LAVAL, QC – The Montréal Victoire ended the year on a high note, defeating the Boston Fleet 3-1 in front of a sellout crowd of 10,172 at Place Bell on Monday night. This victory marked Montréal’s first regulation win of the season on home ice and propelled the team to the top of the PWHL standings, overtaking Minnesota. Claire Dalton netted her first goal of the season and added an assist, while Kristin O’Neill scored the game-winning shorthanded ‘Jailbreak’ goal late in the second period. Rookie Anna Wilgren also scored her first career goal, with Fleet captain Hilary Knight scoring the lone goal for Boston. Ann-Renée Desbiens made 18 saves to secure the win.
QUOTES
Claire Dalton on the team’s performance: “I think in general we executed the game plan, and Kori [Cheverie] had a talk with all of us individually yesterday. For me, I executed what she wanted me to do. On my goal, Kori had asked that I take the puck to the net and this time it worked out.”
Ann-Renée Desbiens on killing Catherine Dubois’ five-minute major penalty: “Knowing the person, she (Dubois) has one of the biggest hearts. She is one of the kindest human beings I have ever met. You just want to support her and be there for her, and obviously get that kill, we did exactly that. She is one of the best teammates who always puts the team first, so we owed her one.”
Hilary Knight on Boston’s special teams: “I think we needed to put the puck in the back of the net on our special teams, especially for the number of power plays that we got. We were just short of executing. We’re going to take this back, work on it and it’s onto the next game.”
Courtney Kessel on rotating goaltenders: “We have three tremendous goaltenders and we’re on the road here another nine days. I think it’s a total of 17 days living out of our bags, so it’s going to be hard, but when you have three great goalies you might as well play them.”
NOTABLES
- Montréal’s four-game winning streak is the longest in team history, surpassing two separate three-game streaks from their inaugural season.
- Boston has now lost three consecutive road games to start the season and remains the only PWHL team without a road victory.
- Ann-Renée Desbiens earned her third win of the season in her fourth start, marking her first win against Boston after five previous losses.
- Claire Dalton’s goal was her first of the season and her first multi-point game of the season, with an assist marking the second multi-point game of her career.
- Kristin O’Neill’s shorthanded goal was her first of the season and the first shorthanded tally of her career. Montréal leads the PWHL with two ‘Jailbreak’ goals this season.
- Anna Wilgren’s first career PWHL goal also marked her first career point.
- Hilary Knight’s goal ties her for second in the PWHL with three goals and five points in six games (3G, 2A).
- Megan Keller recorded an assist for the second consecutive game, tying Knight for the team lead in scoring with five points in six games (2G, 3A).
- Boston’s Hannah Bilka recorded an assist and has points in two straight games, tying for second in rookie scoring with four points in six games (1G, 3A).
- Montréal’s Mariah Keopple and Alexandra Labelle both recorded their first assists of the season, with points in two straight games after scoring their first goals of the season on Saturday.
- Emma Söderberg stopped 28 shots in her first start of the season for Boston.
- Boston’s Emily Brown (26) and Montréal’s Dara Greig (24) both celebrated birthdays on game day.
- Montréal’s penalty kill held Boston’s top-ranked power play scoreless on five opportunities, including a five-minute major penalty. The Victoire’s penalty kill now ranks second in the league at 88.2% (15/17).
- Montréal has outshot their opponents in all five of their victories, while Boston has been outshot in all six of their games.
SCORESHEET RECAP
Boston 0 1 0 – 1
Montréal 1 2 0 – 3
1st Period:
- Montréal, Dalton 1 (Keopple), 19:23.
2nd Period:
- Boston, Knight 3 (Bilka, Keller), 10:30.
3rd Period:
- No Scoring.
- Penalties: Murphy Mtl (slashing), 9:57; Rattray Bos (roughing), 12:23; Tabin Mtl (cross-checking), 17:27.
Shots on Goal:
- Boston: 8-9-2 – 19
- Montréal: 9-10-12 – 31
Power Play Opportunities:
- Boston: 0 / 5
- Montréal: 0 / 4
Goalies:
- Boston, Söderberg: 0-1-0-0 (31 shots-28 saves)
- Montréal, Desbiens: 3-1-0-0 (19 shots-18 saves)
Attendance: 10,172 (sellout)
THREE STARS
- Claire Dalton (MTL): 1G, 1A
- Kristin O’Neill (MTL): SHG
- Hilary Knight (BOS): 1G
STANDINGS
- Montréal (3-2-0-1): 13 PTS – 1st Place
- Boston (2-0-0-4): 6 PTS – 6th Place
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
- Boston: Thursday, January 2 at Minnesota, 7:30 p.m. ET
- Montréal: Sunday, January 5 at Boston, 4:00 p.m. ET (Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle)
