LOWELL — Maybe the Minnesota Frost’s two most pivotal wins in workforce historical past have unfolded on Tsongas Middle ice.
A yr in the past, Minnesota defeated Boston within the all-important fifth recreation of the Walter Cup Finals to assert the inaugural Skilled Girls’s Hockey League title.
The Frost doled out one other painful end result to the Fleet in Lowell on Saturday, skating to an 8-1 romp in entrance of 5,013 followers to clinch a playoff berth whereas eliminating Boston.
“Our players seem to really like it here,” mentioned Frost head coach Ken Klee. “It was quick – we got on them early, and good thing we kind of kept our foot on the gas and kept going. We had good sticks, we had good structure, so it makes it easy to play when you’re making it hard on them.”
The Fleet entered the common season finale requiring a single level in opposition to the Frost or an Ottawa Cost loss. Neither consequence proved favorable for Boston. Ottawa edged the Toronto Sceptres in additional time as Boston limped to the end line at residence.
The Fleet, in its second season calling Lowell residence, finishes the 2024-25 marketing campaign with a 9-6-5-10 report. Its three-game slide coming into the 2025 IIHF Girls’s World Championship finally proved to be deadly in reaching the four-team playoff.
“It’s been a tremendous two years with these players, and obviously, with expansion and the unknowns, we have no idea,” mentioned Fleet head coach Courtney Kessel. “So it’s sad, because you don’t know who’s going to be back in that room. And I think that was one of our messages headed into the end of this stretch.”
Boston didn’t appear to be a membership vying for a postseason berth within the opening 20 minutes. Minnesota despatched six pictures towards the course of Frankel within the first 3:08, and two of them lit the lamp.
Britta Curl-Salemme collected a unfastened puck atop the best circle, beating Frankel with a fast snap shot to interrupt the ice at 2:23. The Frost doubled its lead 40 seconds later, as Lee Stecklein wheeled across the Boston internet and glided into the slot untouched earlier than sliding a backhander previous Frankel’s left pad.
Issues solely bought worse for the hosts, permitting the Frost to go to the facility play at 16:10. Kendall Coyne Schofield, Minnesota’s main level scorer (24 factors), discovered twine 14 seconds later as her tried cross throughout the slot deflected off a Fleet defender and into the cage.
The lowly interval marked the primary time in workforce historical past that Boston had relinquished three objectives within the first interval of a recreation. Saturday’s hiccup additionally marked the primary time the membership has allowed eight objectives in a recreation.
Kessel opted to exchange Frankel with Klára Peslarová for the center interval, however the Frost wanted simply 6:47 to pot an insurance coverage aim and improve its cushion to 4-0.
Sophie Jaques collected a feed from Grace Zumwinkle alongside the best face-off dot, taking pictures and scoring in stride. The objectives saved coming for the Frost, netting an influence play tally at 14:58. Curl-Salemme’s second of the sport was a picture-perfect cross-crease feed off the stick of Michela Cava for the tap-in.
Brooke McQuigge and Jaques put the ending touches on Minnesota’s win with empty internet objectives within the third. Jessica Digirolamo scored her first PWHL aim at 15:33 for Boston, which was adopted by one last jab from the guests when Klara Hymlarova scored at 19:14.
“It’s just so fun to play in front of this crowd,” mentioned Fleet star Hilary Knight. “They’re with us — good or bad, they’re in the boat rowing with us. It’s really special to be celebrated in that way and part of this city in that way.”
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