PHF Weekend Pulse: December 18-19
December 20, 2021 - Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) News Release
(Brooklyn, N.Y.) - The Toronto Six and Connecticut Whale both earned weekend road sweeps and enter the holiday break in first and second place respectively in the overall Premier Hockey Federation standings.
Here's a closer look at the results, top performers, and other notable highlights.
SATURDAY DECEMBER 18
Game 20
Connecticut Whale 3
Buffalo Beauts 1
Kennedy Marchment buried a centering pass from Alyssa Wohlfeiler late in the third period to break a 1-1 tie before an Emily Fluke empty-netter sealed the win for Connecticut.
Game 21
Toronto Six 4
Minnesota Whitecaps 0
Michela Cava's fourth goal of the season scored early in the first period was all Toronto needed offensively as Elaine Chuli turned aside all 28 shots she faced to preserve the shutout victory.
SUNDAY DECEMBER 19
Game 22
Toronto Six 2
Minnesota Whitecaps 1
Captain Shiann Darkangelo and top scorer Mikyla Grant-Mentis both produced a goal and an assist to lead the Six to a fourth straight victory atop the PHF standings.
Game 23
Connecticut Whale 3
Buffalo Beauts 1
Whale veterans led the way to a fourth straight win as forward Janine Weber scored once with an assist and captain Shannon Turner chipped in two assists from the back end.
PHF 3 STARS OF THE WEEK
First Star: Mikyla Grant-Mentis finished the weekend with a goal and three assists and leads the PHF scoring race with 15 points through nine games heading into the holiday break. On Saturday night in Minnesota the reigning MVP contributed two assists on Toronto's first two goals including a secondary helper on the game-winner and primary pass on the insurance marker in the 4-0 decision. Then on Sunday she contributed a secondary assist on the game-tying goal, then sniped the go-ahead tally 1:04 later to edge the Whitecaps 2-1. The goal was the fifth of the season for the Merrimack College graduate which includes a PHF-high three game-winners and brought her plus-minus rating up to a leading +14 figure. The 23-year-old from Brampton, Ontario was last week's second star and has now produced three-straight multi-point performances and leads the PHF with six so far during the 2021-22 season.
Second Star: Elaine Chuli was once again near perfect in Toronto's crease allowing just a single goal over two weekend wins in Minnesota. Last week's first star posted a second-straight shutout with 28 saves in Saturday's 4-0 decision, then stopped 17 shots as part of the 2-1 triumph against the Whitecaps. This marks a second straight weekend with a goals-against-average of 0.50 for the 27-year-old from Waterford, Ontario to lower her PHF-leading mark to 1.14. Her weekend save percentage of .978 also lowers her season stat to .952 which ranks second overall. The University of Connecticut graduate has now won all seven of her starts so far in the 2021-22 campaign which leads all PHF goaltenders.
Third Star: Kennedy Marchment scored a goal in both of Connecticut's 3-1 weekend wins in Buffalo to give her a PHF-high six goals on the season and extend her leading point-streak to nine-straight games. Her third period tally on Saturday against the Beauts was her first career game-winner, while Sunday's strike also came in the final frame by a deflection and held as the game's insurance marker. The 25-year-old from Courtice, Ontario is a St. Lawrence University graduate competing in her first career PHF season after spending the past three years in the SDHL. The newcomer enters the holiday break second in PHF scoring with 13 points in 10 games.
HOLIDAY STANDINGS
The Toronto Six will celebrate the holiday season and ring in the new year as the first place team in the PHF standings with 22 points (7-1-1) powered by a league-leading seven regulation wins. The Connecticut Whale swim up to second place with 19 points (6-3-1) ahead of the Boston Pride who stand in third place with 15 points (6-2-0) after having their weekend series postponed. The Metropolitan Riveters were also inactive this weekend and remain in fourth place with seven points (2-3-1). Neither the Minnesota Whitecaps (1-6-1) nor Buffalo Beauts (1-4-0) gained any ground this weekend to change the fortune of their four and two-point standings and therefore remain in fifth and sixth place respectively.
STREAKING ROAD WARRIORS
This weekend's performances by both Connecticut and Toronto represent the first series sweeps to take place on the road this season, while the four straight victories are the longest winning streaks so far in 2021-22. This current stretch for the Six equals the four consecutive wins they accumulated during their expansion season in Lake Placid, while the road sweep is their first in franchise history. The Whale last won four in a row back in the inaugural 2015-16 season as part of a franchise record eight straight victories to open 2015-16 competition. The Pod last enjoyed two-straight road wins in Season 2 when they beat the Riveters on October 16 and the Beauts on October 23, 2016.
