Boston Pride
Boston Pride | |
---|---|
![]() | |
![]() | |
City | Boston, Massachusetts |
League | National Women's Hockey League |
Founded | 2015 |
Home arena | Warrior Ice Arena |
Colors | black, gold, white |
Owner(s) | Miles Arnone |
General manager | Karilyn Pilch[1] |
Head coach | Paul Mara[2] |
Captain | Jillian Dempsey[3] |
Media | Twitch |
Affiliates | Boston Bruins (NHL) |
Website | Official Website |
Championships | |
Regular season titles | 3 (2015–16, 2016–17, 2019–20) |
Playoff championships | 2 (2016, 2021) |
The Boston Pride are a professional women's ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They are one of the four charter franchises of the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL). The Pride play at Warrior Ice Arena, which is also the practice facility for the Boston Bruins. They won the inaugural Isobel Cup in 2016 and were first NWHL team to win two titles when they won in 2021.
History[]
First seasons[]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Bostonpride2016.jpg/240px-Bostonpride2016.jpg)
The Pride were announced as one of the four founding teams in the National Women's Hockey League, the first women's hockey league in North America to pay its players a salary, to begin play in the 2015–16 season. In May 2015, the Pride announced the hiring of Bobby Jay as their head coach. Jay was previously an assistant coach for the silver medal-winning 2014 U.S. Women's Olympic Team, and on the coaching staff of the U.S. Women's National Team at the IIHF Women's World Championships in 2012 and 2013, and the Four Nations Cup in 2011, 2012, and 2013.[4] The team announced its inaugural season would play home games at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center at Harvard University in the Allston neighborhood of Boston.[5] In June 2015, Amanda Pelkey became the first player to sign a player contract with the Pride.[6]
The team played their first game with a 4–1 victory over the Buffalo Beauts. Hilary Knight scored the first goal in franchise history and would also record the first multi-goal game in NWHL history. The Pride's first win was recorded by Brittany Ott, simultaneously becoming the first American-born goaltender to win an NWHL regular season game. During a 5–3 road win against the Buffalo Beauts, Brianna Decker scored the first hat trick in NWHL history. In November 2015, Briana Decker and Hilary Knight were named co-captains of the Pride.
On December 31, 2015, the Boston Pride played the Les Canadiennes de Montréal of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL) to a 1–1 tie in the 2016 Outdoor Women's Classic at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, which took place the day before the 2016 NHL Winter Classic. It was the first outdoor professional women's hockey, the first women's game sanctioned by the NHL, and the only game between the NWHL and the CWHL. In the second period of the game, Denna Laing crashed into the boards and suffered a career ending injury. A rally of support resulted in funds raised for the Denna Laing Foundation. At the end of the season, Laing was awarded the NWHL's Foundation Award and the Perseverance Award, which was later named after her.[7]
The Pride finished the league's inaugural season with the best record, earning the top seed in the Isobel Cup playoffs. The team then swept both the semifinals and finals over the New York Riveters and Buffalo Beauts, respectively. Decker was named the season's Most Valuable Player and Knight was the top scorer.
For their second season, the team moved their home games to Warrior Ice Arena, the practice arena of the NHL's Boston Bruins, in the Boston neighborhood of Brighton. On April 28, 2016, the Pride acquired the rights to Alexandra Carpenter, the first overall pick in the previous 2015 NWHL Draft.[8] Onn February 2, 2017, the team traded Zoe Hickel to Connecticut Whale for their first pick in the 2017 NWHL Draft.[9] The Pride led the league by a large margin, earning a 16–1–0 record over 17 games. The Pride then lost to the Buffalo Beauts in the Isobel Cup final.[10] Decker was named the NWHL's Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive season and also led the league in scoring.
