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Category: Connecticut Whale

  • Whale And Riveters Set For Playoff Rematch

    Whale And Riveters Set For Playoff Rematch

    The first playoff game for the NWHL this year will take place on Thurday March 7th at 7p EST. It features the two teams that finished fourth and fifth in the season standings. Finishing fourth place, and the host of this playoff match up, is the Metropolitan Riveters. Unfortunately, finishing last in the standing is the Connecticut Whale. The game will take place at the RJW Barnabas Health Hockey House.

    Last year these two teams met in the Isobel Cup semi final game which saw the Riveters win that game, and would go on to win the championship that year, beating the Buffalo Beauts in the finals.

    A quick look back at that game, the goalie match up last year was Katie Fitzgerald for the Riveters, and Sydney Rossman for the Whale. The Riveters jumped out to a quick lead, after a minute into the game, the goal coming from Rebecca Russo. This got the crowd going and the Riveters dominated play. However at the end of the first period, the Riveters only had a 1-0 lead.

    In the second period, it was more of the same, dominance from the Riveters and eventually a breakthrough for them, as Erika Lawler would net a goal a little over halfway through the second period.

    Unfortunately in the third period, the wheels came off from the Whale. About halfway through, when the Whale were on the power play, Madison Packer got a breakaway and scored while short handed. This really deflated any possible notion of a Whale comeback, because shortly after, the Riveters would get two more goals in quick fashion. Goals coming from Bray Ketchum and Kelly Nash. Rossman would depart from the game after the Ketchum goal and Keira Goin would finish the game. It ended with the final score being 5-0 in favor of the home team.

    Boxscore for this game can be found here:

    https://www.nwhl.zone/game/show/20901411?subseason=484754&referrer=3422133

    Fast forward a year later and both teams are again meeting in the playoffs. Perfect time for some revenge? Possibly. We do know that the Riveters will be starting Katie Fitzgerald on Thursday, info provided from Mike Murphy.

    How have the Whale fared against the Riveters this season? Decently. Their record against them is 2-1-1 and they are also 1-0-1 against them in Newark, NJ.

    The last time that the Whale and the Riveters matched up was on January 6th, a 6-3 victory for the Riveters. However it was Maria Sorokina in net for the Riveters, and the previous loss to the Riveters was back on November 25th, a shootout loss with Kimberly Sass in net.

    Why bring that up? Well, the last time the Whale faced off against the Riveters with Katie Fitzgerald in net was all the way back on December 2nd, which was a 4-0 victory for the Whale in Pittsburgh; and the first game that these two teams squared off against each other was all the way back on November 18th, a 2-1 victory for the Whale with, you guessed it, Katie Fitzgerald in net. So this year, the Whale are a perfect 2-0 against Katie Fitzgerald.

    Will the Whale continue to be the kryptonite against Katie Fitzgerald? Or will Fitzgerald go on another spectacular run in the playoffs like she did last year, posting two shutouts?

    The game can be watched here:

    https://twitter.com/nwhl

    3 Players to Watch

    Audra Richards: The Minnesota native and Riveters rookie has had an incredible year for them, scoring 8 goals! 6 of her 8 goals have come against the Whale, including a hat trick! She is the only player in the NWHL to record a hat trick this season!

    Katerina Mrázová: The Czech international, and Whale rookie has put up some stellar numbers this year, she leads the team in points with 12 (6g, 6a). 6 of her 12 points on the year have come against the Riveters (4g, 2a).

    Shannon Doyle: The Whale blue liner has had a great year this season. She is one of the most consistent players for them. Against the Riveters, she has 2 goals and 2 assists for 4 points. Both of her goals against the Riveters have been incredible, they include a game winner in the final minute and a sick deke against Katie Fitzgerald.

    https://twitter.com/WSportHilites/status/1069355814568243201

    Tweet from Women’s Sports Highlights were used with their permission, you can follow them on Twitter here: @WSportHilites

  • March 4th, 2019 — News and Notes

    March 4th, 2019 — News and Notes

    Today is Monday, March 4th, 2019, and these are your news and notes

    There were eight games on the NHL schedule yesterday…

    *Image is the property of the NHL, NHL Public Relations, and their respective owners

     

    Yesterday’s results:

    Washington 3, NY RANGERS 2 (SO)

    The Washington Capitals took on the New York Rangers for a matinee game and would escape this contest with a much needed win and would regain the top spot in the Metropolitan Division.

    This game would not be without controversy in the shootout when Rangers goaltender Alexander Georgiev would throw his stick at an oncoming Alex Ovechkin on the latters shootout attempt.  It would at first be called a no goal but then after a meeting between all four on ice officials, it would be called a goal and the Capitals would pick up the win.

    TXHT has your full coverage of the contest between the Capitals and the Rangers at the following page.

