Matchday Recap: S02D07

Bonsoir. Matchday 07 set a new season high for chaos—eight results the bookmakers didn't see coming, two games decided in a shootout, and a power-play goal in overtime to settle a tied affair in Montréal. Quelle soirée. Let's get into it.

SAO 2 — ANC 4

Upset. The Green Canopy was supposed to favor São Paulo—1.76 to Anchorage's 2.08—but the Auroras chipped away from the opening minute and pulled away for good in the third.

Rafael Oliveira opened the scoring for São Paulo at 0:33, Juliana Santos assisting, before Isaiah Tobin and Isabela Costa fought moments later, coincidental majors. Kira Naluktaq tied it for Anchorage at 3:40, Carlos Medina with the feed, and Tara Alexie put the Auroras ahead late, 14:22, Heather Braund assisting. 1-2 after twenty.

Bryce Denison extended Anchorage's lead in the second, 4:41, Kira Naluktaq assisting, and Tara Alexie converted a power play at 9:26, Denison returning the assist for her second point of the night. 1-4 after forty.

The third saw Thiago Pereira pull São Paulo within two, 3:28, Juliana Santos picking up her second assist, before Camila Ferreira and Isaiah Tobin fought, five and five, and Kira Naluktaq and Mariana Lima followed with offsetting majors. Final: 2-4—Anchorage's road upset, Tara Alexie with two goals to lead the way.

WPG 4 — GDL 1

The Cold Lodge produced a result close to the modest home favoritism, 1.6 to 2.35, Tyler Chicken and Tara Ridsdale combining for most of Winnipeg's offense.

Tyler Chicken opened the scoring at 12:11, Anna Flett assisting, for the only goal of a hit-heavy first period.

Santiago Torres tied it for Guadalajara in the second, 4:31, Valentina Ramírez assisting, before Rodrigo Vargas and Brody Flett fought, coincidental majors, and Tyler Chicken restored Winnipeg's lead at 9:26, Jake Fehr with the feed. 2-1 after forty.

The third belonged to Winnipeg. Kaya Bearclaw and Valentina Ramírez fought early, coincidental majors, before Jonas Brevik put the Wendigos ahead by two at 10:30, Tara Ridsdale assisting, and Curtis Favel added a fourth at 11:48, Ridsdale picking up her second assist of the night. Final: 4-1—Tyler Chicken with two goals, Tara Ridsdale with two assists and two hits.

HEL 3 — MUM 1

Upset. The Dark Sauna was supposed to favor Mumbai—1.81 to Helsinki's 2.01—but the Howlers' third period, two goals in the final twenty minutes, settled it.

The first period was scoreless and combative—Anniina Tuominen and Sanjay Pawar fought at center ice, offsetting majors, the period's only event of note.

Arjun Patil opened the scoring for Mumbai in the second, 0:25, Rohan Deshmukh assisting, but Liisa Nieminen tied it less than four minutes later, Aleksi Korhonen with the feed. 1-1 after forty.

The third belonged to Helsinki. Erik Johansson converted a power play at 1:56, Anniina Tuominen assisting, and Elina Heikkinen sealed it late, 13:52, Jenni Laine assisting. Final: 3-1—Helsinki's upset at home, a third period that flipped the odds sheet on its head.

JBG 2 — STO 1

Quel match! Die Goue Myn needed a fourth period and a shootout to settle this one, even though the odds board heavily favored Johannesburg—1.22 to Stockholm's 4.32. Zanele Ndaba's shootout winner spared the home side an upset of its own.

Elin Sjöberg opened the scoring for Stockholm at 2:51, Klara Åström assisting, before Oscar Söderström and Naledi Khumalo fought, offsetting majors. The penalties piled up from there—Albin Nordlund, Astrid Engström, Thandiwe Radebe, and Saga Ekström all visited The Sixth before the period ended. 0-1 after twenty.

The second was scoreless but chippy—Kagiso Molefe and Elin Sjöberg fought, matching majors, among six total penalties in the period. 0-1 after forty.

Pieter Botha tied it for Johannesburg in the third, 10:46, Nomsa Mahlangu assisting, after Bongani Mthembu and Astrid Engström dropped the gloves, coincidental majors. 1-1 after sixty.

Overtime was scoreless. In the shootout, Zanele Ndaba converted to win it for Johannesburg. Final: 2-1—the heaviest favorites of the matchday needed every minute to confirm it.

