Six different goal scorers and a 22-save shutout by Shannon Szabados propelled the Buffalo Beauts to a 7-0 win on Saturday at Harborcenter, their second consecutive victory over the Connecticut Whale.
The victory was the second straight shutout for the Beauts after they defeated the Whale 4-0 on the road on Oct. 7. It is the first time in franchise history the team has recorded back-to-back shutouts. The 2-0 beginning to the season is also the best start in the team's four-year history.
"We're definitely happy," head coach Ric Seiling said. "We're still learning our players. We weren't too happy with the second period. We know we're better than we showed. As coaches, we're still in the process of learning who melds well together. Like all things, sometimes they work for a while and it's up to us to notice and make changes - which we did in the third."
Three different Beauts recorded their first career NWHL goals in the win. Savannah Harmon scored the team's first goal off a cross-ice pass from Dani Cameranesi after a failed clearing attempt by Connecticut. Annika Zalewski followed suit with her first career tally just 66 seconds after Harmon. Eden native Julianna Iafallo netted her first NWHL goal in the third period, the third of four Buffalo goals in the frame.
Lewiston-native Maddie Elia, Hayley Scamurra and Corinne Buie were the other goal scorers for the Beauts, and Zalewski led the way with two talllies. Buffalo had five players record multiple points in the victory. Chesson, Zalewski, Scamurra, Elia and Cameranasi all had two points each.
Defensively, the Beauts were strong once again as they held the Whale scoreless for a second straight game. In the two games so far this season, Buffalo has allowed just 32 shots on net.
Szabados, who was making her NWHL and Beauts debuts, faced 12 more shots than her counterpart, Nicole Hensley, did last Sunday. The three-time Olympian admitted this was a much-anticipated game for her.
"I was looking forward to this day for a quite a while; had it circled on my calendar," Szabados said. "The crowd was amazing, so it didn't make it too hard to get into the game and obviously the girls played well in front of me."
The Edmonton, Alberta, native made some solid saves, especially toward the end of the second period, which helped prevent the Whale from scoring.
"She made some really big saves, especially right at the end of the second period," Seiling said. "She earned that shutout."
The Beauts will be back in action on Oct. 27-28, when they travel to take on the Minnesota Whitecaps, who are playing in their inaugural season.