    Philadelphia 4, NY ISLANDERS 1

    There would be four different goal scorers for the Philadelphia Flyers as they would take down the New York Islanders by the score of 4-1 yesterday afternoon.

    VEGAS 3, Vancouver 0

    The Vancouver Canucks would face off against the Vegas Golden Knights yesterday and would get crushed, losing by the score of 3-0.

    The Canucks would get out shot 49-19 in the contest and Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury would have his eighth shutout on the season in this contest, the most for a goaltender on the season.

     

    ANAHEIM 2, Colorado 1

    The Anaheim Ducks would take on the Colorado Avalanche and would get a much needed win for the Ducks.

    https://twitter.com/AnaheimDucks/status/1102368575824683008

    Ottawa 3, FLORIDA 2

     

    Winnipeg 5, COLUMBUS 2

    The Winnipeg Jets would visit the Columbus Blue Jackets and would come away with the 5-2 win over Columbus thanks to four goals in the contest by Winnipeg’s Blake Wheeler.

     

    Nashville 3, MINNESOTA 2 (SO)

    The Nashville Predators would take on the Minnesota Wild and would escape with the 3-2 win in the shootout frame.

    SAN JOSE 5, Chicago 2

     

    Today there are only two games on the NHL slate.


    *image is the property of the NHL, NHL Public Relations, and their respective owners

     

    NWHL

     

    Yesterday would close out the regular season for the NWHL.  Two contests took place with the Minnesota Whitecaps visiting the Connecticut Whale and the Buffalo Beauts visiting the Metropolitan Riveters.

     

    Minnesota Whitecaps 4, CONNECTICUT WHALE 1

    First in the Minnesota Whitecaps at the Connecticut Whale game, the Minnesota Whitecaps would clinch the number one seed in the NWHL Isobel Cup playoffs with the 4-1 win over the Whale.

    Minnesota’s Lauren Barnes would score twice, these being the first goals of her NWHL career, and Amanda Boulier picked up two assists in the contest.  Whitecaps goaltender Amanda Leveille would go on to have 24 saves on 25 attempts in the contest to seal the first regular season championship for Minnesota who continued to make history for the franchise and the NWHL.

    Minnesota will host the winner of the play-in game between the Connecticut Whale and the Metropolitan Riveters on Sunday at 2:30 p.m., ET/1:30 p.m., CT at the TRIA Rink.

    TXHT has your coverage of the weekends contest for the Connecticut Whale at the following page.

    METROPOLITAN RIVETERS 4, Buffalo Beauts 3 (SO)

    In an exciting back and forth game, the Metropolitan Riveters would come back from a 2-0 deficit to take down the Buffalo Beauts with the 4-3 win in the shootout yesterday afternoon.

    Throughout the second period, there would be multiple penalties between both teams and Riveters Madison Parker would be the only one to take advantage of the extra woman on the ice with Parker’s goal at the 17:41 mark.

    Riveters Taylor Accursi would end up netting the winner in the shootout frame to seal the win for Metropolitan and they will now host the Connecticut Whale in the play-in contest of the 2019 NWHL Isobel Cup Playoffs on Thursday night at 7 p.m., ET at the RWJBarnabas Health Hockey House.  The winner of that contest will take on the Minnesota Whitecaps at TRIA Rink on Sunday at 2:30 p.m., ET.

     

    After these contests, the 2019 NWHL Isobel Cup Playoff schedule is now set.  You can see the schedule at the following link.

  • Whale Swept In Final Back To Back Of The Regular Season

    Whale Swept In Final Back To Back Of The Regular Season

    The Connecticut Whale played their last two games of the regular season at home at Terry Conners Rink. The first game was against the Buffalo Beauts and the second game was against the Minnesota Whitecaps.

     

    1st Game

    In the first game on Saturday, the Whale were defeated by the Buffalo Beauts. The Beauts jumped out to an early 3-0 lead by the end of the first period. Goals for the Beauts came from Annika Zalewski, Taylor Accursi, and Juliana Iafallo. Emily Pfalzer assisted on two of the goals in the first period.

    In the second period, there would be more Beauts dominance against the Whale, and late in the second period, the Beauts would get another breakthrough, the goal coming from Corinne Buie.

    In the third period, the Beauts would add another goal, it came from former Whale forward Kelly Babstock. It would be her fourth goal on the year and her first coming against her old squad. However, the Whale would spring to life a minute after the goal. Beauts forward Corinne Buie would take a slashing minor and on the ensuing power play, Whale defender Shannon Doyle scored. For Shannon Doyle, it was her fifth point in six games (one goal and four assists). Five minutes later, the Whale would add another goal from Rachael Ade.

    Unfortunately, that would be as close as the Whale would come to a comeback. The Beauts held on to take the game by a score of 5-2. Shenae Lundberg was the goalie of record for the Whale and she made 25 saves on 30 shots.

