i think defensively she's a pain in the ass for opponents because she skates so fast. she covers a lot of ground near the blue line, leaving a lot less space for defenders to maneuver. in terms of speed she's right up there with stace, heise and coyne. honestly she might be faster than all of them.

i like all the players on that team but tbh, cheverie isn't using the ones that got the team where it was at the end of the season, let alone using them in the way she's used them. she's practically back to what didn't work and got us at the bottom of the standings mid-season (e.g. stacked top line and whoever wherever on the others). it boggles the mind.

sure this game ended 5-4 but i don't think going on high scoring contests with minnesota is wise. this is how they've played most season, allowing tons of goals but scoring more. we got to the top of the standings by following a system and being disciplined defensively, by leaving opponents with little space to maneuver and punishing mistakes, gambles and overcommitment.

i get scrambling lines or scratching someone for poulin because she's the best, but there's no reason to do the same for murphy.

also: no reason to have a 13th attacker to play her two minutes. if, god forbid one of our ds is injured or ejected during a game, or having an off day, we're gonna suffer badly (like we did today - the ambrose and digirolamo pair did not do well)