The Vancouver Goldeneyes opened their inaugural Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) season with a comeback win over the Seattle Torrent on Friday in front of a sold-out Pacific Coliseum. They never led in the game until the final whistle, when Abby Boreen one-timed a Tereza Vanisova pass that dribbled across the goalline behind Corinne Schroeder in overtime. The Torrent held leads of 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2, and the Goldeneyes responded each time to tie it up, finishing with the dramatic goal at 1:36 of the 3-on-3 overtime.
Related: Boreen’s OT Goal Gives Goldeneyes 4-3 Win Over Torrent
The Goldeneyes had a lot of standout players in their first win, showcasing the speed and talent that will excite fans for the next 29 games. Let’s dive into three of them.
Jenn Gardiner
Surrey native Jenn Gardiner was buzzing all night and almost made history with the Goldeneyes’ first goal in the PWHL. From the opening puck drop, she was ready to go, displaying breakneck speed and skill every time she was on the ice. If her first game is any indication, she will be one of head coach Brian Idalski’s go-to players, as she was second only to Hannah Miller in ice time.
While the post denied Gardiner of her first goal in a Goldeneyes sweater, she got her first point, thanks to a secondary assist on Claire Thompson‘s 3-3 tally. She finished the game with three shots and one hit in 20:30 of ice time and has probably already become a fan favourite.
Sarah Nurse
It would have been a cool moment to see a Vancouver or BC native score the first PWHL goal at the Pacific Coliseum, but Sarah Nurse doing it is the next best thing. The Canadian icon, who has scored so many clutch goals at the Olympics and World Championships, got the party started at 17:41 of the first period with a cheeky shot along the ice to tie the game 1-1 after Julia Gosling made history for the Torrent.
Nurse is already part of the leadership group in Vancouver, wearing an A on her chest. It was fitting that she was the first to cheer in Goldeneyes colours, marking the first milestone of hopefully many on Pacific Coliseum ice. She now joins a list that includes Barry Wilkins (Vancouver Canucks, Oct. 9, 1970), Jim Adair (Vancouver Blazers, Oct. 10, 1973), and Tyson Mulock (Vancouver Giants, Sept. 21, 2001) as players to score their franchise’s first goal at the Pacific Coliseum.
Like the Canucks and Giants before them, the Goldeneyes call the arena their exclusive home – the only PWHL team that has that distinction. Nurse commented on that before the game, and she is now part of its 57-year history.
“You know that when you walk into the Pacific Coliseum, you’re coming to see the Goldeneyes, and I think that’s something that’s so special. I think it’s something that the fans have really embraced. To see the amount of jerseys and merch in the stands—I took a second to look around the entire arena and it just seemed like everybody had a piece of Goldeneyes merch.”
Abby Boreen
Of course, Boreen has to have her own section in this article. While Nurse made history with the Goldeneyes’ first goal in the PWHL, Boreen joined her with the first overtime game-winner. She was prominent in regulation as well, finishing with a game-high seven shots, along with an assist on Gabby Rosenthal’s 2-2 goal early in the second period. The former Montreal Victoire and Minnesota Frost forward was also tied for second in ice time with Nurse at 20:20, and like Nurse and Gardiner, appears to be an early go-to for Idalski as a key top-six player.
This trio will likely find themselves as standouts almost every game, as they try to lead the Goldeneyes to the Walter Cup in their inaugural season. They will be front and center again in Ottawa as the Goldeneyes embark on their first-ever road trip, starting with goaltender Emerance Maschmeyer’s former team, the Charge, on Wednesday. They will then travel to New York and Boston before heading back to Vancouver for their first homestand, a four-game stint welcoming in the New York Sirens, Charge, Victoire, and two-time defending champs, the Frost.