    3 Stars

    Shannon Doyle: Scoring on the powerplay, she now has three goals and five assists on the year, and now has eight points in her last eleven games.

    Rachael Ade: She now has two goals in her last three games as of Saturday. She pushes her totals to two goals and one assist for three points on the year.

    Katerina Mrázová: She added two primary assists assists adding to her points lead.

     

    2nd Game

    On Sunday, the Whale played their final home game of the regular season, against the Minnesota Whitecaps.

    In the first period, there were good back and forth action between the two teams. Unfortunately, a little over halfway through the first period, Whale forward Vanessa Gagnon went down with an apparent leg injury. Stunned by the situation, the Whitecaps would get a goal from Allie Thunstrom.

    In the second period, the Whitecaps would jump out to a 2-0 leas when Lauren Barnes beat Erin O’Neil. The Whale would get a goal back which was provided by their captain Emily Fluke. Mrázová came around the net and sent the puck across the crease and Fluke was there to put the puck home.

    https://twitter.com/WSportHilites/status/1102318153416278016

    Before the end of the second period, the Whitecaps would add to their lead with Lauren Barnes notching her second goal of the period and her second of the game.

    In the third period, there was a lot of great back and forth action, with great goaltending being supplied by both goalies Amanda Leveille and Erin O’Neil. However the Whale wouldn’t be able to make a comeback as Kendall Coyne Schofield would add an empty net goal. The Whitecaps would win the game by the final score of 4-1.

    3 Stars

    Erin O’Neil: The goalie of record for the Whale, she kept them in the game. She made 30 saves on 33 shots.

    Katerina Mrázová: Getting her third point over the weekend on an assist from the Emily Fluke goal, it pushes her point totals on the year to six goals and six assists for twelve points on the year.

    Emily Fluke: She notched her third goal of the year, which combined with her eight assists, gives her a point total of eleven. It is good for second on the team in points, finishing up an impressive sophomore campaign for her.

     

    Playoffs:

    The Whale will square off against the Metropolitan Riveters in the playoffs again; as it will be a rematch of last years semi-final matchup. The game will be at the RWJ Barnabas Health Hockey House this Thursday March 7th at 7p EST.

     

    Tweet from Women’s Sports Highlights was used with their permission and you can follow them here: @WSportHilites

  • Whale Set For Weekend Back To Back

    Whale Set For Weekend Back To Back

    The Connecticut Whale will close out their regular season with back to back home games at Terry Conners Rink in Stamford, CT, against the Buffalo Beauts and the Minnesota Whitecaps.

    The first game against the Beauts will be on Saturday at 6p EST. The last time the Whale played the Beauts at home was on Opening Day in which the Whale were defeated 4-0. Also, unfortunately, the last game the Whale played against the Beauts, they were also defeated 3-1 in Buffalo.

    The game can be watched here:

    https://www.nwhl.zone/watch

    3 Players to Watch

    Katerina Mrázová: Having scored the only Whale goal against the Beauts, she looks to continue her great rookie campaign, in which she has scored six goals on the year.

    Emily Fluke: She has had a great sophomore campaign in the NWHL, having scored two goals and added seven assists. She looks to continue to lead her team with fierceness and tenacity.

    Michelle Löwenhielm: The Swedish rookie scored in her last game against the Boston Pride, as she looks to continue her great play she has consistently displayed all season long.

    The Whale’s next game on Sunday is against the Minnesota Whitecaps. In the three previous games though, they have shown that they can skate well with them. Unfortunately the last game, they were defeated by the score of 9-0 and worse yet, that was the game they lost star goalie Meeri Räisänen for the rest of the season. Their last home game against the Whitecaps, they were beaten by a score of 4-1. The Sunday game will be at 3p EST.

    The game can be watched here:

    https://www.nwhl.zone/watch

    3 Players to Watch

    Amanda Boulier: In her previous homecoming match, the former Whale defender registered a goal and added two assists. Also, in her last game against the Whale in Minnesota, she scored a goal.

    Michelle Löwenhielm: Having scored the only goal against the Whitecaps, off a sweet assist from Emily Fluke, the Swedish All Star has three goals and three assists in her rookie year in the NWHL

    Shannon Doyle: She got a secondary assist on the Löwenhielm goal against the Whitecaps in Connecticut. She currently has registered five points in her last seven games.

  • February 20th, 2019 — News and Notes

    February 20th, 2019 — News and Notes

    Today is Wednesday, February 20th, 2019, and these are your news and notes.

     

    There were nine contests yesterday in NHL action.

     

     

    FLORIDA 4, Buffalo 2

    The Florida Panthers would take on the Buffalo Sabres and would come away with the 4-2 win.  Florida’s Jonathan Huberdeau would score twice for the Panthers in this contest.

     


    Pittsburgh 4, NEW JERSEY 3

    The Pittsburgh Penguins would take on the New Jersey Devils and there would be four different scorers for the Penguins in this contest.

