On Sunday, February 4^th, the PWHL Montreal versus PWHL Boston series made its debut in Lowell, Massachusetts. The first matchup back on January 13^th ended with a “controversial” disallowed goal in overtime that led to a 3-2 OT victory for Boston. Since that match, both teams had been sporting a 3-1 record, including a 2-game winning streak, so it was almost guaranteed that we would see a great contest. Boston went back to Aerin Frankel in goal and Montreal would give Elaine Chuli the nod as a reward for unbelievable performance against PWHL Minnesota back on January 24^th.

               Boston got out to a strong start in the opening 10 minutes where they tested Chuli early and often; however, after being denied in the opening burst, Montreal was able to take control of possession and the pace of play down the back stretch of the period. With 4 minutes remaining in the period, Erin Ambrose would score her 2^nd goal of the season on an incredibly well-placed crosser that caught Frankel’s pads perfectly for Montreal (helpers from Marie-Philip Poulin and Maureen Murphy). The second period saw a great series of north and south plays from both teams, but great defensive positioning from both teams, as well as some phenomenal saves from Chuli and Frankel kept the game at 1-0 after minutes. The third period saw a continuation of the open north-and-south play from the period, as well as the substantial physical play along the walls by both teams. 4-minutes into the 3^rd period, Boston’s checking line evened the game at one with a great release from Sophie Shirley (assist from Hannah Brandt). Both teams continued to throw great transitional opportunities through the period, but neither group could get one past the opposing goaltender. Overtime was longer than I expected it to be. Boston and Montreal traded some great opportunities in the first two minutes of the overtime period, but it was clear that Courtney Kessel was not managing their line changes well during possession changes. Twice in the first two minutes, Montreal’s zone entries featured a 3-2 entry due to a Boston player changing behind the play, and the third time that it happened, Montreal would seize the opportunity. Philip-Poulin and Ambrose would carry the puck into the zone and below the goal-line before Ambrose threaded a pass directly out front to Laura Stacey who would not miss the open goal on Frankel’s far side from point blank range.

               Overall, the Star Players for PWHL Montreal have shined brightly since opening night and have shown no signs of dimming as the year has gone on. All four of their point scorers have been consistently impactful in the offensive zone since opening night. Chuli has also been a surprise for this group this season. Her time with the Toronto Six was very good down the stretch over the past 3 years but expecting her to be above a 0.960 save percentage through the early going of the season is another matter altogether. Boston continues to see good play creation from their top-9 forwards, with Brandt and Shirley breaking through in this game. Once the D-corps can clean up the accuracy of their outlet passes (except for Megan Keller) this group will be scoring substantially more off the rush due to their ability to play fast in space. Finally, Frankel continues to be exceptional for this group, and sans bizarre defensive miscues and one weird bounce in this game, did more than enough to win the game for Boston.