Boston Fleet posted a dominant 4-0 shutout over Toronto Sceptres at Coca-Cola Coliseum on Friday. The Fleet poured in four unanswered goals and got another clean sheet from their goaltending to remain the clear frontrunner for the top seed.
Boston sits at 51 points with an 18-4 record, the best in PWHL by a wide margin. The Fleet have won games with defense, goaltending, and a forward group that shares the load effectively.
Jessie Eldridge paced the offense with her team-leading 24 points. Susanna Tapani has 11 goals in 30 games, and Alina Muller has been dangerous every time she touches the puck with 19 points in 26 appearances. Megan Keller added 17 points from the blue line.
Aerin Frankel was perfect between the pipes. Her season numbers are staggering: a .954 save percentage, 1.17 goals-against average, and seven shutouts in 21 starts. She has been the runaway favorite for goaltender of the year.
Toronto had no answer for Boston's structure. Natalie Spooner leads the Sceptres with 20 goals in 24 games, and Daryl Watts has matched her with 27 points. But the team could not generate quality chances against a suffocating Fleet defensive system.
The Sceptres dropped to 31 points in fifth place, four points above New York and Vancouver. Raygan Kirk took the loss in goal despite a .929 save percentage on the season.
Toronto needs to find a way to reverse this slide before the final stretch. Boston continues to look like the team to beat in the Walter Cup playoffs.
Boston heads home to Tsongas Center. Toronto stays at Coca-Cola Coliseum for their next contest.