    For the Devils, Patrick Warburton brought back his Puck Daddy character in a pre-game ceremony for New Jersey  with the ceremonial puck drop.

     
    Tampa Bay 5, PHILADELPHIA 2

    The Tampa Bay Lightning would take on the Philadelphia Flyers and would come away with the decisive 5-2 win at Wells Fargo Center last night.

     
    NY Rangers 2, CAROLINA 1

    The New York Rangers would defeat the Carolina Hurricanes thanks to scoring two goals after being down 1-0 in Raleigh last night.


    MONTREAL 3, Columbus 2

    There would be three different scorers for the Montreal Canadiens as they would take down the Columbus Blue Jackets with a 3-2 win in Montreal last night.


    ST. LOUIS 3, Toronto 2 (OT)

    The St. Louis Blues would mount a comeback and defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs with the 3-2 in the overtime frame.

    TXHT’s Steve Gardiner has your full recap of the contest between the St. Louis Blues and the Toronto Maple Leafs at the following page.


    Anaheim 4, MINNESOTA 0

    The Anaheim Ducks would have another big win, getting a shutout against the Minnesota Wild.  The Ducks would take down the Wild 4-0.  Ryan Miller would get another shutout win and would add to his career win total after setting the NHL record for all-time wins by a U.S.-born goaltender on Sunday night.

    https://twitter.com/AnaheimDucks/status/1098079908364861440
    Nashville 5, DALLAS 3

    The Nashville Predators would take down the Dallas Stars with a 5-3 win, thanks to two goals from Nashville’s Roman Josi in the third period.  Filip Forsberg would also add a goal of his own in the third period, his 21st on the season.


    Arizona 3, EDMONTON 2 (SO)

    Shootout Summary

    Arizona’s Vinnie Hinostroza would seal the win for the Coyotes with the lone goal in the shootout frame.

     

    There are four contests on the NHL schedule tonight…

     

     

    For more news, notes, information, and stats…

     

     

    In NHL news…

    Philadelphia’s Radko Gudas has a hearing today for High-sticking/slashing Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov in last night’s contest.

    The Toronto Maple Leafs yesterday would release the throwbacks that they will wear on March 15th and March 16th.  The throwbacks worn will be the white Toronto St. Pats jersey worn in the 1920s.  These jerseys are similar to the ones that were worn for a game back in March 2017.

     

    The jerseys are available for pre-order through the Toronto Maple Leafs team store at this link.

     

     

     

    NWHL

     

    Remaining NWHL Schedule of Games:

    Saturday, February 23rd: Metropolitan Riveters at Buffalo Beauts

    Sunday, February 24th: Boston Pride at Connecticut Whale (NWHL Twitter Game of the Week)

    Saturday, March 2nd: Buffalo Beauts at Connecticut Whale

    Saturday, March 2nd: Minnesota Whitecaps at Boston Pride

    Sunday, March 3rd: Minnesota Whitecaps at Connecticut Whale

    Sunday, March 3rd: Buffalo Beauts at Metropolitan Riveters

    NWHL Isobel Cup Playoff Schedule will be announced at a later date

  • A Whale Of A Time In Nashville

    A Whale Of A Time In Nashville

    The NWHL hosted their All Star festivities in Nashville, TN this past weekend. The best players from all five teams came down and showcased their talents in front of an electric Nashville crowd. The skills competition was held at the Ford Ice Center, the practice facility for the Predators; while the All Star Game itself was at the Bridgestone Arena in Downtown Nashville.

    The Whale had originally sent five players down, but Meeri Räisänen could not attend as she was called up to the Finnish National Team. [Congrats are in order for her!]

    The four players that did go to the All Star game were Shannon Doyle, Emily Fluke, Michelle Löwenhielm, and Katerina Mrázová.

    Doyle and Mrázová played for Team Szabados; Fluke and Löwenhielm played for Team Stecklein.

    NWHL-ASG2019-Roster-4_large

    Photo from nwhl.zone

     

    Skills Competition

    Only two skills competition events were needed for the Whale players as it was Mrázová vs Fluke in the trick shot challenge, and it was Löwenhielm vs Doyle in the hardest shot competition.

     

    At the end of the six events, it was tied at three apiece. A best two out of three shootout was required between Beauts goalie Shannon Szabados and Whitecaps defender Lee Stecklein. Szabados stopped all the attempts by Stecklein, giving Shannon Doyle and Katerina Mrázová the bragging rights so far over the weekend.

     

    All Star Game

    The All Star Game took place at Bridgestone Arena after the Blues v. Predators game, in which the St. Louis Blues proved victorious in overtime.

    Predators Game.jpg

    Also, it wouldn’t be Nashville without someone throwing a catfish on the ice that landed right by Shannon Doyle just before the opening faceoff.

