Pride Open Playoffs with Shutout over Beauts
March 26, 2022 - Premier Hockey Federation (PHF)
Boston Pride News Release
The defending champion Boston Pride began their postseason quest for a third Isobel Cup title with authority, eliminating the Buffalo Beauts on Friday afternoon with a 6-0 shutout victory to open preliminary round play at AdventHealth Center Ice near Tampa Bay, Florida.
Katie Burt turned aside all 32 shots faced including 13 in the final frame, and six different skaters found the back of the net including defender Kali Flanagan and forward Tereza Vanisova who both recorded their first career PHF goals. Carly Jackson made 30 saves for Buffalo.
The third seeded Pride avenged a pair of overtime losses suffered at the hands of the sixth place Beauts in last weekend's regular season finish to advance to Sunday's semifinal where they'll take on the Toronto Six.
"I think that's the Boston Pride that we've been waiting for since probably September 28," said Boston head coach Paul Mara. "We had a few spurts here and there during the season but that's what we've been aiming to play all year. When our back is up against the wall I think our leadership group that we have in the locker room really knows how to step up. We did that today."
After a scoreless first period the Pride unloaded for three tallies, beginning at 8:19 of the second stanza with Taylor Wenczkowski who led the team with eight regular season goals. Flanagan followed at 14:42 and captain Jillian Dempsey made it 3-0 less than a minute later at the 15:14 mark.
"That's the way we know we can play," said Dempsey, a two-time Isobel Cup champion and reigning playoff MVP. "I think every line was firing, all the D pairings were making great crisp passes and Burtie (Katie Burt) played unbelievable back there. We were feeding off the energy on the bench and making the little plays on the ice and obviously it worked out great for us. That's the expectation for the Boston Pride and what we aim to bring every game."
Christina Putigna scored midway through the third period and added an assist on Vanisova's goal. Flanagan picked up a helper on a Mary Parker mark in the final three minutes to finish with two points of her own. Fellow defenders Amanda Boulier and Kaleigh Fratkin also finished with two assists, and forward McKenna Brand led the way with three assists all recorded during second period scoring.
"Being able to score my first goal at a time like that was really exciting, and being able to celebrate with my teammates afterwards was even better," said Flanagan, who joined the Pride this season after competing with the U.S. National Women's Team. "Going up 2-0 kind of opened up the flood gates and we were able to put them away after that. It was definitely a big moment."
Flanagan's goal was one of three scored on the power play by a Pride unit that produced only four with the advantage the entire regular season, operating at a league-low efficiency of .056.
"You look at successful teams in the playoffs and regular season, their power play and penalty kill do extremely well," Mara said. "We got three power play goals tonight and did great on the penalty kill and we're going to keep working on it and keep getting better."
The six Pride goals equal the team's second best output this season. What's typically been a high powered offense averaged just 2.4 goals-per-game during the 2021-22 campaign which ranked fifth.
"This whole season it hasn't found the back of the net the way we hoped it would," Dempsey said. "Our belief is that we keep working and believing and keep supporting each other and that they're going to go in. For us the floodgates open and we're excited to go and hopefully produce the same thing again on Sunday."
Burt's shutout was her fourth in 13 total games this season after leading the PHF with a goals-against-average of 1.41 and save percentage of .958.
"I've played in front of Burt for a long time now and I think just having a goalie back there that's just so strong and steady inside the net just gives the team a little bit more confidence," Flanagan said. "Being able to get the win for her, and obviously she played amazing and got the shutout which was really awesome."
The Beauts season comes to a disappointing end, missing out on a semifinal bid for the third straight season. The club led the PHF with 11 newcomers on the roster but showed a lot of growth over the course of the season and displayed heart and character right until the bitter end.
"I think that's what separates a team is the character that you have in the locker room," said Buffalo co-captain Taylor Accursi. "The Beauts have always been prideful on having a family and not just teammates. You learn a lot from losses. There's going to be a lot of players that go home and think about what happened today and what they could have done to be better. That's what's going to make them better."
Boston's date with Toronto is a rematch of the 2021 semifinals, won 6-2 by the Pride last March at Warrior Ice Arena. The clubs split the season series that included two recent overtime victories for the Six, with a shootout win and a lopsided 8-2 decision on record for the Pride.
"We know the group that we have in there," said Mara. "When we play the way we're capable of playing, when we're focused, when we're intense and we're playing with passion there isn't a better team in the world. That's what I believe and I think our team believes that now. We've set the standard and the bar for what we can do out there. Practice tomorrow, get focused for Toronto, and take it from there."
Sunday's semifinal starts at 4:30 p.m. ET and streams live on ESPN+ and TSN.ca.
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