Beauts look to add to win column against Riveters

After picking up a split against the Minnesota Whitecaps in their last series, the Beauts hope to continue their winning ways against the Metropolitan Riveters this weekend. Buffalo will host the Rivs in the two teams’ second meeting; the first series between them was back in late November, where they each picked up a game apiece in two tight contests.

The Riveters last played on the weekend of January 23-24, where they split their series against the Boston Pride. Metropolitan currently sits fifth in the PHF standings with 10 points, five points ahead of the Beauts, who are sixth with five points. A sweep in regulation would boost Buffalo ahead of the Riveters in the standings.

The Beauts will look to ride their momentum from this past weekend into their series against the Rivs. Their two games against the Riveters were as close as you can get - they picked up a one-goal 4-3 win in OT before falling 5-3 in their second game, which was a one-goal game until the Riveters scored with 13 seconds remaining. They’ve proven already that they’re able to keep up with Metropolitan.

Both the Riveters and Beauts have had trouble scoring this year - they’ve scored 26 and 25 total goals this year, respectively. Where they vary is in how many goals they’ve allowed - Metropolitan has let in just 33 goals in 11 games, while Buffalo has allowed 51 goals in 10 games.

One of the places the Beauts could gain an edge is on special teams. In their 6-2 win against Minnesota last Sunday, Buffalo scored twice on the power play and once on a delayed penalty, a welcome change from a team that has had some trouble with the extra skater this season. If the Beauts can keep up that efficiency and stay out of the box, they can give the Rivs a run for their money.

The Beauts will also need to keep an eye out on the Riveter’s top line of Madison Packer, Rebecca Russo, and Kendall Cornine, who have been electric for Metropolitan this season. All three currently lead the Rivs in scoring - Russo has 12 points (4G, 8A), Packer has 10 (5 G, 5A), and Cornine has eight (5G, 3A). Metropolitan will rely heavily on them as they have all season, and the Beauts will need to contain them in order to find success this weekend.

The puck drops on the team’s first contest on Saturday, February 12 at 7 p.m. ET, and Sunday’s contest starts at 1 p.m. ET.