WEL 1 — DKR 3

Upset. The Howling Harbour was a coin flip on the odds board—Wellington at 1.90, Dakar at 1.91—and a twenty-two-hit, hyper-physical night went the visitors' way.

Fatou Mbaye opened the scoring for Dakar at 12:21, Mamadou Guèye assisting, after Abdoulaye Touré and Awhina Clarke fought, coincidental majors, capping a first period that was almost entirely hits. 0-1 after twenty.

The second was more of the same—hits up and down the ice, no goals, Kauri Thompson and Rokhaya Faye both visiting The Sixth.

The third opened with Awhina Clarke tying it for Wellington, 1:32, Mereana Brooke assisting, before Rāwiri Patel and Ousmane Diallo fought, five and five. Awa Diop restored Dakar's lead at 8:36, Rokhaya Faye with the feed, and Khady Bâ sealed it on the power play at 14:41, Fatou Mbaye picking up her second point of the night. Final: 1-3—Dakar's road upset, Fatou Mbaye with a goal and an assist.

PRA 0 — RIM 5

Upset. The Stone Opera was supposed to favor Prague—1.88 to Rimini's 1.93—but the Rinklers delivered a shutout, Lorenzo Fabbri factoring into all five goals with two assists and three fights along the way.

Giulia Bianchi and Eliška Veselá fought early, matching majors, before Chiara Ricci opened the scoring at 4:17, Alessandro Conti assisting. Valentina Colombo doubled it at 8:14, Lorenzo Fabbri assisting, and Francesca Serra made it 0-3 at 10:36, Giulia Bianchi with the feed. 0-3 after twenty.

The second was scoreless but combustible—Eliška Veselá and Lorenzo Fabbri fought, matching majors, and Lorenzo Fabbri and Kateřina Dvořáková followed with another set, also matching. 0-3 after forty.

The third saw Lorenzo Fabbri and Kateřina Dvořáková drop the gloves a second time, offsetting majors—Fabbri's third fight of the night—before Alessandro Conti converted a power play at 1:35, Chiara Ricci picking up her second assist, and Valentina Colombo capped it at 14:59, Fabbri with his second assist. Final: 0-5—a home shutout for Prague, Rimini's most complete performance of the season.

MDE 2 — USH 1

Upset. La Ladera needed extra hockay to settle this one, and Medellín—underdogs at 2.15 to Ushuaia's 1.71—came out on top in the shootout. Mateo Arango converted the deciding attempt.

Florencia Ramos opened the scoring for Ushuaia at 3:51, Camila Aguirre assisting, before a parade of penalties closed out the period—Agustín Medina, Facundo Álvarez, and Valentina Giménez all visiting The Sixth. 0-1 after twenty.

The second was scoreless and penalty-filled on both sides. 0-1 after forty.

Daniela Mejía tied it for Medellín in the third, 0:31, Camilo Henao assisting, before Tomás Peralta and Luciana Vélez fought late, five and five. 1-1 into overtime.

Overtime stayed scoreless—Santiago Restrepo and Facundo Álvarez fought early, five and five—and the game went to a shootout. Mateo Arango ended it. Final: 2-1—Medellín's home upset, settled in the bonus frame.

PER 4 — MCM 1

The Red Furnace produced a result close to the heavy home favoritism, 1.42 to 2.88, Cooper Hale's three-hit, one-goal night setting the tone.

Tobias Frey opened the scoring for McMurdo at 2:02, Elena Varga assisting, but Zara Patel tied it for Perth just over two minutes later, Eliza Cartwright with the feed. 1-1 after twenty.

Oscar Whitfield put Perth ahead on the power play in the second, 1:14, Liam O'Brien assisting. 2-1 after forty.

The third was Perth's. Cooper Hale converted at 11:14, Mia Thornton assisting, and Tahlia Nguyen capped it at 13:44, Riley Dawson with the feed. Final: 4-1—Perth comfortable from the second period onward, twenty-two hits in a thoroughly physical night at the Red Furnace.

TOK 3 — VLA 2

Upset. The Neon Crossing was supposed to favor Vladivostok—1.67 to Tokyo's 2.22—but the Titans clawed back from a two-goal deficit and Sakura Shimizu's second goal of the night settled it.

Nikita Sorokin opened the scoring for Vladivostok at 0:49, Artyom Volkov assisting, before Mei Fujita and Kirill Morozov fought, coincidental majors. Denis Baranov doubled the visitors' lead at 5:23, Volkov picking up his second assist, before Sakura Shimizu pulled Tokyo within one on the power play, 8:39, Sōta Watanabe assisting. 1-2 after twenty.