    Catfish Opening Faceoff.jpg

     

    The All Star game was two 25 minute halves of four on four hockey. The Whale had a really spectacular showing in Nashville. After Riveters forward Audra Richards gave Team Szabados the 1-0 lead, Whale defender Shannon Doyle had a great rush up the left side of the ice. She got to the left circle, she made a great drop pass to Katerina Mrázová, who then roofed it over Nicole Hensley’s shoulder to give Team Szabados the 2-0 lead heading into halftime.

    https://twitter.com/WSportHilites/status/1094711430144774145

     

    After some halftime music by a live band at Bridgestone Arena, the second half began with Team Stecklein chasing a 2-0 lead. Team Stecklein would get a goal back when Beauts forward Lisa Chesson redirected a shot from Pride forward Gigi Marvin which found the back of the net. A few shifts would go by without a goal, but during that goalless break, we got to see some pretty spectacular defending at the blue line from Michelle Löwenhielm. Later in the half, Emily Fluke would net a five hole goal that tied the game at two. We also got to see an awesome celly between the Team Stecklein players:

     

    At the end of the second half, the game was tied at two. Just like yesterday’s skills competition, the game would require a shootout to determine a winner. In the shootout, there would only be one goal, and it came from Riveters forward Amanda Kessel. It would give Team Szabados the victory and the sweep for the weekend!

     

    It was a pretty historic All Star weekend, the best part about it was the attendance by the Nashville faithful. The recorded attendance was 6, 120, which set a record for largest crowd for a women’s hockey game in the United States!

     

    Not to mention that All Star MVP and Beauts goalie Shannon Szabados talked about the amazingness of nearly ONE MILLION people that watched over the weekend!

     

    Here is my favorite photo from the weekend!:

     

     

    The Whale have three games left on the season, all of them will be home games. The first game will be against the Boston Pride on February 24th at Terry Conners Rink. Puck drop for that game will be 3p EST. The game will be a Twitter Game of the Week, and you can watch that here: https://twitter.com/nwhl

     

    Tweets from Women’s Sports Highlights and Anya Battaglino were used with their permission. You can follow them here: @WSportHilites and @battaglinoa

  • TXHT at the NWHL All Star Festivities!

    TXHT at the NWHL All Star Festivities!

    The NWHL hosted their All Star festivities in Nashville, TN this past weekend. The best players from all five teams came down and showcased their talents in front of an electric Nashville crowd. The skills competition was held at the Ford Ice Center, the practice facility for the Predators; while the All Star Game itself was at the Bridgestone Arena in Downtown Nashville.

    Here’s how the rosters looked for the weekend:

    NWHL-ASG2019-Roster-4_large
    Photo from nwhl.zone

    Skills Competition

    It was a full house at the Ford Ice Center for the NWHL skills competition; people gathered to watch the players have fun and show off. The first event was the fastest skater, in which Kristin Lewicki won the event last year. This year had the likes of Michelle Picard, Amanda Pelkey, Lexi Bender, and Kendall Coyne Schofield for Team Szabados; and Lisa Chesson, Jonna Curtis, Kate Schipper, and Allie Thunstrom for Team Stecklein. If anyone saw the NHL’s fastest skater competition, knows that Coyne was going to be the odds on favorite, and she delivered. Coyne was actually faster than when she did the NHL’s event, [14.3 for the NHL and 13.9 for the NWHL].

    The next competition was the fastest goalies, in which Amanda Leveille returned to defend her title. All four goalies Katie Burt, Amanda Leveille, Shannon Szabados, and Nicole Hensley skated. The final showdown came in the form of a “battle of the teammates” Szabados v Hensley, and it was Nicole Hensley who claims bragging rights.

    Accuracy shooting was up next, where Corinne Buie was the winner last year. The three shooters for Team Szabados were Haley Skarupa, Haley Scamurra, and Savannah Harmon and the three shooters for Team Stecklein were Hannah Brandt, Dani Cameranesi, and Emily Pfalzer. In the end, it was Dani Cameranesi who proved to be the most accurate!

    Talents were on display during the next event, which was the trick shot challenge. All of the skaters have great hands and great creative minds. For Team Szabados it was Amanda Kessel, Madison Packer, and Katerina Mrázová and for Team Stecklein it was Gigi Marvin, Emily Fluke, and Jillian Dempsey. In this particular event, the fans got to vote for the winner of the competition. The event had everything, from Amanda Kessel doing the Flying V from the Mighty Ducks, to Madison Packer with a smooth spin-o-rama attempt that almost scored, to Emily Fluke throwing a cowboy hat, and having her second shot saved by Katie Burt with her back toward her.

    In the end it was Team Stecklein who won over the fans and getting their vote.

