The Seattle Torrent returned to the ice after the Olympic break to a sold-out, record-breaking crowd of 17,335 at Climate Pledge Arena. The arena was loud, the fans electric, and the crowd never wavered in enthusiasm right up until the end. The game saw the first goal of the season from forward Natalie Snodgrass. Of her goal, Snodgrass said “I had all the faith in the world in Carps [Alex Carpenter] to bury that one, but I knew what was coming for me if I didn’t follow that rebound. She’s a natural goal scorer, but, thanks to her, I got the monkey off my back and it was an exciting goal- tie the game up going into the third.” Defender Aneta Tejralová also found the back of the net for the first time this season. Fresh off her captaincy of Team Czechia in the Olympics, as well as a difficult start to her season overcoming both and injury and a suspension, it was nice for her to seem back at full strength in this game. “I think it was a great play by Goss [Julia Gosling] and Dani [Danielle Serdachny],” said Tejralová. “Grateful for that, but I would rather get three points.” Tejralová Celebrates Her First Goal. Photo @PWHL [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/015d5a46-9150-4d96-8f4a-a5043fb04180.jpeg] Tejralová Celebrates Her First Goal. Photo @PWHL COMING BACK AFTER A LONG BREAK WITHOUT KEY PLAYERS The night certainly had its celebratory moments such as the attendance record being broken, the first goals for two players and even a rookie lap for Sydney Langseth who was signed after Hilary Knight went on long-term injured reserve [https://thehockeynews.com/womens/pwhl/hilary-knight-placed-on-long-term-injured-reserve-following-olympic-injury]. However, the game ultimately ended in a five to two loss to the Toronto Sceptres and the fumbles were, at times, tough for fans to watch. Torrent Head Coach, Steve O’Rourke said, after the game, “It takes time. Carps [Carpenter] and Hils [Knight] had tons of national team time together and, all of a sudden, you change that around.” Coach O'Rourke Discusses the Challenges of a Long Break. Keen-eyed fans might also have noticed the similarities between the first and third goals scored by the Sceptres. Both were scored with Toronto attacking the point, generating an odd-player rush, and then quickly sniping the puck past Seattle goaltender, Hannah Murphy. “Ideally, I’d love Hannah to grab that with her glove, but she hits it with her skate to her stick, and right off the chest of another person. It could go any which direction- up, down- but right there, it goes the other way,” said O’Rourke. “She’s in the right spot under pressure and it’s a tough spot to be on the point when you’re that last person and that puck comes at you. It’s a tough play and I kind of felt the same on the next one as well.” Was it due to bad bounces? “I swear we’ve been cursed with bad bounces that just haven’t gone our way. I was just talking to Barnes [Cayla Barnes] before coming down here. Skate to stick right to the body and go in the other direction. It’s one of those bounces that you just hope it goes your way. We’re gonna get those bounces. It’s gonna come. We just got to stay to it. This group is a good group of people that believe and we’ll just keep going.” WHAT DIDN’T WORK? Some things are working well for the Torrent, but it’s not converting to as many wins as the team would like to see. Seattle outshot Toronto 31 to 29 and it was the fifth such game where the team has been able to do that, but they have only won one of those five games. The Torrent also have been tied through the second period in seven games which is the highest in the league. They’ve only won three of those seven games. What happened specifically in this game harkened back to some of the same things that plagued the Torrent at the start of the season. The first period was all Sceptres as they controlled the puck and spent most of the 20 minutes in the Torrent’s zone. They also outshot Seattle 11 to seven. Neutral zone turnovers came back to the haunt the team throughout as well. Shots, Hits, and Goals Through the First Period Indicated by Color. Graphic @PWHL [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/797c4b43-61c2-4819-9572-c8aea6cb4ad6.png] Shots, Hits, and Goals Through the First Period Indicated by Color. Graphic @PWHL While the team started to find their groove through the second period, the lack of Knight and Hannah Bilka, who was out with an upper-body injury, was palpable. In fact, the last game the Torrent played against the Sceptres ended in a six-four win, and the one prior to that in a three-two win. It’s logical to connect the dots that these two players being out and with only one full practice prior to the game to put new lines together impacted the result of the game. “Seattle’s got a lot of talent. They’re going to make you pay if you make those types of mistakes. I don’t think it’s the type of team we have and the type of [defense] that we have that had the breakdowns last time,” said Toronto Head Coach, Troy Ryan. “Tonight, you just probably saw them not have as costly of breakdowns. Obviously, a couple key players aren’t in the lineup for Seattle that usually make you pay.” The Torrent sit in last place in the league and it’s time to start pushing towards the playoffs. They desperately need to capitalize on the three points available to them for each game as they move forward. They have the weekend off to regroup and let the Olympians settle back into routine. The team then hits the road next week to take on the Ottawa Charge on March 4 before returning back home on March 11 to host the Boston Fleet.
