This Weekend In The CWHL
(LesCanadiennes/Twitter)
Boston Blades vs. Les Canadiennes de Montreal (Canadiennes Sweep 4-0, 7-0)
A few days following their historic game at Gillette Stadium in the first ever Women’s Winter Classic. The Les Canadiennes de Montreal was back in action this weekend against another rival Boston foe, the Boston Blades. The Blades have been in the basement all season, and have a completely different lineup than their Clarkson Cup championship teams. Les Canadiennes, formerly the Montreal Stars, have found their way with the addition of Canadian National team member and BU grad Marie-Philip Poulin. Montreal came into the series in second place trailing only the Calgary Inferno in points in the Clarkson Cup seeding.
In Game one, The Blades might have played their best offensive game of the season, AND yes they were held scoreless but they took more shots in this matchup than most games this season. It was not the total number of chances but the quality of chances. Les Canadiennes outshot the Blades 55-12 but Boston had some great scoring chances pushed away by Montreal goaltender Charline Labonte. In the second period the Blades were award a penalty to give them the advantage but… in a span of 39 seconds Montreal would score two shorthanded goals. The first by Caroline Ouellette who was given a dirty feed by Poulin, then Ann-Sophie Bettez got her first of two on the night. Bettez would add an early third period goal to make it 4-0 in front of a sellout crowd. This matchup was game two in the You Can Play (YCP) initiative.
Game two would be completely different, Les Canadiennes star player and CWHL leading scorer Marie-Philip Poulin would continue her dominance this season. Within a minute of the start of the game Poulin would work her way through the Blades defense and score 47 second into the contest. Only 12 seconds later she would get yet another goal on the dish from Ouellette. 2-0 less than a minute into the game! Was this the fastest scores back to back by one player in history? I mean wow! Katia Clement-Heydra would add a late first period goal to take it into the first intermission 3-0 for Les Canadiennes. We will skip over to the third and Montreal would continue to dominate. In the series Les Canadiennes outshot the Blades 112-26, and 57-14 in game two. Clement-Heydra would get her second of the game when Kim Deschenes would find her open for the fifth score in the matchup. Leslie Oles and Cathy Chartand would put it away for Les Canadiennes who would win it by the score of 7-0. Labonte picked up her second consecutive shutout and has had a phenomenal season so far for Montreal.
Brampton Thunder vs. Toronto Furies (Thunder Sweep 3-0, 5-4) In the historic matchup as part of the You Can Play initiative the CWHL, Sportsnet Canada, and YCP teamed up to air the first ever regular season broadcast of the Brampton Thunder visiting the Toronto Furies. Brampton came in fighting with Montreal for second place in the CWHL Clarkson Cup playoffs. Toronto had come off an impressive sweep of the Boston Blades, and Christina Kessler was playing really well for the Furies. However, the Thunder have been played well lately taking a split with Les Canadiennes in early December. Erica Howe has gone 3-1 in her last four starts with the lone loss coming to Montreal, while also posting two shutouts. So what would the weekend bring?
In game one, broadcasted live nationwide in Canada, saw a great defensive start by both units on the ice. Brampton would outshot Toronto but not by much taking an 8-7 advantage into the first intermission. Kessler was busy in net and the Thunder play a physical game so the defense also was taking some big hits early on in this matchup. Candice Styles and Jess Jones were all over the place in the first, Styles had a few chances on the wing but could not convert. Jones had some amazing opportunities but would be denied by Kessler. Natalie Spooner had a great chance for the Furies on multiple occasions but Howe would stop her with a few beautiful saves to keep the game scoreless. The second period saw much of the same; the Furies and Thunder would continue to apply pressure but neither could capitalize. The third provided a spark for the Thunder, Elle Seedhouse would find Laura McIntosh 2:22 into the period to give Brampton a 1-0 lead. Toronto would respond with a flurry of shots in the attacking zone at one point registering eight unanswered shots on Howe. The Thunder waiting patiently to counter would get their chance when with traffic in front; Jess Jones dangled to her backhand and placed it behind Kessler to give the Thunder a 2-0 lead. An empty net goal by Seedhouse would give the Thunder a 3-0 road win over the Furies. Seedhouse was my star of the night she played really well in this matchup.
In game two, the hometown Furies found themselves in an offensive battle against the Thunder. Brampton would strike first when down on the penalty kill Fielding Montgomery would break out and bury it past Kessler to give the Thunder an early 1-0. The Furies not to be out done in this contest would continue to put shots on Howe, but again Howe was a brick wall in net at least for now. 16:44 into the first Toronto’s Carolyne Prevost would snipe one past Howe on the power play to tie the game at 1. Brampton would get four penalties in the period but Toronto struggled to convert against a tough Thunder defense. Under two minutes in the first Montgomery would find a loose puck and break out on another penalty kill for the Thunder. Fielding would sneak it past Kessler and give Brampton a 2-1 lead going into the break. The second period we saw a different Furies team step on the ice, Kessler would get more help from her defense leading to more offensive chances by the Furies. Natalie Spooner was held off the scoring sheet in game one, she continued to create opportunities in this one. With a power play Spooner would get a assist from Emily Fulton and send it past Howe to tie the game at 2. Prevost would add another goal midway thought to give Toronto a 3-2 lead and their first of the series. Unfortunately for Furies fans, the third was yet again another dominant performance for Brampton. Sarah Edney who had a great series as well scored 3:14 into the period to get the Thunder back in it. Did I mention Toronto struggled on the power play and you may look at stats and say hey they went 2-8 yes true but they also gave up three shorthanded goals. Jocelyne Larocque find the back of the net shorthanded mid way through the third and you could see the Furies demoralized after that one. Laura Fortino would add an empty netter to give the Furies a 5-4 win in Toronto.
Reaction
This was a great weekend for the CWHL following a historic Winter Classic, they start 2016 with a bang. As for the teams, Brampton is strong and if Erica Howe can continue this kind of play her team can make a run at the Clarkson Cup. Toronto has had some good games but they also have some flaws, Kessler is great for the Furies and they were shorthanded this weekend, we’ll see if they can put together a strong performance next weekend. In the other matchups two teams in two completely different directions. Boston is in a “rebuilding” phase and that’s okay but no one plays with more passion and heart than the Blades do. Les Canadiennes are fun to watch and as much as Marie-Philip Poulin broke my heart when she played against Boston College. She is unique, she is special and if you never see her play I feel really bad for you. Les Canadiennes are my team to beat, Calgary is good but Montreal is great.
Follow Luis Sanchez on Twitter: @Luis_MyW
