I love PWHL bc WDYM Abby Roque Got a Black Eye From Fighting Britta Curl-Salemme 😭
Victoire vs Frost Game 1 was a movie! We got a hat trick from Laura Stacey, a brawl at center ice, a short-handed goal from the Frost, and Britta Curl-Salemme was ejected from the game, but the Frost came away with the win in Laval. 🥶
Meanwhile in Boston, the Charge vs Fleet series has absolutely delivered, as the Fleet won a spicy game 1, but goalie Gwyneth Philips stole game 2 for the Charge. ⚡
In other women’s hockey news, the super confusing PWHL Expansion Process was revealed, I’m 99.99% sure that PWHL Detroit will be announced this week, and it was announced that Jessica Campbell will not be returning as a coach for the Seattle Kraken next year. 😢
If that sounds like a lot, don’t worry, I was absolutely glued to the TV and I have all of the context to keep you covered! ❤
Table of Contents
🎂 365 Birthday Livestream Tomorrow!
Join us as we cheer on my birthday twin Laura Stacey in Victoire vs Frost Game 2, tomorrow, Tuesday, May 5 at 7PM EST / 4PM PST! 🎂
I do monthly livestreams for my paid subscribers but this month I will be doing two livestreams, one for the semifinals and one for the finals!
Introducing this month’s livestream special guest: not kate sports! Kate is a women’s sports content creator based in CT who talks about basketball, F1, and hockey in a super funny and down-to-Earth way. We vibed instantly as soon as we met and I had so much fun watching the Madison Square Garden PWHL game with her. Check out her amazing PWHL vlog here (featuring 365)!
Brainstorming our PWHL cookbook 🤣
Here are some of the shenanigans we got up to in the last livestream…
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Keep Reading!
😭 WDYM Abby Roque Got a Black Eye From Fighting Britta Curl-Salemme?
Minnesota Frost leads the Montreal Victoire 1-0 in their semifinal series
LET’S GO VICTOIRE! Don’t worry I still love Frost fans tho 🫶
Game 1: Minnesota defeats Montreal 5-4 in OT; THE GIRLS ARE FIGHTING!
📍Laval
After the Victoire picked the Frost as their opponent, I expected this game to be crazy, but honestly it exceeded my expectations 🤣.
The Frost got off to a 2-0 lead after the first period, but the Victoire battled back into this game as Laura Stacey got a hat trick!
Tensions boiled over in the second period as Abby Roque and Britta Curl-Salemme got involved in a scrum that gave Abby Roque a black eye 😲. Britta Curl-Salemme was later ejected from this game due to a retaliatory hit to the head.
Jincy Roese scored in OT to steal this game for the Frost. Is the Victoire cursed? They still have yet to win a playoff game in regulation 😭
Britta Curl-Salemme Suspended and Fined
Britta Curl-Salemme has been suspended for one game and fined $250. The fine is from when Curl-Salemme grabbed and pulled Roque’s facial protector. The suspension is for the illegal check to the head.
Considering Curl-Salemme’s history as the most suspended player in PWHL history and her playoff suspension last year also for an illegal check to the head, many people expected the suspension to be for more than one game. The reason she was only suspended for 1 game may be because the PWHL Rulebook states that only a player’s past 12 games will be taken into account 🤔 (See rule 23.6)
The PWHL has an opportunity to be different from the NHL and set new standards around player safety. In my opinion, if the league truly wants to eliminate illegal hits from the head from the game, then they must create and enforce rules to eliminate them.
Honestly, talking about Britta Curl-Salemme is bad for my mental health but unfortunately it is impossible to cover the PWHL without talking about her. It irritates me because there was a narrative that she was unfairly villainized for her social media activity but the reality is that people also dislike her because of her hockey. It feels like everybody is constantly making excuses for her both on and off of the ice, and she has no incentive to change her behavior.
Curl-Salemme is one of the Frost’s best forwards. The Victoire needs to take advantage of this situation and win game 2.
💥 The Charge Are Taking this Series Back to Ottawa Tied!
Boston Fleet and the Ottawa Charge are tied 1-1 in their semifinal series
3️⃣6️⃣5️⃣ IS ROOTING FOR THE BOSTON FLEET⚓️🏒🧑✈️ (HEATED RIVALRY EDITION) 👇
I love Coach Carla and I wouldn’t be mad if the Charge won but I am rooting for the Fleet!
Game 1: Boston defeats Ottawa 2-1; Game so spicy even the goalie got a penalty
📍Lowell
Within the first period of this game alone there were 6 penalties, including a major penalty and game misconduct assessed to Fleet defender Rylind MacKinnon for an illegal check to the head on Gabbie Hughes.
The Charge scored on the resulting powerplay as Jocelyne Larocque tipped in a shot from Rory Guilday. Rylind MacKinnon was suspended for one game as a result. Brianne Jenner also got a penalty for roughing. Charge goalie Gwyn Philips even got a minor for tripping 😭.
The Fleet dominated this game and broke through at the end of the second period, scoring two goals in under two minutes. The first goal was an awesome snipe from Alina Müller; the second a diving goal by Jamie Lee Rattray. Jessie Eldridge assisted on both goals in her first ever PWHL playoff game!
Game 2: Ottawa defeats Boston 3-1; Gwyn Philips sends this series back to Ottawa Tied
📍Lowell
The Ottawa Charge was majorly outshot in this game (the total shots on goal were 31-21) but Gwyn Philips made huge saves on so many breakaways to keep the Charge in this game.
Ronja Savolainen and Fanuza Kadirova gave the Charge a 2-0 lead, but Megan Keller scored with just 10 seconds left in the second period to make this a 1-goal game.
The Charge held on in the third period with Gabbie Hughes (the player who received the hit from MacKinnon in game 1) scoring the empty net goal .
Watch the game highlights.
Keep Reading
🗓️ Upcoming PWHL Playoff Schedule
😵💫 The PWHL Expansion Process is Confusing AF
While we still don’t know the PWHL expansion cities for sure (but I have a hunch that a Detroit team will be announced on Wednesday), we now know the PWHL expansion process.
This year’s PWHL expansion process will not be a traditional expansion draft but will instead consist of a series of signing windows which will give expansion teams the ability to sign free agents.
The rationale for this new process is that it gives the players more autonomy, but I’m not sure about this, considering it forces some free agents to have to switch teams (although they will receive extra compensation). I will publish a standalone PWHL Expansion Process Guide newsletter later!
☹️ Jessica Campbell will not be returning to the Kraken bench next season
Jessica Campbell, the first woman to ever coach full time on the bench for an NHL team, will not be returning to coach with the Kraken next season.
Thank you Jessica Campbell for everything you’ve done for Seattle fans, hockey fans, and women everywhere.
The decision seems to be mutual, but the Kraken organization has been super tumultuous for all coaches involved, so it’s a good opportunity for her to move on.
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