    Up next was the hardest shot competition with players who can really bring the heat on their slapshots. Last years winner of the event was Kelsey Koezler, and the players looking to take the title were, for Team Szabados were Shannon Doyle, Amanda Boulier, Audra Richards, and Blake Bolden; and for Team Stecklein were Michelle Löwenhielm, Alyssa Gagliardi, Courtney Burke, and the captain Lee Stecklein. There were a lot of really hard shots, but Blake Bolden won with her shot reaching 80 mph!

    The last event was a go for goal shootout relay in which all the skaters for Team Szabados and Team Stecklein took shootout attempts, and the team with the most goals was declared the winner. After some pretty nifty attempts, it was Team Stecklein who won the event.

    This meant at the end of all competitions, both teams were tied at three wins a piece. It meant that to settle it in a tiebreaker, it was captain vs captain in a best two out of three shootout attempts. Szabados made all the saves and her team won the Skills Competition!

    Audio from Dani Cameranesi of the Buffalo Beauts [Team Stecklein]

    Audio from Kendall Coyne Schofield of the Minnesota Whitecaps [Team Szabados]

    All Star Game

    The All Star Game took place at Bridgestone Arena after the Blues v. Predators game, in which the St. Louis Blues proved victorious in overtime.

    Predators Game.jpg

    It wouldn’t be Nashville without someone throwing a catfish on the ice that landed right by Shannon Doyle just before the opening faceoff.

    Catfish Opening Faceoff.jpg

    Both teams skated to two 25 minute halves of four on four hockey. In the first half, Team Szabados jumped out to the lead, the goal coming from the Riveters rookie forward Audra Richards. Richards, who has eight goals on the year continues her scoring prowess by getting the opening marker. Later in the half, Shannon Doyle led the rush and made a nice drop pass on top of the circle, and it fell on the stick of leading Connecticut Whale scorer Katerina Mrázová, who roofed the shot over Nicole Hensley. The goal gave Team Szabados a 2-0 lead heading into halftime.

    https://twitter.com/WSportHilites/status/1094711430144774145

    During the intermission, and because Nashville is known as Music City, there was some live music being played while we waited for the second half.

    The second half had a lot of good back and forth action and then Gigi Marvin took a shot from the point which got redirected by Lisa Chesson and it found the net beating Katie Burt. The goal cut the Team Szabados lead in half. Later in the half, the game would be tied at two as Whale captain Emily Fluke netting a five hole goal!

    Both goalies [Leveille and Burt] made really incredible saves and at the end of the second half, the score was tied at two. The game moved into a shootout in which Amanda Kessel was the first shooter and she beat Leveille five hole. Then Katie Burt stopped all three Team Stecklein attempts, giving the victory to Team Szabados!

    The best part about the All Star Game weekend was the attendance by the Nashville faithful. The recorded attendance was 6, 120, which set a record for largest crowd for a women’s hockey game in the United States!

    Audio from Amanda Kessel of the Metropolitan Riveters [Team Szabados]:

    Audio from Jonna Curtis of the Minnesota Whitecaps [Team Stecklein]:

    Audio from Shannon Szabados of the Buffalo Beauts [Team Szabados]:

    Audio from Lee Stecklein of the Minnesota Whitecaps [Team Stecklein]:

    Tweet from Women’s Sports Highlights and Anya Battaglino were used with their permission. You can follow them on Twitter here: @WSportHilites and @battaglinoa

  • February 4th, 2019 — News and Notes

    February 4th, 2019 — News and Notes

    Today is Monday, February 4th, 2019, and these are your news and notes from yesterday.

     

    There were only three games on the NHL slate yesterday.

     

     

     

    Boston 1, WASHINGTON 0

    The Boston Bruins would take on the Washington Capitals and would come away with the 1-0 win.  The Washington Capitals have a record of 2-6-2 in their last ten games.

     

    TXHT has your full recap of the contest between the Boston Bruins and the Washington Capitals at the following page.

     

    MONTREAL 4, Edmonton 3 (OT)

    There would be four different scorers for the Montreal Canadiens in this contest against the Edmonton Oilers and would win this contest 4-3 in the overtime frame.

     

    Edmonton would end the weekend of games with overtime heartbreakers, including losing in overtime in this contest to the Canadiens.

     

    Calgary 4, CAROLINA 3

    Four different goal scorers would help the Calgary flames defeat the the Carolina Hurricanes with a 4-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, North Carolina yesterday afternoon.

     

    There will be four games taking place on the NHL schedule tonight.

     

     

    NWHL

     

    To recap from this weekend’s slate of NWHL contests…

     

    The Buffalo Beauts faced off against the Metropolitan Riveters in the NWHL Twitter Game of the Week and would come away with the 3-2 win to notch their fifth straight win.  With the win, the Buffalo Beauts moved to a record of 9-4-0 on the season.

    This would be the first game for the Beauts at RWJBarnabas Health Hockey House since the Isobel Cup final last season, when they would fall to the Riveters 1-0.

