Boston Blades split weekend with Toronto Furies

After a disappointing loss on Saturday to begin the season, the Boston Blades bounced back the next day, leaving Toronto with their first win.

Game two ended in a shootout, with Blades first round draft pick and assistant captain Kristina Brown scoring the game winning goal.

"Brownie had an unbelievable move," Blades goaltender Genevieve Lacasse said on Monday. Brown explained that she honed the move while playing in Finland, calling it her play on hall of famer Peter Forsberg's signature shootout move, which he used to help Sweden win the 1994 Olympic Gold Medal over Canada.

Both Brown and Lacasse said that the team's energy played a factor in both games.

"I think we surprised ourselves in the first period [of the first game]," Lacasse said. "Our adrenaline was high."

That period was the only one of the entire weekend where the Blades had the advantage in shots on goal, edging out Toronto 12-10. During the other two periods of game one, Boston spent much of the time in their own zone, with Brown saying that they had expended all of their energy early. That wasn't a problem in game two.

"Knowing what to expect, we were able to contain that energy more," said Brown.

Adding to that energy was a boost from a solid penalty killing stretch in the first period of game two. Boston's penalty killing was one of their highlights of game one, and they built on that the following game by killing two 5-on-3s in a row.

About half way through the first period, captain Tara Watchorn went to the box for roughing. Less than a minute later, defensemen Maggie DiMasi was called for delay of game. Then, just after killing Watchorn's penalty, a third Blades D, Sarah Duncan, was called for high sticking.

While the extended penalty kill bolstered the team's spirits, it didn't help Lacasse's shot total. After seeing 47 shots in game 1, the Furies sent another 41 shots her way in game 2, out shooting the Blades again. This was something Lacasse was anticipating, however, and something she was looking forward to.

"I love being busy," Lacasse said. "My team was all over rebounds and made it easy for me to see shots."

Despite being out shot, the Blades were able to net the first goal of game two, when rookie Ellie Tremblay scored in the second period, assisted by Erin Kickham and Watchorn.

"Getting that first goal of the game was huge," Lacasse said.

With just under three minutes left in that period, Toronto's Jessica Vella responded, tying the game at 1.

The score remained that way through overtime, leaving the game up to a shootout. Lacasse was perfect in all three rounds. The Blades sent Brown out in both the second and third rounds, where she scored both times.

Boston now looks to build off of the positives from these games when they face Calgary next weekend.

"This was a really great weekend for the team. It showed that we can hold our own and compete," Brown said. "We need to keep up that energy for a whole three periods, work hard and play simple."