey East. I don’t think it’s been done at the professional level in North America. So it would the first time ever, which is huge. But secondly, it would be the first time any hockey team, men’s or women’s, has done it in North America since the New York Islanders won 4 straight Stanley Cups in the 80s.

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  • TXHT Podcast – Kelsey Neumann of the Buffalo Beauts

    TXHT Podcast – Kelsey Neumann of the Buffalo Beauts

    Ladies and Gentlemen the TXHT podcast is back a whole new episode as we are joined by the NWHL Player of the Week Kelsey Neumann of the Buffalo Beauts.

     

    Audio:

     

    We get to have a conversation with Kelsey about her journey in hockey, her history with the Buffalo Beauts and the NWHL, plus what it is like this time around for her after taking a season away from the NWHL, and becoming the NWHL Player of the Week.

     

    Opening Music:

    “Modern Guns” by Eyeshine

     

    Feature Graphic courtesy of the NWHL. Photo of Kelsey Neumann by Mike Hetzel.

     

    Sponsored by:

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  • NWHL Weekend Recap

    NWHL Weekend Recap

    Welcome to the TXHT NWHL Weekend Recap for the Weekend of Saturday, November 16th and Sunday, November 17th, 2019, plus news coming out of the weekend.

     

    Saturday, November 16th, 2019

    Game #1 – Buffalo Beauts v. Boston Pride

    • The Buffalo Beauts kicked off their weekend road trip against the undefeated Boston Pride, but it would be another dominating performance for the Pride as they would light up the Beauts for six goals as Mary Parker scored a pair of goals, along with McKenna Brand scoring a pair of goals in 13 seconds to lead the Pride to a 6-1 victory. Along with Parker and Brand, the Pride would get goals from Lexie Laing and Tori Sullivan. Kaleigh Fratkin would record three assists for the Pride. Sara Bustad would be the lone goal scorer for the Beauts.

     

    Sunday, November 17th, 2019

    Game #1 – Buffalo Beauts v. Connecticut Whale

    • The Buffalo Beauts would finish their weekend road trip in Connecticut as they took on the Whale. The Beauts would bounce back after their stiff defeat from the Pride as they would get goals from Taylor Accursi, Erin Gehen, and Kim Brown to take the 3-1 victory. Kayla Meneghin would score the lone goal for the Whale, and Iveta Klimasova would record a pair of assists for the Beauts while Kelsey Neumann would record 41 saves on 42 shots faced for the Beauts in the win.

     

    Player of the Week

    • Kelsey Neumann of the Buffalo Beauts has been named the VEDA NWHL Player of the Week.

    IMG_20191119_094226

    • Neumann would stop 41 of 42 shots against the Connecticut Whale to lead the Beauts to a 3-1 victory on Sunday.

     

    * All Graphics Courtesy of the NWHL.

    *Photo of Kelsey Neumann by Mike Hetzel.

     

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  • Neumann Saves 41 As Beauts Top Whale

    Neumann Saves 41 As Beauts Top Whale

    Last week, the NWHL had a bye week, so that gave teams extra time to prepare for games this weekend. The Whale, looking to get their first win of the season, squared off against the Beauts, who came off a loss yesterday to the Boston Pride. It would be Whale go-to goalie Sonija Shelly in net for Connecticut and Kelsey Neumann in net for Buffalo.

    In the first period, it would be a quick start for the Whale, trying to capitalize on early momentum. However, Neumann would stop every shot attempt in the period. The same went for Shelly, who didn’t have as much work to do in the period. Only one penalty was called in the period, and it would be against the Whale’s veteran defender Jordan Brickner. The Beauts would fail to capitalize on the power play. The period ended scoreless, however the Whale would lead in the shot on goal department 13-4.

    Action would pick up in the second period, as the Beauts would strike first, 30 seconds into the period. The goal coming from Taylor Accursi, with the assists coming from Lenka Curmova and Iveta Klimasova. The teams would trade chances back and forth, with the goalies coming up large for both teams. The period would end with the Whale down 1-0 and again out-shooting the Beauts 12-10 in the period.

    In the third period, the Beauts would double their lead 13 minutes into the period, with a goal from Erin Gehen. Assists on the play would come from Brooke Stacey and Cassidy MacPherson. The Beauts weren’t allowed to be comfortable though, as less than 2 minutes later, the Whale would get one, to cut the lead in half. The goal coming from Kayla Meneghin, it would be her team leading 3rd goal of the season. She has scored at least a goal in the last 3 games that she’s played. Assists on the play came from Sarah Schwenzfeier, her 2nd point of the season, and Jordan Brickner, her 6th point of the season, and tied for the team lead. That would be the closest the Whale could get, as with a minute left in the period, the Beauts would net an empty net goal. The goal coming from Kim Brown, assists on the play came from Brooke Stacey, her second point of the game, and Marie – Jo Pelletier.

