After taking their longest break between home games to open a season, the Frost provided the Grand Casino Arena faithful with an array of goals that saw everything from trick shots, to some luck to final-minute drama in their 5-2 victory over the Boston Fleet on Friday night.
The Frost had gone 2-1 on the road before a break for international play, dropping their last game 4-1 in Boston. Their last match-up against the Fleet was described as a ‘big testament’ for their season by forward Taylor Heise ahead of the matchup, as they’d be entering a new home arena for Boston.
Between the return to their home ice — where they owned a 4-2 record all-time over Boston entering Friday night’s game — and the home-ice advantage was exactly what the Frost needed to get back into the win column.
Kendall Coyne Schofield got Minnesota its first goal of the night seven minutes into the first period, with what could be described as a ‘slip-and-slide’ assist from Heise. Heise had the puck just in front of Boston’s goal, and slipped on top of it as she attempted her first goal of the year. The puck was able to get over from underneath Heise to Coyne Schofield, who was waiting outside the corner of the goal, scoring her team-leading sixth goal on the year.
The Frost’s second goal in the first didn’t look as awkward. This goal attempt looked more like a trick shot, as Lee Stecklin had a clean shot 18 feet away from the goal. Stecklein’s shot bounced off of Dominique Petrie’s stick, set up right in front of the goal, and made it a 2-0 Frost lead.
The Frost’s goals after the first came with a little less flair and pause for the dramatic, but what had Frost fans cheering was save after save made by Hensley in the second.
The Fleet outshot Minnesota on 12-5 in the second, and no matter which way Boston tried to get the puck in, Hensley came up with the save and had 7,216 fans echoing her name throughout Grand Casino Area.
But the shutout wouldn’t last for Hensley, as the Fleet would get two goals 23 seconds apart from each other halfway through the third to make it a 3-2 game.
What looked like a safe lead with 11 minutes left in regulation quickly turned into tension for the Frost.
Fortunately, the Frost would be able to hold off the Fleet as their opponents sacrificed their goalie for the last minute of the game for an extra attacker.
Minnesota’s Katy Knoll stole the puck away and scored an empty-net goal from the neutral zone for her first of the season to make it a 4-2 game. Then with 8 seconds remaining, Kelly Pannek got one more empty-netter to make it a 5-2 win.
The Frost will head out on the road for their next game in Chicago against Ottawa as part of the PWHL’s Takeover Tour. The Takeover Tour features 12 neutral-site PWHL games in American and Canadian cities that have PWHL teams established in their cities. Puck drop is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday.
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