Whitecaps Wash Away Riveters in First Round Playoff
March 26, 2022 - Premier Hockey Federation (PHF)
Minnesota Whitecaps News Release
The Minnesota Whitecaps punched their ticket to the Isobel Cup semifinals with a 4-1 preliminary round victory over the Metropolitan Riveters on Friday night at Tampa Bay's AdventHealth Center Ice.
Goaltender Amanda Leveille returned to the Whitecaps crease for the first time since February 5 and made 32 saves, with the offense led by two goals from Sydney Baldwin and three assists from both Jonna Curtis and Audra Morrison.
Minnesota represents the PHF's fifth seed, finishing just two points behind Metropolitan in the 2021-22 standings. The teams played to 2-2 records in head-to-head action, splitting their final weekend series of the season just two weeks ago. The Whitecaps will take on the top ranked Connecticut Whale on Sunday.
"It's just unbelievable," Leveille said of her return. "I've been wanting to be able to put on my jersey and be with my teammates for the longest time now and when it actually happened, it's just so incredible. Just looking around the room I feel so confident being able to play because of the teammates I have in front of me. I'm just so grateful to be part of this team and to have the opportunity to play today."
Before her injury, the PHF's most winningest goaltender of all-time started the team's first 11 games of the season, collecting four wins and a save percentage of .937 that was among the league's best. She was proud of what she saw from inside the crease.
"I think our team absolutely dominated today," Leveille added. "We controlled the puck from start to finish and I think that really helped carry our team the full way. It's easy to play goalie when you have teammates like I do."
And Leveille's presence undoubtedly raised the confidence level of her teammates.
"She's always been kind of our backbone for the team," said Whitecaps co-head coach Ronda Engelhardt. "When I told her she was playing she was like a little kid in a candy store. She was so excited. She loves to play, loves to compete. We know that every time she's in the net she's competing to do her best and wants to be the best no matter what. It helped energize things and maybe even gave the team a little extra energy to play hard for her."
Morrison agreed, and summarized her feelings for Leveille in one simple word.
"Amazing," she said. "I don't know what else to say besides amazing."
The fourth year forward led last year's playoffs with five points in two games. Alongside Curtis, she assisted on each of Minnesota's first three goals, finding Taylor Turnquist at 7:54 of the first period to open the scoring.
"Our line is buzzing and we just feel really confident on the ice," Morrison said. "We're getting pucks to the net and they're leading to the back of the net."
Morrison now has points in nine-straight games, totalling 12 in that span after a slow start to the year.
"My confidence level has gone up," she said. "At the beginning of the season I couldn't find the back of the net. When that happens you just need to keep going and find a way. I have great linemates and they help me get my points."
Baldwin's first goal at 6:54 of the second period made it 2-0 for the Whitecaps. Kelly Babstock put the Riveters on the board less than two minutes later at 8:42. Baldwin's second at 11:58 widened the gap and showed just how dangerous a defender she can be with four points in three games since the late season re-signing. Allie Thunstrom added an empty-netter. Brooke Wolejko made 29 saves in defeat.
"The first period was eye opening for a lot of players," said Riveters captain Madison Packer. "Minnesota is a fast team and they're physical, so they push the pace and we were kind of on our heels in that first period. We reset and played decent in the second, but we got outplayed."
The Riveters season showed flashes of promise with two victories over Boston, one against Connecticut, and closely contested battles with Toronto, but could not find the gear they needed against Minnesota.
"They outworked us for the majority of the game," Packer added. "We had some chances that we couldn't capitalize on. We just couldn't get the bounces tonight. They played better than us tonight and deserved to win the game."
This marks the fourth straight instance where the Whitecaps have ended the Riveters season, winning 5-1 and 1-0 in the 2019 and 2020 semifinals. They also beat them 1-0 in what became the Rivs final game of the shortened 2021 season in Lake Placid.
"Definitely disappointing," said Riveters head coach Ivo Mocek. "We felt that we prepared well. We felt that our last three weekends over the regular season we were playing the hockey close to the kind of hockey that we wanted to play. We felt ready when we came here. Unfortunately that game was kind of a summary of the entire season. Too many ups and downs. We had some really good stretches in the game, really good moments, but then two shifts later we were not sharp mentally. It was a perfect display of that season in one game."
The Whitecaps turn their attention to the Whale and a fourth straight semifinal appearance. The clubs also met last year with a berth in the Isobel Cup final on the line with Minnesota cruising to a 7-0 win.
"It felt good to get the win," Engelhardt said. "They are always intense games when we play the Riveters. Our team came out ready to play, ready to win, worked hard, and played a full game and that's what we needed to do."
Sunday's semifinal starts at 1:00 p.m. ET and streams live on ESPN+ and TSN.ca.
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