New York visits Boston for the third time at the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell
LOWELL, MA (March 10, 2024) – The Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) schedule for this week wraps up with a pair of Sunday afternoon games, including Boston against New York, at 3:00 p.m. ET at the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell.
WHERE TO WATCH
Fans in the United States can watch the game live on MSG/MSGHD/MSG2, on NESN or streamed on the NESN 360 app by logging in with their TV provider or purchasing a direct subscription. The game is available on Bally Sports North, the Bally Sports app on mobile and tablet devices (including iOS and Android), ballysports.com when authenticated using pay-TV credentials, and on Bally Sports+, the standalone streaming subscription service available from Bally Sports. The game will also be streamed on the league’s YouTube channel and in Canada on CBC Gem. Eric Gallanty will have the play-by-play call alongside analyst Bridgette Proulx.
CELEBRATING WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH
Today’s game at the Tsongas Center will spotlight a number of women trailblazers as part of Women’s History Month celebrations. During the game, women who are making a difference for PWHL Boston, the Boston Bruins, and NESN will be acknowledged. The team will also recognize Amy Lowe, a recently retired director of girl’s hockey for the Nashoba Youth Hockey Association. On the concourse, fans can learn more about Strong Girls United, Sports Girls Club, and the upcoming Women’s Frozen Four.
SETTING THE STAGE
Just two points separate these two teams in the standings heading into their third meeting of the season. Boston (4-2-2-6) has 18 points and sit fourth overall, and New York (2-4-2-7) has 16 points in sixth place. Ottawa fits between them in fifth place with 17 points. Both teams are looking for a win to snap a losing streak. Boston has lost two straight games in regulation for the first time all season, with the losses following the team’s first stretch of back-to-back regulation wins. They were victorious in their last game at the Tsongas Center on Feb. 21, beating Ottawa 3-1, then picked up a 2-0 shutout in Minnesota on Feb. 25. Most recently, they lost 3-1 to Montréal last Saturday, and 3-1 to Toronto on Wednesday. New York won both previous games played in Boston and hope the Tsongas Center is the key to getting back on track from a season-high four straight losses. The team suffered its two most recent setbacks on home ice, falling 2-0 to Minnesota last Sunday at UBS Arena, and 4-3 to Montréal on Wednesday at Total Mortgage Arena. New York has collected 13 of a possible 27 points in nine road games this season, including five of the team’s six wins. Boston has managed just seven of a possible 24 points in eight home games this season, including two of their six wins. The teams will play two more times this season with a Mar. 25 date at UBS Arena next on the schedule.
THE SEASON SERIES SO FAR
Today marks the third game of the season between the teams at the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell. New York won the first two games, including a 4-1 win on Jan. 20, and a 2-1 overtime victory on Feb. 17. In the last encounter, it was North Reading, MA, native Alex Carpenter who scored the winning goal at 2:28 of the extra frame. The goal spoiled late-game heroics by Megan Keller who tied the score for Boston with just 1:04 remaining in regulation. Emma Woods scored New York’s first goal and finished with two points along with Jaime Bourbonnais who had two assists. Jade Downie-Landry was the star of the first game with a hat trick performance. Corinne Schroeder, who played last season with the PHF’s Boston Pride, won both games between-the-pipes for New York with 32 and 34-save performances for an impressive .971 save percentage head-to-head. Emma Söderberg got the start in the first game of the season series but was relieved by Aerin Frankel after allowing three goals. Frankel stopped 22 of 24 shots in the rematch.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
New York’s Alex Carpenter is tied for the scoring lead with 17 points, including eight goals and nine assists in 15 games. Ella Shelton (4G, 8A) leads all defenders in scoring with 12 points. Jessie Eldridge (6G, 4A), who became the first player this season to score two powerplay goals in a single game on Wednesday, has 10 points and is tied for third in team scoring with Abby Roque (3G, 7A). Jaime Bourbonnais (2G, 7A) is fifth in team scoring with nine points. New York’s top-five scorers all represent the league’s top-five powerplay producers who have a combined 31 points when playing with the advantage. Boston’s Alina Müller leads the team in scoring with 11 points in 14 games, which includes nine assists — tied for most in the league. Megan Keller (3G, 7A) ranks second in scoring among defenders with 10 points. The trio of Loren Gabel (4G 3A), Susanna Tapani (3G, 4A), and Jamie Lee Rattray (2G, 5A) are tied for third in team scoring with seven points.
GETTING READY FOR WORLDS
USA Hockey announced on Wednesday the 39 athletes who have been invited to the 2024 U.S. Women’s National Team Evaluation Camp, which will take place March 27-30 at the Lake Placid Olympic Center in Lake Placid, N.Y. Thirteen PWHL players are listed, including Alex Carpenter (NY), Aerin Frankel (BOS), Megan Keller (BOS), and Hilary Knight (BOS). The Canadian National Women’s Team was announced in full by Hockey Canada this week and includes forward Jamie Lee Rattray (BOS), and defenders Jaime Bourbonnais (NY) and Ella Shelton (NY). Alina Müller (BOS) has also been named to Switzerland’s roster for the 2024 IIHF Women’s World Championship taking place in Utica, NY, Apr. 3-14.