Team turnover[]
The team had several personnel changes prior to the 2017–18 season, including a new head coach in Thomas Pöck, and lost seven players for the season in preparation for their participation in the 2018 Winter Olympics, including Carpenter, Decker, and Knight. Additionally, many of the NWHL's players opted to play in the CWHL as the league had begun offering players stipends and the NWHL had made an up to 50% pay cut on its players during the previous season.[11] Jillian Dempsey was then named the next team captain. After two seasons, in which the Pride finished regular season in first place, played in the Isobel Cup finals, the Pride finished in third place. The Pride ultimately lost to the Buffalo Beauts in the first round semifinal game and failed to make the Isobel Cup finals for the first time.[12]
On May 30, 2018, Paul Mara was named head coach for the 2018–19 season[13] and inaugural Pride member Marissa Gedman retired from playing to join the staff as an assistant coach.[14] The Pride again finished third during the regular season and lost in the semifinal game to Buffalo.
Under independent ownership[]
In September 2019, the league announced the Boston Pride had been purchased by a group of investors led by Miles Arnone.[15] On January 26, 2020, Dempsey became the first player in league history to reach 100 career points, including playoffs. She reached the century mark with an assist in a win versus the Minnesota Whitecaps.[16] The Pride won their third regular season title with a 23–1–0 record and qualified for the 2020 Isobel Cup final against the defending champion Minnesota Whitecaps. However, the championship was initially postponed and then cancelled as the COVID-19 pandemic escalated causing limitations for social distancing and traveling. Dempsey was league's the top scorer and was named the NWHL' co-Most Valuable Player with Allie Thunstrom of Minnesota. In September 2020, Logan International Airport unveiled a pair of championship banners for the Pride's 2016 Isobel Cup win and their 2019–20 regular season first-place finish. The Pride became the first women's sports team from Boston to have their banners hung in the airport with the men's Boston Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox already present.[17]
Owing to the ongoing pandemic, the NWHL announced a two-week single-site season to be played at Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid, New York, from January 23 to February 5, 2021.[18] The Riveters were forced to withdraw early due to too many positive cases of COVID-19, leading to a schedule alteration with the Pride and the Beauts playing each other in a three-game series to determine the fourth seed, which the Pride won. The single-site season was curtailed prior to the playoffs due to an excessive outbreak of COVID-19 among all teams and personnel in Lake Placid. The postseason was rescheduled for March 26 and 27 at the Pride's home arena in Brighton. The Pride then defeated the top seed Toronto Six before winning their second Isobel Cup by defeating the Minnesota Whitecaps 4–3 in the championship game.
Season-by-season records[]
Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | SOL | Pts | GF | GA | Playoffs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015–16 | 18 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 75 | 39 | Won Isobel Cup Championship over Buffalo Beauts |
2016–17 | 17 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 73 | 29 | Lost Isobel Cup Championship to Buffalo Beauts |
2017–18 | 16 | 4 | 8 | — | 4 | — | 12 | 33 | 48 | Lost semifinal game to Buffalo Beauts |
2018–19 | 16 | 11 | 5 | — | 0 | 0 | 22 | 60 | 36 | Lost semifinal game to Buffalo Beauts |
2019–20 | 24 | 23 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 46 | 120 | 43 | Qualified for Isobel Cup Championship vs. Minnesota Whitecaps Championship cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic |
2020–21 | 7 | 3 | 4 | — | 0 | 0 | 6 | 22 | 11 | Won Isobel Cup Championship over Minnesota Whitecaps |
Team[]
2021 roster[]
As of December 17, 2020[19][20]
