021419: Maine x Boston College
Boston College head coach Katie Crowley wins her 300th game in a hard-fought contest against Maine
First two periods were mostly even. BC’s Lindsay Agnew scored right off the hop with a nice shot two-on-one. She kept buzzing but Carly Jackson was fronting pucks relentlessly after that.
The Black Bears had some great opportunities on the powerplay, only executing on one: Tereza Vanizova with a great shot early in the first. In 5-on-5 play I’d give the edge to Boston College through the first two periods. Jackson was the one who made this a game, especially in the third period where the Eagles were constantly generating quality chances. Maddie McArthur had her time to make some critical late saves (including a butt-of-the-stick save and a great right pad extension sequence) but Maine weren’t getting as much going overall. They opted for the extra skater with two minutes to go and started to really test McArthur, but the Eagles were able to collapse around her defensively and keep everything out.
The Maine team generated the majority of their best opportunities with the powerplay. The BC powerplay started to get going at about 13 minutes of the 3rd period as Caitrin Lonergan walked the Maine player to generate a quality chance before presenting herself in a soft area for a Megan Keller pass which would create a golden look for Daryl Watts.
Lonergan was the story of the night for me (alongside the Maine goalie Jackson) as it would be her speed that drew two big penalties on the night and then her speed which would help the Eagles capitalize. It took a tape-to-tape pass to Megan Keller, who received and back-handed it down to Kelly Browne crashing the net, who would then elevate a back-hander of her own above Carly Jackson. They weren’t going to beat the Maine goalie (.935% on the night) with something simple.
Player notes
Mostly focused on the BC players
Caitrin Lonergan ++++++++++++
Awesome. Chance after chance after chance after chance. Gets off the block so quick, possesses the puck well and drips confidence. Drew two big penalties with her ability to incisively cut through bodies
Megan Keller - +++speed, +strong on the puck, +shot selection, ++++reads
A lot of the offense involves her. Great instincts at both ends with separation-quality speed straight-away that she applies liberally. Loves to jump into the play and generate shots, eats great minutes with ease. Very effective in her own end defending and finding outlets which completes the entire package. 3rd overall NWHL draft pick is a true #1 defender in a lot of respects, who already looks like a pro. I don’t get why teams even skate to her side on the rush (probably because her d-partner is pretty good too). She could keep it simpler offensively since she plays so much and would still be able to create scoring opportunities at the point. This seems to be working for them, though. The Eagles offensive movement looks really good when she activates up towards the slot. Plus, she has the speed to get back on defense if/when she does get burned. She’s basically a forward when she gets the puck (see below)
Daryl Watts +passing, creativity. Liked the back-hand look with 5 minutes to go in the 2nd. The execution wasn’t there when it came to actually putting the puck in the net.
Delaney Beliskas - ++offense
Lindsey Agnew - great goal, +possession
Kelly Browne - clutch finish on the GWG
Both goalies (Maddie McArthur + Carly Jackson) gave their respective teams a chance to win. The two teams will play again at Conte tomorrow at 4:00 pm.