If having the Winter Olympics Women’s Hockey preliminaries is not enough hockey for you this weekend, don’t worry because the PHF has you covered with four games. Let’s dive in and look at the matchups we can look forward to watching.
Connecticut Whale vs. Boston Pride
The PHF’s second-place Whale are facing off this week in Boston against the Pride. Connecticut is riding a six-game win streak heading into this weekend’s matchups. The Whale have seen a lot of impressive goals this season across the roster. Though Kennedy Marchment’s consecutive point streak ended in their last matchup versus the Metropolitan Riveters, she still leads the team with an staggering 15 points (seven goals, eight assists).
Unsurprisingly, the Boston Pride are getting phenomenal numbers from their Captain, Jillian Dempsey. Currently, she leads the team with nine points (six goals, three assists) and has an impressive 54.9% face-off win percentage. Dempsey was not only a PHF All-Star, she captained a team. Furthermore, she was chosen to represent the PHF at the ECHL All-Star Game.
Saturday’s matchup begins at 7 pm EST on ESPN+ (US) and Twitch (Canada and International Networks), and Sunday’s matchup begins at 1 pm EST on ESPN+ (US), TSN Direct (Canada), and ESPN+ Affiliates (International Networks).
Buffalo Beauts vs. Minnesota Whitecaps
The Beauts are still chasing their second win of the season and will be looking to steal one this weekend in Minnesota. The Beauts have struggled to put the puck in the net this season. They seem to struggle at the face-off dot, and only one player on the team has a face-off win percentage over .500. The Beauts are also experiencing some difficulties with their special team’s units. They need to improve on the power play and the penalty kill to try and add another one to the win column. This weekend’s matchups will have the Beauts looking for revenge.
The Whitecaps are riding a two-game win streak after sweeping the Beauts in Buffalo in their last weekend series on Jan 22 and 23. Impressively, the Whitecaps penalty kill unit has killed off 93% of the penalties they have taken. The Whitecaps PK unit is tied for 2nd best in the league. Furthermore, this stat becomes even more impressive considering the Whitecaps currently lead the PHF in penalty minutes.
Saturday’s matchup begins at 8 pm EST on ESPN+ (US) and Twitch (Canada and International Networks), and Sunday’s matchup begins at 1 pm EST on ESPN+ (US), TSN Direct (Canada), and ESPN+ Affiliates (International Networks).
This weekend is jam-packed with women’s hockey. Be prepared to have multiple screens running to keep track of all the excitement.
Follow Beyond Women’s Sports for more from the world of the PHF and women’s sports. Beth Bolger is available on Twitter and you can follow her there.