FIRST CAREER PHF GOALS
Two players celebrated their first career PHF goals on Saturday including Toronto forward Tori Charron and Buffalo defender Emma Keenan. The milestone marker for the Six newcomer was also her first PHF point and came during the third period of her eighth career game and at the time extended Toronto's lead to 3-0 over Minnesota. The 29-year-old scored on an impressive individual effort when she dangled around a Whitecaps defender and buried a backhand deke. The first year Beaut found the back of the net in her fourth career game, burying a loose puck from the slot to the delight of the home crowd as it tied the score 1-1 in the second period. It was the third career point for the 24-year-old from California.
CHULI POSTS BACK-TO-BACK BLANKS
Toronto's Elaine Chuli became just the fourth goaltender in PHF history to record back-to-back shutouts when she blanked Minnesota on Saturday in her first action following a perfect slate on December 12 against the Riveters. The last time the feat was achieved was February 22-23, 2020 by Boston's Lovisa Selander. Katie Fitzgerald also did it for Metropolitan but in the 2018 Isobel Cup semifinal and final. During the 2016-17 season Fitzgerald was also part of a two shutout streak with teammate So Jung Shin, while Pride netminder Brittany Ott also posted consecutive shutouts and three over four games.
THREE STRAIGHT CAPS FOR CONWAY
When Connecticut's Amanda Conway capitalized on a turnover to open Saturday's scoring it marked three-straight games with a goal for the sophomore sniper. The Norwich University graduate who turns 25-years-old on Boxing Day also scored in both Whale wins over Minnesota on December 4 & 5 and owns the PHF's longest goal-streak so far this season. She's got four goals and six points in eight games played after producing a goal and an assist in four appearances during her debut season.
A HAPPY BIRTHDAY FOR WOODS
There's no better way to celebrate your birthday than by scoring a goal and helping your team win. That's exactly what Toronto's Emma Woods did on Saturday when the now 26-year-old sniped her third goal in five games with a wicked wrister from inside the circle. It also happened to be the second power play tally of the contest for the victorious Six who lead the PHF with seven goals on 25 chances with the advantage.
MORRISON SHAKES MONKEY
It may not have brought the desired outcome in the end but Minnesota got the first period monkey off their back on Sunday when Audra Morrison opened the scoring just 41 seconds into the affair. It marked the first goal scored in the first period by any Whitecaps player in eight games so far this season as the club continues to struggle offensively with just 11 goals for. The power forward looked like her old self streaking down the wing and firing with force for her 19th career goal in her fourth PHF season. The Maplewood, MN native led the 2021 Isobel Cup Playoffs with five points including three goals.
FUJIMAGARI FOILS FORMER TEAM
In two starts this season Whale netminder Mariah Fujimagari has two wins. Her latest contribution came on Saturday when she stopped 24 of 25 shots to beat the Beauts by a 3-1 score improving her season stats to a goals-against-average of 3.00 and save percentage of .891. It was surely a special moment for the 27-year-old who made her PHF debut with Buffalo during the 2019-20 season. The win also came opposite her former University of Maine teammate Carly Jackson who stopped 28 shots of her own in defeat. The pair shared the Black Bears crease during the 2016-17 NCAA season with Jackson playing 27 games to Fujimagari's 11.
BERNDTSSON DEBUTS FOR BEAUTS
The first overall pick in the very first International Draft made her PHF debut on Sunday as Lovisa Berndtsson got the call for Buffalo. The 33-year-old Swedish stopper put forth a strong showing with 40 saves for the Beauts despite the hard fought 3-1 loss. At the other end of the ice it was Abbie Ives who emerged victorious for the Whale with her fourth win in eight starts.
WELCOME BACK TO BUFFALO
Prior to puck drop on Saturday the Beauts celebrated some of their alumnae by welcoming back some familiar faces to Northtown Center. Taking part in the pre-game festivities were goaltenders Julia DiTondo, Tiffany Hsu and Kelsey Neumann, plus forwards Katherine Donohue, Jordan Juron, and Emma Ruggiero. Once a Beaut, always a Beaut!
The PHF regular season schedule will pause for the holidays and resume when the calendar changes to 2022. The Whitecaps will visit the Six and the Pride will visit the Beauts for two weekend series January 8-9. All games will stream live on ESPN+ in the United States, while international viewers can catch select action on Twitch and ESPN affiliates including TSN Direct in Canada.
Premier Hockey Federation Stories from December 20, 2021
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