# | Nat | Player | Pos | S/G | Age | Acquired | Birthplace |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
17 | ![]() |
McKenna Brand | F | L | 25 | 2018 | Park Rapids, Minnesota |
20 | ![]() |
Paige Capistran | D | R | 23 | 2020 | Manchester, New Hampshire |
19 | ![]() |
Sammy Davis | F | L | 24 | 2020 | Pembroke, Massachusetts |
14 | ![]() |
Jillian Dempsey | F | L | 30 | 2015 | Winthrop, Massachusetts |
13 | ![]() |
Kaleigh Fratkin | D | R | 29 | 2017 | Burnaby, British Columbia |
33 | ![]() |
Victoria Hanson | G | L | 26 | 2019 | Stoughton, Massachusetts |
24 | ![]() |
Lauren Kelly | D | L | 25 | 2018 | Watertown, Massachusetts |
16 | ![]() |
Lexie Laing | F | R | 25 | 2019 | Marblehead, Massachusetts |
28 | ![]() |
Briana Mastel | D | L | 26 | 2019 | Wallingford, Connecticut |
42 | ![]() |
Meghara McManus | F | R | 23 | 2020 | Milton, Massachusetts |
7 | ![]() |
Mary Parker | F | L | 27 | 2017 | Milton, Massachusetts |
21 | ![]() |
Christina Putigna | F | L | 23 | 2019 | Grimsby, Ontario |
12 | ![]() |
Jenna Rheault ![]() |
D | L | 25 | 2019 | Deering, New Hampshire |
2 | ![]() |
Meaghan Rickard | F | R | 24 | 2020 | Coventry, Rhode Island |
35 | ![]() |
Lovisa Selander | G | L | 26 | 2019 | Sollentuna, Sweden |
47 | ![]() |
Mallory Souliotis | D | L | 25 | 2018 | Acton, Massachusetts |
9 | ![]() |
Tori Sullivan | F | R | 25 | 2019 | West Bloomfield, Michigan |
23 | ![]() |
Carlee Turner | F | R | 23 | 2020 | Scottsdale, Arizona |
8 | ![]() |
Taylor Turnquist | D | R | 24 | 2020 | Blaine, Minnesota |
73 | ![]() |
Tereza Vanišová | F | L | 25 | 2020 | Strakonice, Czech Republic |
18 | ![]() |
Taylor Wenczkowski | F | R | 23 | 2020 | Rochester, New Hampshire |
Team captains[]
- Brianna Decker, Hilary Knight, 2015–2017
- Jillian Dempsey, 2018–present
Head coaches[]
General managers[]
- Hayley Moore, 2015–2017
- Karilyn Pilch, 2019–present
Draft history[]
With their first pick in the 2015 NWHL Draft, the Pride selected Kendall Coyne.
NWHL Draft[]
The following are the Pride' selections from the 2015 NWHL Draft of college players in their junior year held on June 20, 2015. A player who is drafted but does not sign with the organization that selected her, may enter free-agency after completing her senior year.[21]
# | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
3 | Kendall Coyne | Forward | ![]() |
Northeastern University |
7 | Emerance Maschmeyer | Goalie | ![]() |
Harvard University |
11 | Lexi Bender | Defense | ![]() |
Boston College |
15 | Miye D’Oench | Forward | ![]() |
Harvard University |
19 | Forward | ![]() |
Clarkson |
Media[]
In November 2015, it was announced that all Pride home games would be broadcast live on NESN.[22] Beginning with the 2019–20 season, all NWHL games are broadcast live on Twitch.
Awards and honors[]
- Brianna Decker, 2016, 2017 Most Valuable Player, 2017 NWHL Scoring Champion
- Jillian Dempsey, 2018, 2019 Denna Laing Award,[23] 2020 co-Most Valuable Player, 2020 NWHL Scoring Champion
- Hilary Knight, 2016 Scoring Champion
- Denna Laing, 2016 Foundation Award
- Denna Laing, 2016 Perseverance Award
- Gigi Marvin, 2016 Defensive Player of the Year Award
- Brittany Ott, 2016 Goaltender of the Year
- Alyssa Gagliardi, 2017 NWHL Foundation Award
- Lexi Bender, 2018, 2020 NWHL Foundation Award
- Mallory Souliotis, 2019 and 2021 NWHL Foundation Award, 2021 Fans' Three Stars[24]
- Lovisa Selander, 2020 Goaltender of the Year
- Kaleigh Fratkin, 2020 and 2021 Defender of the Year[25]
Franchise milestones[]
![]() | This section needs to be updated.(September 2020) |
Milestone | Player | Date |
First goal | Hilary Knight | October 11, 2015 |
First hat trick | Brianna Decker | October 25, 2015 |
First multi-point game | Hilary Knight | October 11, 2015 |
First win | Brittany Ott | October 11, 2015 |
First African-American player | Blake Bolden | October 11, 2015 |
First playoff goal | Brianna Decker | March 4, 2016 |
First playoff game-winning goal | Brianna Decker | March 4, 2016 |
First playoff win | Brittany Ott | March 4, 2016 |
First playoff shutout | Brittany Ott | March 4, 2016 |
References[]
- ^ "Karilyn Pilch Named GM of the Boston Pride". NWHL. July 22, 2019.