Mio Kobayashi tied it for Tokyo late in the second, 14:35, Aoi Yamamoto assisting. 2-2 after forty.

The third was Tokyo's. Sakura Shimizu completed her two-goal night at 3:04, Hina Takahashi assisting, before Igor Zaytsev and Hina Takahashi fought, offsetting majors, and Vera Orlova and Ren Inoue followed with coincidental majors. Final: 3-2—Tokyo's home upset, a complete reversal from a two-goal hole.

NRB 5 — CAI 3

The Ochre Reserve produced a result close to the odds board, Nairobi at 1.82 to Cairo's 2.0, Dennis Wafula's two-goal, one-assist night the difference.

The first period was scoreless and hit-heavy—Amara Osei and Ahmed Zaki closed it out with a fight, matching majors.

The second produced four goals. Akinyi Ochieng opened the scoring at 0:42, Brian Kipchoge assisting, before Nour El-Sayed tied it for Cairo, 5:50, Khaled Naguib with the feed. Omar Hassan put Cairo ahead at 8:31, Habiba Sherif assisting, before Karim Fahmy and Wanjiku Mwangi fought, five and five, and Brian Kipchoge and Nour El-Sayed followed with matching majors. Samuel Njoroge tied it again at 12:40, Dennis Wafula assisting. 2-2 after forty.

The third was Nairobi's. Dennis Wafula put the Narwhals ahead at 1:05, Njoroge returning the assist, before Salma Ibrahim tied it for Cairo, 8:22, Layla Mostafa assisting. Dennis Wafula struck again at 10:02, Moses Okello with the feed, and Wanjiku Mwangi sealed it at 11:09, Faith Wanjiru assisting. Final: 5-3—Dennis Wafula with two goals and an assist in Nairobi's eight-goal win.

BUS 3 — GND 1

Upset. The Frozen Dock was supposed to favor Gander—1.73 to Busan's 2.12—but the Blizzards' second period, three unanswered goals, settled it.

Min-jun Lee opened the scoring at 12:35, Hyun-woo Kwon assisting, after Hye-jin Choi and Calvin Roebothan fought, offsetting majors, for the only goal of the first.

The second belonged to Busan. Liam Coish tied it for Gander early, 1:34, Janice Hapgood assisting, but Yuna Kang restored the lead at 5:26, Sang-hoon Bae assisting, and Tae-hyun Lim doubled it at 8:24, Dong-wook Yoon with the feed. Vera Tobin and Jae-won Kim fought late, five and five. 3-1 after forty.

The third was scoreless, mostly penalties—So-hee Hwang and Eun-bi Han both visiting The Sixth between them. Final: 3-1—Busan's home upset, a complete second period the difference.

MTL 2 — HAV 3

Upset. The Oldest Rink was a near coin flip on the odds board—Montréal at 1.84, Havana at 1.97—and a power-play goal in overtime sent the Hammers home with the points.

The first period was scoreless and penalty-heavy—five trips to The Sixth between Dmitri Volkov, Chloé Moreau, Sarah-Maude Fortin, Yarelys González, and Lucas Pelletier, no goals to show for it.

The second saw Yarelys González open the scoring for Havana, 2:23, Yoandri Hernández assisting, before Philippe Dubois and Osmany Leyva fought, coincidental majors, and Jean-François Tremblay and Lisandra Álvarez followed with offsetting majors. Dmitri Volkov tied it on the power play at 13:02, Chloé Moreau assisting. 1-1 after forty.

Yanelis Peña put Havana back ahead in the third, 2:40, Adonis Reyes assisting, before Dmitri Volkov and Osmany Leyva fought, coincidental majors. Philippe Dubois tied it again at 13:39, Amélie Bouchard assisting. 2-2 into overtime.

Overtime turned on penalties—Dmitri Volkov and Philippe Dubois both went to The Sixth inside the first two minutes—and Adonis Reyes converted the power play at 5:36, Yarelys González returning the assist. Final: 2-3—Havana's road upset, completed on a two-man advantage.

Eight upsets—a new season high—two shootouts, and a power play that decided overtime in Montréal. Quelle soirée, mes amis. See you for Matchday 08.

—JM Laflèche, Voice of Hockay

Le Council acknowledges that Matchday 07 occurred. Eight results were inconsistent with pre-game expectations, a new high for the season. Le Council notes that Johannesburg, the heaviest favorites of the night at 1.22, required a fourth period and a shootout to avoid joining them. The record has been updated accordingly.