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CWHL Results and Standings - December 11, 2016

WOW, WOW, WOW!
The CWHL had an AMAZING weekend! To summarize:
THE BOSTON BLADES WON A GAME!
MONTREAL VS CALGARY PLAYED AT THE BELL CENTER AND MPP SCORED A GOAL!
CAROLINE OUELLETTE REACHED A CWHL MILESTONE: HER 300TH POINT!
Alright, I've calmed down enough to provide the details. First, the Blades vs Furies. This weekend the Blades finally started really gelling as a team. The Blades still struggled to get out of their own zone, and the Furies had twice as many shots on goal in both games, but when the Blades did manage to get control of the puck, they were able to convert those opportunities into goals. In the first game, Boston scored on two of their three powerplays, and during the second period of that game, Boston had nearly the same number of shots on goal as Toronto (12 vs 14). That second period looked to be a poor one for Boston, when Toronto was up 4-0, but Boston got two goals before the end of the period. Boston managed to get one more goal in the 3rd period, ending with a very close game. The Furies put 54 shots on goal during that game, proving again that the Furies have solved their offensive problems from last season. Having gotten so close to victory in the previous game, the Blades entered the second game with a chippy attitude and handed the Furies 7 powerplays. The Furies only converted one of those PPs into a goal but ended the first period with a comfortable 2-0 lead. The Blades came back and scored 1 goal in the 2nd period and tied the score during the 3rd period, leading to a tense, scoreless overtime. The game ended in a shootout with Boston's Megan Myers and Melissa Bizzari sealing Boston's first win of the season. Of course, most of the credit (and the status of First Star) was awarded to Boston goaltender Lauren Dahm, who played both weekend games and stopped an astounding 88 out of 94 shots (50 of those shots were stopped in Game 1). Another interesting note is that Toronto's Christina Kessler sat out the entire weekend. Long-time Furies veteran (and the only league founder who is still an active player) Sami-Jo Small made her season debut for Game 1, and back up Sonja Van Der Bliek played the second game. Furies rookie Michela Cava continued her stellar season with 2 goals, while another Furies rookie Jenna Dingeldein scored her first and second CWHL goals. For Boston, Kate Leary had 2 goals and 1 assist (she's becoming a stand-out for Boston). It's wonderful that Boston slowly inched their way up the standings, while the Furies 3 points keep them comfortably ahead of the Thunder.
The Montreal-Calgary matchups were also historic games, but not just for their teams, but the league overall. The first game was held at the Montreal Canadiens' Bell Centre, the first time a regular season game was held in an NHL rink (prior to this, the Clarkson Cup Final and the All Star Games have been held in NHL rinks). Both teams played incredibly well. Historically, the teams have been shaky during the first periods played in NHL rinks (I'd be nervous too in that kind of setting with the large crowds), but there were no sign of those nerves. The game was a tightly contested game, with minimal penalties and lots of back-and forth, but Calgary did spend much more time in Montreal's zone. The only goal of the game was scored by none other than Marie-Philip Poulin, who now has the honor of being the first woman professional hockey player to score a goal in the Bell Center. Long time Montreal veteran Charline Labonte was in the crease for the Canadiennes. I was surprised that Calgary game rookie Emerance Maschmeyer the start for Calgary, as opposed to Delayne Brian or Genevieve Lacasse who are long-time CWHL veterans. Regardless, both goalies had amazing performances. Genevieve Lacasse played during the second game, while Labonte stayed in goal to complete the weekend. Despite the fact that the Canadiennes slightly outshoot the Inferno in both games, Calgary was quite aggressive in the second game, handing Montreal 3 PPs, while getting none in return, but managing to win with a score of 5 to 3. Calgary's Bailey Bram scored 2 goals. After splitting the weekend games, the top teams in the league are still only separated by 1 point, with Montreal clinging to the top spot.
Of course, the other big news this weekend was that Caroline Ouellette entered the weekend with 299 points. She's been the all-time point leader for the CWHL for quite a while, but nobody in the league has crossed 300 points yet. That all changed this weekend. It would have been absolutely beautiful if she had scored her 300th point while playing at the Bell Center, and the Canadiennes certainly did their best to make it happen (the entire last 2 minutes of play had the Canadiennes desperately configuring themselves to get the puck out of their zone and to Ouellette and give her a clear path to the Inferno's empty net), but sadly, it didn't happen. However, in Game 2, Ouellette assisted on Ann-Sophie Bettez's goal, earning her that 300th point. The fact that the Canadiennes lost the game is a barely relevant note compared to that huge milestone.
The only sad part of the weekend - the 2016/17 is now officially half-way over...
BOS 3 - 4 TOR
CGY 0 - 1 MON
BOS 3 - 2 TOR (SO)
CGY 5 - 3 MON