- ^ "USNT's Paul Mara Named Head Coach of the Boston Pride". OurSportsCentral.com. May 30, 2018.
- ^ "Boston Pride 2017-18 season recap nwhl". theicegarden.com. July 25, 2018.
- ^ Cimini, Kaitlin (May 28, 2015). "Bobby Jay Brings NHL Experience to the Boston Pride". Today's Slapshot. Archived from the original on May 30, 2015. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
- ^ Hayden, Zoë (April 14, 2015). "NWHL launch party provides passion, enthusiasm, and few answers". Stanley Cup of Chowder. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
- ^ Cimini, Kaitlin (June 23, 2015). "Amanda Pelkey becomes first player to sign with Boston Pride". NWHL. Retrieved June 23, 2015.
- ^ McGinnes, Meagan (March 22, 2016). "Denna Laing wins two awards at NWHL Awards". boston.com. Retrieved May 12, 2016.
- ^ "Riveters trade rights to Carpenter and D'Oench". NWHL. April 28, 2016.
- ^ "TRADE: Connecticut Acquires Zoe Hickel". NWHL. February 7, 2017. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
- ^ Eisenberg, Matt (March 20, 2017). "Buffalo Beauts upset Boston Pride for Isobel Cup". espnW. Retrieved April 13, 2017.
- ^ "NWHL hit with bad news". The Fourth Period. November 18, 2016. Archived from the original on November 19, 2016.
- ^ "Boston Pride 2017-18 season recap". SB Nation. Retrieved July 28, 2018.
- ^ "USNT's Paul Mara Named Head Coach of the Boston Pride". NWHL.zone. 30 May 2018. Retrieved 24 August 2018.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Marissa Gedman Joins Pride Coaching Staff". NWHL.zone. August 23, 2018. Archived from the original on August 25, 2018. Retrieved August 24, 2018.
- ^ "NWHL Announces Sale of the Boston Pride". OurSports Central. September 17, 2019.
- ^ Nathan Vaughan (January 28, 2020). "Record Broken: Dempsey hits 100 The longest tenured member of the Pride is a historic first". SB Nation. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
- ^ https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/09/22/sports/nwhls-boston-pride-gets-banner-treatment-logan-airport/
- ^ "NWHL ANNOUNCES PLAN FOR SEASON AND ISOBEL CUP PLAYOFFS AT LAKE PLACID'S 1980 RINK-HERB BROOKS ARENA". NWHL. November 25, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
- ^ "Pride Roster". NWHL. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
- ^ "Boston Pride". Elite Prospects. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
- ^ "2015 NWHL Complete Draft, June 20, Boston". NWHL. Archived from the original on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2015-07-08.
- ^ "NWHL Announces First Television Deal with NESN". NWHL.co.
- ^ "Jillian Dempsey Wins Denna Laing Award for Second Consecutive Season". NWHL.zone. March 20, 2019. Archived from the original on March 26, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
- ^ Paul Krotz (April 28, 2021). "NWHL ANNOUNCES 2021 AWARD RECIPIENTS". NWHL. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ "Toronto's Mikyla Grant-Mentis named MVP at 2021 NWHL Awards". sportsnet.ca. April 28, 2021. Retrieved April 29, 2021.
External links[]
![]() |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Boston Pride. |
- Boston Pride
- Ice hockey teams in Boston
- Ice hockey clubs established in 2015
- National Women's Hockey League (2015–) teams
- Women's ice hockey teams in the United States
- 2015 establishments in Massachusetts