Pride Punch Ticket to Finals with 6-2 Win over Six
March 26, 2021 - Premier Hockey Federation (PHF)
Boston Pride News Release
The Boston Pride will play for the Isobel Cup following a 6-2 semifinal victory over the top-ranked Toronto Six.
Skating at their familiar Warrior Ice Arena beneath the banners of the six-time Stanley Cup champion Bruins, the fourth seed and hometown squad had a pair of two-goal flurries in the first two periods and never looked back.
"We have been preparing for this for over a year now and I think it was a culmination of hard work by these players," head coach Paul Mara told media post-game. "They have been dedicated since September to hone their craft, to become better, and sacrificing a lot. We have to work even harder and prepare for tomorrow night."
10 Pride found the scoresheet including five players with multi-point efforts, while goaltender Lovisa Selander turned aside 23 of the 25 shots she faced.
"They are a tough team to play against," McKenna Brand said. "They are physical. I think we saw that today. We prepared for it. I think we changed a couple of things since the last time we played them and it obviously worked out in our favor."
Toronto controlled play early on showing why they had a league-high four victories over six games in Lake Placid. However moments after a video review on a Six chance kept the game scoreless, the Pride took the lead when Mary Parker found Tereza Vanisova with a backhand feed across the goalmouth for the tap in tally at 13:48.
It took just 38 seconds for the Pride to strike again in a similar fashion after McKenna Brand helped force a turnover and Christina Putigna sent a cross-crease pass to captain Jillian Dempsey who batted one out of the air and into the net at 14:26.
The Six replied at 15:35 with Breanne Wilson-Bennett on the doorstep jamming in a rebound off a Mikyla Grant-Mentis wide-angle shot to make it a one-goal game after 20 minutes.
Pride defenseman Mallory Souliotis opened the scoring in the middle frame by blasting a shorthanded slap shot from just inside the blue line beating Elaine Chuli at 4:25. Vanisova picked up the assist for her second point of the night.
31 seconds later the trio of Putigna, Dempsey, and Brand connected again with the latter finding the back of the net to make it 4-1.
Boston got third-period goals from Sammy Davis at 3:52, then Parker got her second point of the night with a goal at 6:56.
Grant-Mentis, Toronto's top-scoring rookie, got her second point of the night with a goal at 12:18 to finish her rookie season with 11 points in seven games.
The Six leave Boston with their heads held high after a successful debut campaign.
"They came in, in my opinion, as some of the best humans I've ever coached," said Six head coach Digit Murphy. "I mean they have been on a mission since day one. They've had to quarantine twice now.
These players are immense leaders and that's what I'm the most proud of. I know that this team has a tremendous future."
With the win, the Pride avenged a 2-1 loss suffered in their only other meeting of the season against the Six. They'll aim to capture their first Isobel Cup since the league's inaugural 2015-16 season against the winner of Friday's second semifinal between the Minnesota Whitecaps and Connecticut Whale. Saturday's game time is 7 p.m. ET televised on NBCSN and streamed on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app exclusively in the U.S., and streamed via Twitch in Canada and other international markets.
Premier Hockey Federation Stories from March 26, 2021
- Pride Punch Ticket to Finals with 6-2 Win over Six - Boston Pride
- NWHL to Welcome Boston Mayor Kim Janey for Isobel Cup Championship - PHF
- NWHL Announces Zero Positive COVID-19 Test Results Prior to Playoffs - PHF
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