Boston Pride's Mary Parker Named VEDA NWHL Player of the Week
February 20, 2019 - Premier Hockey Federation (PHF)
Boston Pride News Release
The depth of talent on the Boston Pride is a wonder to behold. Just the club's forward lines alone are a showcase of U.S. Olympians and collegiate stars. And if any team thinks it's enough to keep Gigi Marvin, Jillian Dempsey or rookie standouts like McKenna Brand and Denisa Krizova off the board, they're wrong - as the Riveters learned on Monday.
It was Mary Parker who opened the scoring three minutes into Boston's 8-1 triumph in New Jersey, and it was Parker who emphatically shut the door on the game with another goal early in the third period. For her efforts throughout the first multi-point game of her professional career, Parker has been named the VEDA NWHL Player of the Week Award.
"It's an honor and I'm very excited to be named Player of the Week," wrote Parker in an email exchange. "It really was a great team win! We spoke about the importance of Monday's game and setting the tone right from the start after coming off the All-Star Weekend break and heading into the final stretch of the season. We were happy with our fast, strong start and our ability to continue to execute throughout the game."
Coming into the game, Parker had scored one goal in the NWHL after joining the Pride at the end of the 2016-17 season. The former Harvard and Boston University star detailed the reason for her success on Monday in Newark.
"My linemates, Emily Field and Jordan Smelker, were big contributors," said Parker. "As a line, we were playing fast, working well together, and creating opportunities. In addition, our whole D corps created much of our offensive success by making quick plays up the ice and getting pucks to the net in the Riveters' zone."
Prior to joining the Pride in 2016, Parker was 24-21-45 in 36 games at Boston University in her final season of collegiate hockey. She was named Hockey East Second Team All-Star, and her 24 goals led the conference.
At Harvard in 2014-15, she led the Crimson in scoring (17-22-39 in 35 games) and to the NCAA championship game. Over four years at Harvard and one at BU, Parker was 67-69-136 in 140 games. It was only a matter of time before Parker had a breakout offensive game in the pros.
As the playoffs near, Boston, the Buffalo Beauts and Minnesota Whitecaps appear to be the favorites this season to capture the Isobel Cup. The league's thrilling single-elimination bracket, however, means every team has the right to dream.
"We have a great opportunity for continued success," said Parker. "We will continue to prepare, improve, and do what we can to put ourselves in the best position as we head into the final stretch of the season."
Adding to Parker's joy is the Pride's new alignment with the Boston Bruins, which has resulted not just in meaningful initiatives to advance the sports, but added buzz and increased attendance at Pride home games.
"The addition of the Boston Bruins partnership has been an unbelievable experience for us and we really appreciate the support from the Bruins," said Parker. "All of our homes game have sold out since the partnership and it's created an awesome and exciting atmosphere at Warrior. In addition, we participated in the Bruins' Girls Hockey Day earlier this month and we are collaborating with them on the Learn to Play program which takes place in March. I am very excited for the rest of the season!"
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