New York’s Jaime Bourbonnais battles for the puck during Wednesday night’s PWHL game in Bridgeport. Montreal beat New York, 4-3. (Photo courtesy PWHL).
BRIDGEPORT, March 6, 2024 — Marie-Philip Poulin had a goal and an assist as first-place Montréal staved off New York’s comeback bid to win 4-3 in Professional Women’s Hockey League action Wednesday night at Total Mortgage Arena in Bridgeport.
Montréal led 3-0 in the first, and—despite New York getting to within one goal twice in the game—the visiting team was able to secure the regulation victory.
With the win, Montréal (10-5) sits alone atop the PWHL standings with 30 points. They came into the game tied with Minnesota. New York (6-9) is last in the six-team league with 16 points.
It was the third of five games for New York in Bridgeport. The squad is splitting home games between Total Mortgage Arena and UBS Arena, the home of the NHL’s New York Islanders. Three New York home games in late April and early May have yet to be scheduled.
New York is 0-3 in Bridgeport this season.
Poulin, who entered the game coming off two straight three-point efforts, first got on the board by assisting on Gabrielle David’s first period tally, which made the game 3-0 at 15:37 of the first period.
Montréal’s captain rushed up the ice from inside her own zone before making a perfect backhand saucer pass over a New York defender’s stick and onto David’s stick in the offensive zone slot. David took a quick one-timer, which went in past goaltender Corinne Schroeder after the puck hit a New York player’s shin pad and changed direction.
After New York scored two powerplay goals to make the game 3-2 heading into the third, it was Poulin who restored Montréal’s two-goal lead early in the third with her eighth tally of the season.
Laura Stacey collected the puck inside New York’s blue line before heading towards the net with speed. She then beat the New York defender around the outside before feeding the puck to Poulin in the slot, who quickly snapped it home. The goal stood as the eventual game-winner.
Poulin’s two-point game gives her 17 on the season, tying her for first with New York’s Alex Carpenter, who collected an assist on Wednesday.
Trailing 3-0, New York’s Jessie Eldridge cut the deficit to two with her fifth goal of the season, a power play goal at 16:49 of the first.
Eldridge attempted to make a pass across the crease to Alex Carpenter, but the puck hit a Montréal skate and crossed the goal line. Abby Roque and Carpenter collected the assists on the play.
Roque’s third goal of the season, and second point of the game, brought her team to within one at 14:28 of the second. After Jaime Bourbonnais and Ella Shelton passed the puck back-and-forth at the blueline, Shelton let a shot go which Roque deflected past goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens.
After Poulin’s third period goal made the game 4-2, a New York advantage once again provided a spark for the home team, as Eldridge got her second power play goal of the game at 8:06 of the frame.
Shelton and Bourbonnais once again provided the assists, as the two controlled the puck with New York’s red-hot powerplay set up in Montréal’s zone. In a near carbon copy of Roque’s earlier goal, Shelton fired the puck, which was deflected by Eldridge to make the game 4-3.
New York pulled Schroeder with 1:45 remaining in the third period but couldn’t even up the score. Desbiens made 25 saves to secure her fifth win of the season. Schroeder stopped 27 in the loss.
New York returns to Bridgeport on March 20 when they host Ottawa at 7 p.m. New York returns to action this weekend with a trip to Boston.
Information from a PWHL release is included in this report
Montreal 4, New York 3
At Bridgeport
Montreal (10-5) 3 0 1 – 4
New York (6-9) 1 1 1 – 3
First period
1, Montreal, Dempsey 1 (Lefort, Keopple), 5:30. 2, Montreal, Bujold 2 (Dubois, Bettez), 11:03. 3, Montreal, David 2 (Poulin, Murphy), 15:37. 4, New York, Eldridge 5 (Roque, Carpenter), 16:49 (PP).
Penalties: Vanišová Mtl (boarding), 1:09; Hobson Ny (interference), 6:30; Vanišová Mtl (body checking), 16:12; Hobson Ny (cross checking), 17:36.
Second period
5, New York, Roque 3 (Shelton, Bourbonnais), 14:28 (PP).
Penalties: Eldridge Ny (tripping), 1:10; Zandee-Hart Ny (holding), 4:15; Zandee-Hart Ny (holding), 8:16; Bujold Mtl (holding), 13:01; Shelton Ny (slashing), 14:40; Daoust Mtl (hooking), 19:10.
Third period
6, Montreal, Poulin 8 (Stacey), 4:23. 7, New York, Eldridge 6 (Shelton, Bourbonnais), 8:06 (PP).
Penalties: O’Neill Mtl (slashing), 7:12.
Shots on Goal-Montreal 31 (11-8-12); New York 28 (11-8-9); Power Play Opportunities-Montreal 0-6, New York 3-5; Goalies-Montreal, Desbiens 5-2-1-2 (28 shots-25 saves). New York, Schroeder 5-4-0-1 (31 shots-27 saves). A-728
PWHL standings
| Team | W-L | OTW | OTL | Pts |
| Montreal | 10-5 | 3 | 3 | 30 |
| Toronto | 10-5 | 3 | 0 | 27 |
| Minnesota | 9-7 | 3 | 3 | 27 |
| Boston | 6-8 | 2 | 2 | 18 |
| Ottawa | 4-11 | 0 | 5 | 17 |
| New York | 6-9 | 4 | 2 | 16 |