SELECTION SUNDAY
The 2024 NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Championship Bracket is officially set with 11 teams in the hunt for the national title after Division I conference tournaments have been completed. The University of Minnesota-Duluth will take on the University of Connecticut, Cornell will play Stonehill, and St. Lawrence will face Penn State in first round action. Among those teams, Jess Healey (BOS), Sidney Morin (BOS), Emma Söderberg (BOS), and Elizabeth Giguère (NY) are Bulldogs alumnae, Jaime Bourbonnais (NY), Jill Saulnier (NY), and Micah Zandee-Hart (NY) are former Big Red, and Kayla Vespa (NY) played for the Saints. Ohio State (1), Wisconsin (2), Colgate (3), Clarkson (4), and Minnesota (5) drew the top five rankings. Paetyn Levis (NY) is a former Buckeye. Hilary Knight (BOS), Cami Kronish (BOS), Sophie Shirley (BOS), Madison Packer (NY), and Abby Roque (NY) are former Badgers. Jessie Eldridge (NY) and Olivia Zafuto (NY) are former Raiders. Loren Gabel (BOS), Jamie Lee Rattray (BOS), Giguère (NY), and Ella Shelton (NY) are former Golden Knights. Hannah Brandt (BOS), Emily Brown (BOS), Gigi Marvin (BOS), and Savannah Norcross (NY) are former Gophers. The NCAA Women’s Frozen Four takes place in Durham, NH, Mar. 22-24.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
“As a team we are focused on doing the little things and playing well in all three zones. Playing a full 60 minutes of hockey is what we need to do in order to win and be successful.” – Loren Gabel, Boston
“We’re not at the beginning of the season anymore. For us, it’s time to play. The talking is done, I think the action now needs to be done by the players.” – Courtney Kessel, Boston
“The team is very excited about today’s game against Boston. It’s another opportunity for our team to get better together. With just nine games left in the season, we know how crucial every game is. We are looking to move forward here and winning games.” – Kayla Vespa, New York
“With the exception of one or two periods here and there, I feel like our team has been trending in a positive way. We’ve been in the hunt every game that we’ve played, our team play has been more unified of late, and I believe that each player’s confidence is advancing. All signs are pointing to us peaking at the right time. We just have to continue to march forward period to period and game to game. Hopefully, today’s game will be a continuation of that trend.” – Howie Draper, New York
QUICK HITS
New York (-3) is fourth in goal differential and Boston (-6) is tied for fifth…New York (2.20) is fourth in goals-per-game and Boston (2.14) ranks sixth…New York (2.40) allows the third most goals-per-game and Boston (2.57) allows the second most on average…Boston has won all four games when they’ve scored the first goal…New York has scored first in six of its 15 games…Both teams have scored their most goals in the third period with New York at 14 and Boston at 12…New York has played in nine one-goal games and Boston in seven…Boston (-14) is fourth in shot differential and New York (-90) is sixth…Boston (27.57) is fourth in shots-per-game average and New York (27.47) ranks fifth…Boston (28.57) allows the third most shots-per-game and New York (33.40) allows the most on average…Boston has outshot its opponents four times and New York has only outshot its opponents once…New York (7.67) averages the most penalty minutes per game and Boston (6.00) ranks fourth…New York (11/47) is second in powerplay efficiency at 23.4%...Boston (2/33) ranks sixth on the PP at 6.1%...Boston (34/37) is second in penalty kill efficiency at 91.9%...New York (41/46) is third on the PK at 89.1%...Alex Carpenter (NY) is tied for the league-lead with 17 points…Ella Shelton (NY) leads all defenders in scoring with 12 points…Carpenter and Alina Müller (BOS) are in a four-way tie for the league-lead with nine assists…Carpenter leads the league with eight powerplay points…Taylor Girard (BOS) is tied for the league-lead with two shorthanded points…Susanna Tapani (BOS) leads the league with a plus-11 rating…Jade Downie-Landry (NY) and Abby Roque (NY) are tied for second in the league with seven minor penalties…Hilary Knight leads Boston with 43 shots on goal…Jessie Eldridge leads New York with 59 shots…Hannah Brandt (111/206) leads Boston in face-offs and with a 53.9% win-rate…Roque (121/199) leads New York with a 60.8% face-off percentage…Carpenter (60.5%) leads the team with 271 draws…Emma Söderberg (BOS) has won two of her four starts with a goals-against-average of 3.25 and save percentage of .872…Abbey Levy (NY) has one win in five starts with a 2.58 GAA and .917 SV%... Müller will celebrate her 26th birthday on Tuesday.
PROJECTED LINEUPS
BOSTON:
Müller | Tapani | Knight Schafzahl | Brandt | Rattray Gabel | Darkangelo | Shirley Girard | Marvin | Pelkey Wenczkowski
Keller | FratkinBrown | MorinDiGirolamo | Healey
Söderberg | Frankel
Scratches: Cook, Kronish
NEW YORK:
Downie-Landry | Carpenter | Eldridge Saulnier | Roque | Levis Aurard | Woods | Giguère Vespa | Labelle | Packer Norcross
Fällman | Shelton Hobson | Bourbonnais Zandee-Hart | Baker
Levy | Schroeder
Scratches: Post, Zafuto
OFFICIALS:
Referees: James Curtin (Walpole, MA) and Amanda Tassoni (Bradford, RI). Linespersons: Patrick Dapuzzo (Rutherford, NJ) and Laura Gutauskas (Woolwich, ON).
Follow the league on all social media platforms @thepwhlofficial plus team accounts @pwhl_boston and @pwhl_newyork.