    Both teams’ top lines were held at bay throughout the contest as the Beauts got goals from Taylor Accursi, Julianna Iafallo and Savannah Harmon.

    For the Riveters’, their third line produced with Rebecca Morse and Kristin Lewicki each scoring their first goals of the season with Alexa Aramburu picking up the assists on both of the goals.

    The Beauts will next have NWHL action against the Metropolitan Riveters on February 23rd.

    The Whale’s next NWHL contest will be on Sunday, February 24th against the Boston Pride.

    The Boston Pride would face off against the Connecticut Whale and would come away with the 3-1 win.  The Boston Pride are now 9-4-0 on the season, tied with the Buffalo Beauts for the same mark.  With the loss, the Whale are now 2-9-2 on the season.

    For the Pride, Jillian Dempsey and Denisa Krizova would both have a goal and assist in this contest.  Dempsey leads all Boston Pride skaters with nine goals on the season and is second in the league.

    Boston would get on the board just 1:20 into the game with Krizova scoring the goal.

    Connecticut’s Rachael Ade would score to tie the game 1-1 with 55 seconds left in the first period.  That would be Ade’s first career NWHL goal.

    Dempsey would score her ninth goal of the season with her goal less than two minutes into the second period.  Throughout most of the third period, the Whale would spend this time on the penalty kill.  Toni Ann Milano would take advantage of a good rebound of the puck, sealing the 3-1 win for the Boston Pride.

    For a full breakdown of the contest, TXHT’s Chris Vasilas has your recap at the following page.

     

    The NWHL All-Star Game will commence next weekend in Nashville, Tennessee with the resumption of the NWHL schedule on Monday, February 18th, with the Boston Pride taking on the Metropolitan Riveters in a make-up contest that was postponed due to inclement weather.

  • Lundberg Debuts But Whale Come Up Short Against The Pride

    Lundberg Debuts But Whale Come Up Short Against The Pride

    The Connecticut Whale squared off against the Boston Pride on Groundhog’s Day tonight at the Warrior Ice Arena. The Whale played a solid game, but unfortunately fell short against the Pride; dropping this game 3-1. This also pushes the Whale losing streak to seven games.

     

    News and Notes

    The Whale had some signings to announce before this game. As suspected, Colleen Murphy will join the Whale for the rest of the season to bring some stability on the back line.

     

    The Whale also announced that they had signed former goalie Shenae Lundberg to a professional tryout.

     

    1st Period

    In the first period, the Boston Pride got off to a great start; getting a goal about a minute and twenty seconds into the game. The goal was scored by Denisa Krizova, giving the Pride the momentum from the start and establishing a good fore-check.

    Before the end of the first period, it looked like the Whale were going to be down a goal heading into intermission, Rachael Ade took a shot on the left side of the half boards and it beat Katie Burt to tie the game at one all.

    https://twitter.com/WSportHilites/status/1091866588146483200

    The goal for Ade is her first NWHL goal, and her first on the season!

     

    2nd Period

    The Boston Pride came out flying again in the second period, and about two minutes into the second period, Jillian Dempsey cleaned up a rebound in the slot, shooting it past Lundberg. The goal was the ninth of the year for Dempsey.

    https://twitter.com/WSportHilites/status/1091872672475217920

    After the goal, there was good back and forth action between the two teams, however the defenses played a little tighter and the goalies were coming up large with some great saves.

     

    3rd Period

    The action in the first half of the third period was a lot like the end of the second. There was great back and forth action, and great saves by Burt and Lundberg.

    In the second half of the third period, at the nine minute mark, Shannon Doyle got called for a hooking penalty. It knocked Denisa Krizova out of the game for a little bit of time. On the ensuing power play, Toni Ann Miano scooped up a rebound to get the Pride an insurance marker.

    https://twitter.com/WSportHilites/status/1091886690342453249

    After the power play goal, Rachael Ade took a hooking call, sending the Pride back to the power play. Before the puck fell, obviously upset with the call, the referees escorted Emily Fluke to the box. After a brief stint in the box, and still before the puck dropped, the refs then escorted Emily Fluke off the ice. Officially on the boxscore, they gave Fluke a ten minute unsportsmanlike conduct misconduct, with zero minutes. Meaning that the Whale would not be five on three.

    After that bit of craziness, the Pride played lock down on defense and kept the Whale shots to a minimum and gave them no significant offensive chances. Katie Burt sealed the deal for a Pride win, making 25 saves on 26 shots.

     

    Boxscore

    https://www.nwhl.zone/game/show/22207070?subseason=512423&referrer=4170047

     

    3 Stars of the Game

    Shenae Lundberg: She played really solid on her debut. Making 22 saves on 25 shots, as she was really in the zone.

    Rachael Ade: Scoring the lone goal for the Whale tonight, she had a beautiful shot on the half boards to tie the game at one before the end of the first period. It is also her first NWHL goal!