    Final stats for the goalies were Neumann for the Beauts faced 42 shots and came up with 41 saves. Sonija Shelly turned in a good performance too, she faced 25 shots and came up with 23 saves.

    The next game for the Whale will be against the league leading Boston Pride. The start time for the game will be 630p in Boston at Warrior Ice Arena. Should be a good game, as it will be the first game of the year where the Whale will face their former captain Emily Fluke.

    Fundraisers

    For those keeping track at home, Shannon Doyle turned in 1 blocked shot for the game today, giving her a total of 17 blocks on the year. She is donating a $1 for every block she records for her fundraiser Blocks For Books. Here is the link for those who want to make a donation too:

    https://www.gofundme.com/f/1s6bzhbt5c

    Also, for those keeping track at home, Kendra Broad had 2 shots on goal today, giving her a total of 8 shots on goal for the season. She is also donating $2 for every shot on goal for Mental Health Connecticut. Here is a link for those who want to make a donation too:

    https://mhconn.networkforgood.com/projects/83116-kendra-broad-s-fundraiser

     

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  • NWHL Announces Funding Round

    NWHL Announces Funding Round

    Today the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) has announced that they have closed a new round of funding for the league that will ensure viability and future growth for the league.

    IMG_20191114_093556.jpg

    The funding round was lead by IT entrepreneur Andy Scurto, and includes co-owner of MLB’s Texas Rangers Neil Leibman, the Vice Chairman of the PaySafe Group Joel Leonoff, former co-owner of the New Jersey Devils Michael Gilfillan, Founding Partner of the W Agency in Atlanta Lee Heffernan, and the Managing Director at the Silvercrest Asset Management Group in New York Matthew Arpano.

     

    “It’s a privilege for me to participate in the NWHL and to join my partners in the league in driving growth for the future. The NWHL is a strong league that has implemented a great model for supporting the athletes. Having been very involved with youth hockey as my daughter has played for many years, I see the value sports has to offer and I’m especially passionate about building women’s professional ice hockey for the current and future generations of players. The NWHL and the players have advanced the sport and the league beyond its startup phase, and there is more to come in the years ahead.”

    —- Andy Scurto

     

    For the NWHL, they will be using the capital from this growth round to increase infrastructure, and enhance player development amongst other initiatives for the growth of the league.

     

    This announcement also marks the first time that the NWHL has become transparent with who some of the investors of the league are, which is a monumental step for the league as they work to strive to become more transparent to the media and to the fans as to how the league is operated.

     

    Also with today’s announcement Kristina Rutherford of Sportsnet is reporting  that there is a possiblity that the NWHL could expand into Canada, with Toronto being a prime location, for next season thanks to today’s announcement.

     

    Today’s announcement is a stepping stone for both the NWHL and Women’s Hockey as a whole as they continue to make great strides to grow the game.

     

    *Graphic courtesy of the NWHL.

  • NWHL October Player of the Month

    NWHL October Player of the Month

    For the first time in NWHL history, the league has named their first ever Player of the Month. For the month of October Boston Pride forward McKenna Brand as the inaugural Player of the Month.

     

    Brand led the NWHL in goals (7), shots (53), and game winning goals (3) during the month of October. Brand is also tied for the league lead in points (14) with Pride teammate Jillian Dempsey. Along with her linemates of Dempsey and Christina Putigna they would combine for a total of 13 even strength goals.

     

    Congratulations McKenna on making history on becoming the first ever NWHL Player of the Month.

     

    *Picture of McKenna Brand by Michelle Jay.

  • NWHL Weekend Recap

    NWHL Weekend Recap

    Welcome to the TXHT NWHL Weekend Recap for the Weekend of Saturday, October 26th and Sunday, October 27th, 2019, plus news coming out of the weekend.

     

    Saturday, October 26th, 2019

    Game #1 – Minnesota Whitecaps v. Connecticut Whale

    • In Connecticut the Whale would play host to the Minnesota Whitecaps, and it would be all Whitecaps in this one. Nicole Schammel would record two goals (even strength and powerplay) and one assist, while Meghan Lorence and Haylea Schmid would produce two point games and Sydney Baldwin would have a three point night as the Whitecaps would go on to defeat the Whale 7-2.

     

    Game #2 – Metropolitan Riveters v. Boston Pride

    • In Boston the Pride looked to to continue their winning streak to start the season as they hosted the Metropolitan Riveters. The Pride would get three point games from Emily Fluke (2g, 1a), Mary Parker (1g, 2a), Kaleigh Fratkin (1g, 2a) and McKenna Brand (1g, 2a) to lead the Pride to a 7-2 vicory.

