Aerin Frankel earns third straight shutout as Fleet take 4-0 win over Sceptres
TORONTO (AP) — Aerin Frankel made 18 saves for her third straight shutout and seventh of the season as the Boston Fleet topped the Toronto Sceptres 4-0 on Friday night. Liz Schepers, with two goals, Jessie Eldridge and Sophie Shirley scored for Boston, which extended its lead atop the standings to five points ahead of second-place Montreal. Elaine Chuli stopped 19 shots for Toronto, which had its six-game point streak snapped.
Three of the Sceptres’ four wins during the streak came against Vancouver and Seattle, the PWHL’s last-place teams. The Sceptres last played on March 17, a 2-0 win at Boston . It was the second of back-to-back shutout wins for Toronto, including a 2-0 home win over Seattle on March 15.
Schepers opened the scoring 11:38 into the first period when she put home a rebound after Shirley’s point shot was initially tipped by Hadley Hartmetz. Schepers added her second of the game at 10:54 of the second period after she tipped in a wrist shot from Haley Winn. Eldridge scored with 5:28 remaining in the middle frame.
Shirley put home a rebound with 5:46 left in the third period after Chuli stopped consecutive shots from Jamie Lee Rattray and Mia Biotti. The Fleet now hold the best goal-differential in the PWHL at plus-23, and have scored first in a PWHL-leading 18 games this season. Up next Fleet: Visit the Minnesota Frost on Sunday.
Sceptres: Host the Vancouver Goldeneyes on Sunday. ___ AP women’s hockey: https://apnews. com/hub/womens-hockey