    Shannon Doyle: She got the assist on the Rachael Ade goal, giving her six points on the year. She currently has a four game point streak, heading into the All Star Break.

     

     

    The next game that the Whale play will be on February 24th as they look to exact some revenge against the Boston Pride in Stamford, CT.

    Next weekend is the NWHL All Star Game in Nashville, TN. Where Shannon Doyle, Emily Fluke, Michelle Löwenhielm, and Katerina Mrázová will be participating.

     

    Tweets from Women’s Sports Highlights were used with their permission. You can follow them here: @WSportHilites

  • January 21st, 2019 — News and Notes

    January 21st, 2019 — News and Notes

    Today is Monday, January 21st, 2019, and these are your news and notes.

     

    There were five contests in NHL action yesterday.

     

    CHICAGO 8, Washington 5

     

    The Chicago Blackhawks would face off against the defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals and would come away with an 8-5 win in Chicago.

     

    This contest would fast and furious for the Chicago Blackhawks and would end the first period with a 3-1 lead, thanks to goals from Brandon Saad and Patrick Kane with the third goal credited to Jonathan Toews.  The third goal would be due to Washington Capitals Dmitry Orlov hitting the puck into his own net.

     

    The second period would get very chippy in the first six minutes of gameplay with six penalties being duelled out within 45 seconds.  Washington would try to get shots in but nothing would hit in the second period, aside from Dmitry Orlov’s goal.  Alex DeBrincat would score for Chicago, making the score 4-2 at the end of the second period.

     

    The third period is when Washington would turn on the jets to make a full comeback and came within a goal to make the contest 5-4, but the comeback would not be enough as Chicago would score three more goals.

     

    Jonathan Toews would score three goals in the contest, giving him his second hat trick on the season.

     

    With an assist from Chicago’s Patrick Kane, he now has sole possession of third place in terms of assists all-time in the long and storied history of the Blackhawks franchise.

    Toews would have his third game in which he registered at least five points in a game.

     

    TXHT has your full recap of the contest at the following page.

     

     

    NY ISLANDERS 3, Anaheim 0

     

    The Metropolitan Division-leading NY Islanders faced off against the slumping Anaheim Ducks and would go on to win this contest 3-0.  With this win by the Islanders, they have now won their last five contests.

     

    This would also be the second consecutive shutout that the Islanders would have in this contest.

     

    VANCOUVER 3, Detroit 2

    Vancouver Canucks rookie phenom Elias Pettersson would return to action in this game and would record one goal and one assist to help lift the Canucks past the Detroit Red Wings by the score of 3-2.

     

    https://twitter.com/Canucks/status/1087139719245230081

     

     

     

     

    Arizona 4, TORONTO 2

    Carolina 7, EDMONTON 4

    Edmonton Oilers Leon Drasital would score two goals for his team but that would not be enough as the Oilers would fall to the Carolina Hurricanes by the score of 7-4.

    For Carolina, the scoring would be often.  Nino Niederreiter would have two goals in the contest and Hurricanes phenom Sebastian Aho would find the score sheet three times with three assists in the start of a road trip for Carolina.  Carolina’s Jaccob Slavin would have three assists of his own in this contest.

     

     

    There are only four games in action today in the NHL.  The first game starts at 3 p.m. with the Nashville Predators visiting the Colorado Avalanche.

     

     

     

     

    NWHL

     

    In NWHL action yesterday, the Minnesota Whitecaps would close out the home portion of the regular season schedule with a win over the Connecticut Whale, sweeping the weekend series.

    The Minnesota Whitecaps would go to throttle the Connecticut Whale by the score of 9-0 in front of another sold-out crowd at TRIA Rink.

    Minnesota’s Jonna Curtis would lead all skaters for the Whitecaps with a goal and three assists in the contest and would once again tie all NWHL skaters for most points on the season.  Curtis has 17 points on the season thus far.

    Kendall Coyne Schofield had two goals and an assist in the contest and Katie McGovern would have two goals of her own.

    Allie Thunstrom would also have a tally and a helper while Emma Stauber had two assists.

    Kalli Funk would go on to net her first career NWHL goal.

    Whitecaps goaltender Julie Friend picked up the shutout in her first career start, recording 18 saves.

    For the Whale, star Meeri Räisänen would leave in the second period due to a collision and Laura Brennan would replace her in net.  Brennan would have 11 saves on 18 attempts while Räisänen had 21 saves on 23 attempts before she had to depart the contest.

    Games coming up for the Connecticut Whale:

    • February 2nd, 2019: at Boston Pride
    • February 24th, 2019: vs. Boston Pride
    • March 2nd, 2019: vs. Buffalo Beauts
    • March 3rd, 2019: vs.  Minnesota Whitecaps

     

    Games coming up for the Minnesota Whitecaps:

    • March 2nd, 2019: at Boston Pride
    • March 3rd, 2019: at Connecticut Whale