     

    Sunday, October 27th, 2019

    Game #1 – Minnesota Whitecaps v. Connecticut Whale

    • In the second game of their back to back the Whale looked to defeat the Whitecaps, but after taking the one goal lead in the third period, the Whitecaps would storm back late in the third period to take the 3-2 victory over the Whale. Shannon Doyle would factor on both Whale goals, while Sydney Baldwin and Jonna Curtis would both have a goal and an assist for the Whitecaps.

     

    Game #2 – Metropolitan Riveters v. Boston Pride

    • In the final game of the weekend the Riveters would face the Pride once more as they looked to avenge the previous day’s blowout, but it would be all Boston as the Pride would get goals from Carlee Toews, Tori Sullivan, Mallory Souliotis, Lexie Laing, and Jillian Dempsey to take a 5-3 victory over the Riveters.

     

    Player of the Week

    • The NWHL has announced the Minnesota Whitecaps defender Sydney Baldwin has been named the VEDA NWHL Player of the Week.

    Sydney Paldwin POTW.jpg

    • On Saturday October 26th Baldwin had a goal and three assists in the Whitecaps steamrolling of the Connecticut Whale, and then the next day Baldwin would record the primary assist on the game tying goal to help swing the momentum to the Whitecaps in their eventual 3-2 victory.

     

    * All Graphics Courtesy of the NWHL.

    *Photo of Sydney Baldwin by Michelle Jay

     

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  • Whale Get Blitzed At Home

    Whale Get Blitzed At Home

    The Connecticut Whale and the Minnesota Whitecaps squared off, with both teams looking to put behind their losing streaks early on in the season.

    There would be great back and forth action in the first with both goalies coming up with huge saves. There was only one penalty called in the period, and it went against the Whale. The Whitecaps were able to take advantage on the power play, seconds before the period ended. Meghan Lorence managed to get one by Sonjia Shelly. Assists on the play went to Audra Richards and former Whale defender Amanda Boulier.

    There was an explosion of scoring in the second. It started  minutes into the period, when the Whale would tie the game up. A great effort from Whale rookie Emma Vlasic which beat Amanda Leveille. Assist on the play came from Grace Kleinbach. 5 minutes later, Minnesota would get the lead back, an unassisted goal coming from Nicole Schammel. Then Schammel would get on the score sheet again 2 minutes later, via the power play. It would be her second goal of the game with the assists coming from Jonna Curtis and Sydney Baldwin. The Whale would answer back 2 minutes later and cut the lead in half. The goal coming from Kaycie Anderson, who managed to get behind the defense. Assists on the play came from Shannon Doyle and Erin Hall. Then, just like the end of the first period, the Whitecaps would get a late goal at the end of the second. The goal coming from Haylea Schmid. Assists on the play came from Sydney Baldwin, her second point of the game, and Nicole Schammel, her third point of the game.

    The Whitecaps went on the offensive at the start of the third, getting a goal 30 seconds into the period. The goal coming from Sydney Baldwin, her third point of the game. Assists on the play came from Meghan Lorence, her second point of the game, and Haylea Schmid, her second point of the game. In quick succession, 2 minutes later, the Whitecaps would add another goal. This time the goal came from Brooke White-Lancette. Assists on the play came from Kelsey Cline and Sydney Baldwin, her fourth point of the game. This unfortunately spelled the end of Sonija Shelly’s day and she was replaced by Brooke Wolejko. It would be her first action of the season. About 10 minutes later, the Whitecaps would add a seventh goal, coming from their top player Jonna Curtis. It would be her second point of the game and the assists on the play came from Allie Thunstrom and Lisa Martinson.

    Not much to say about this game other than they need to forget about it and come back strong tomorrow. The Whale will face off against these same Whitecaps at 130p.

     

    For those keeping track, Whale defender Shannon Doyle was able to record 3 blocked shots today, giving her 12 blocked shots for the season! Doyle is donating a $1 for every block she records for her fundraiser Blocks For Books. Here is the link for those who want to make a donation too.

    https://www.gofundme.com/f/1s6bzhbt5c?utm_medium=social

     

    Additionally, Whale forward Kendra Broad was able to record 2 shots on goal today. She now has 6 shots on goal for the season. Broad is donating $2 for every shot on goal for Mental Health Connecticut. Here is a link for those who want to make a donation too.

    https://mhconn.networkforgood.com/projects/83116-kendra-broad-s-fundraiser

     

     

    Sponsored by:

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