Riveters take all the Holiday Gifts into the Break
J.J. Pavlick
12/17/22
Today's road game in Connecticut is big for the Riveters who are looking to rebound after their loss in Toronto after a start that saw them go down early due to some wacky bounces off the boards. Katie Burt rebounded strongly though and was stellar again in net for the team keeping them in it the entire time. The team was the victim of bad bounces and calls but never gave up and fought non-stop in their effort to try and even the game up. However, Brittany Howard and Emma Woods were just a tad too much at crucial points in the game. Brittany secured her hat trick on an empty net goal and Emma iced the game late on a great shot through traffic off an unforced error. I would expect to see Eveliina Makinen in goal today against Connecticut to give Burt the chance to rest up and reset for the big game against Boston on January 7th at home. It will be the first night game at American Dream and also the first time Katie Burt will face her old team.
Okay, I guess we should get into the game that was played before we go down a rabbit hole about Katie Burt and how she is about to take on the evil empire on January 7th at 7 pm ET at American Dream in East Rutherford, NJ. Yes, yes, I know the game against Connecticut you're dying to know how the Riveters pulled off the victory and turned it around quickly. So, we shall begin it was a cold blistering day that saw temperatures in the 30s outside with snow falling. Kind of an ironic way to go into the Christmas break I would say. The team got off the bus in a fury, heading inside the rink with spirits high and full of jolly. Ok, I know way too Christmassy, can't have that when we are about to discuss some great puck on the open ice inside a local rink.
The first period was the best of times and the worst of times, it started off great for the Riveters, as they drew a penalty by Alyssa Wohlfeiler who was not very jolly. She was sent to the naughty list just 33 seconds in for high sticking tisk, tisk. Unfortunately, it didn't result in what we expected to see happen. The quick penalty seemed to alter the universe where the Riveters came out slow and flat which is very unlike this high-speed, highly skilled team. The Whales would capitalize on the flat start and play the role of the Grinch. They beat Makinen on her blocker side on an unassisted goal by Taylor Girard. Girard tried to put the Whales up by 2 while still shorthanded but Makinen was having none of it and sent her a letter of denial on her 2nd breakaway chance. Riveters Catherine Crawley also joined the naughty list in the first period at the 12:28 mark, but her teammates killed off her offense of Delay of Game.
"We didn't execute the key points and it was frustrating to start the game off that way." "The message was a simple one to deliver after the 1st period and at the same time show support for the team." -Venla Hovi Head Coach
As we all know Venla is a very patient coach with her team and knows when to speak up about her frustrations. Emilie Harley who was dancing a few jigs on the bench before puck drop got the intermission message and delivered faster than jolly old Saint Nick. At the 8:04 mark into the 2nd period, Harley took the loop around exit ramp from the blue line and dashed past the defenders wide open along the left side boards. She took the pass from Fanni Garat-Gasparics and blasted the puck through the screen by Kelly Babstock who blocked Ives's vision like a parent trying to cover their kid's eyes while hiding a Christmas present. Amanda Pelkey was impressed by Emilie knotting her first goal of the season and said he watch this and took the Whales Christmas spirit and found Packer on a 2 on 1 with Ives. Madison found Pelkey wide open at goal and Pelkey slammed the puck home giving the Riveters the 2-1 lead just 45 seconds later. The assists were awarded to Madison Packer and Kennedy Ganser. Kelly was feeling festive and decided she needed to let the Whales know they were not getting gifts from Santa this year. just 45 seconds after Pelkey scored Kelly went into the slot and fired a rocket past Ives who had no chance after Fanni found Kelly. The Riveters go up 3-1 and the Whales called a Time Out to figure out how to save the game. The game settled down a little after the 3 goals in 1 minute and 31 seconds for the Riveters. Unfortunately for the Riveters before they went all goal-happy, Scout Elf was paying attention and ratted out Sarah Bujold telling Santa that she body-checked someone at the 4:04 mark. We at Bad Dawg Sports do not agree with Scout Elf, it was just a little hi I'm here tap nothing more.
The Riveters we all love, and support showed up big time in the 2nd period and spread a ton of Christmas cheer throughout the 2nd period. Makinen stood tall making some big saves and sending many Whales back to their bench upset. The coach even showed a smile on the bench for the Riveters. At the end of 2 periods, it's the Riveters with the 3-1 lead while the Whales have the shot advantage at 28 - 19. Makinen has 27 saves on 28 shots and man she has been busy with the denial letters this Holiday season.
The final period of play before the holiday break was filled with joy and some not-so-jolly moments for a few. The period started off great for the Riveters who sent two players of the Whales to the naughty list fairly quickly into the 3rd period. Janka Hlinka went rogue committing a high sticking penalty at the 4:02 mark and Justine Reyes went at the 8:04 mark for not wanting to share her toys with others aka (Delay of Game). Scout Elf will be watching them closely with just days remaining till the holiday season begins. The Riveters didn't capitalize on the power plays, but they did add to the scoreboard. However, before that Emma Vlasic scored her 1st goal of the season off an assist from Allie Munroe and Amanda Conway at the 14:41 mark of the 3rd period. She made the score 3-2 after stealing the puck away from Makinen in the crease, but that's as close as the Whales would get today. Makinen was not impressed or happy and gave the classic stink eye while gulping down some water after the goal. Amanda Pelkey just under 2 minutes later would break into the zone and beat Ives with a sick nasty backhanded goal cross-goal blocker far side. If you're a Riveters fan it was a beautiful sight to see and if you're a Whales fan you wish nothing but coal for Pelkey. The Pelkey goal was assisted by Kennedy Ganser and Madison Packer. Makinen was handing out denials for the remainder of the game. The final goal would come from none other than superstar Sarah Bujold who found the back of the empty net to get back to her scoring ways at the 18:47 mark of the period. The goal was assisted by Regan Rust and now the Riveters have a commanding 5-2 lead with less than a minute to play.
The Riveters Win!!! A great way to go into the holiday break and get ready to take on those Boston blokes who come to town on January 7th at 7 pm ET. Hope everyone has a great Holiday season and enjoys many great memories with their family and loved ones. I hope you all enjoy the article even if on the losing side, just wanted to do alight-hearted holiday-inspired article to spread goodwill and cheer. Connecticut and Boston please enjoy the holidays and look forward to seeing you both in town after the break. Riveters' family and friends can't wait to see you all again back at American Dream it's been far too long.
To Celebrate the Holiday season the Metropolitan Riveters are running a Holiday Special on tickets for the remainder of December. Click this link PHF - Metropolitan Riveters | Athletics Ticketing - Ticket Office Home (universitytickets.com) and enter promo code RIVSBOGO you will get half the tickets for free. *Note, the code can be used only one time per transaction. To redeem, add at least 2 tickets to your cart, and the code RIVSBOGO will make it so half of the tickets are free. Good on all ticket levels (General Admission, Mezzanine Level, and Rosie's Club). Also, worth noting the tickets do come with some discounts for other attractions inside of America Dream so that you can make it an all-day family fun trip.