For the last three decades, TD Garden has been a coliseum for one of the most historic rivalries in sports.
Whenever Boston and Montreal stepped onto the ice sheet, an ultra-intense, physical game was in order. It’s woven into the identity of the storied hockey cities.
A renewed chapter of the feud between Boston and Montreal docked on Causeway Street on Saturday night when the Boston Fleet hosted the Montreal Victoire in front of a sellout crowd of 17,850 for the first Professional Women’s Hockey League game at the venue.
The game brought plenty of intensity. But Montreal’s Lina Ljungblom crashed the Fleet’s Garden party. Her goal at 5:52 of the third period broke a scoreless stalemate to lift the Victoire to a 1-0 victory over Boston to protect its position in first place in the league standings.
Goals will be in short supply whenever Montreal’s Ann-Renée Desbiens and Boston’s Aerin Frankel — two of the league’s best netminders — occupy the opposing blue paint. That sentiment proved to be true on Saturday.
Desbiens entered the matchup with a league-leading 1.13 goals against average and stopped all 20 shots she faced. Montreal has allowed a league-low 34 goals this season.
Boston (14-5-2-5) wasn’t without its chances, though. The Fleet whiffed on a pivotal third-period power play and struggled to generate any momentum while on the player advantage. It was Montreal (16-4-2-5) that benefited from Boston’s power play woes.
The TD Garden lights up as Boston and Montreal take to the ice for the PWHL game before a sellout crowd. (Staff photo by Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald)
Just seconds after Boston’s last power play expired, Montreal transitioned to offense to open the scoring. Entering the attacking zone on a three-on-two, Laura Stacey dropped the puck to a trailing Ljungblom, who one-timed the shot past Frankel’s outstretched glove.
Frankel, who entered the contest leading the league with a .955 save percentage, made 18 saves.
UMass Lowell’s Tsongas Center has been the Fleet’s primary home venue since their inaugural season in 2024. The 2025-26 slate consisted of eight games in Lowell and four contests at Agganis Arena at Boston University. Boston returns to the Tsongas on Wednesday, where it will play three of its four remaining regular-season games before the playoffs.
Boston’s loss was the nightcap of a doubleheader on Garden ice. The Boston Bruins fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning, 2-1, in the afternoon.
The game remained scoreless through two periods, but there was no shortage of energy on the ice in Boston. The Fleet was held off the scoreboard on two power play attempts in the opening frame before tensions continued to mount in the second frame to the enjoyment of an energetic crowd.
After Frankel stuffed Stacey on a point-blank shot from the slot due to a Boston turnover, Stacey engaged in pleasantries with a pile of Fleet sweaters in front of the blue paint. The extracurriculars yielded matching roughing infractions, but neither side could convert during 4-on-4 action.
A flurry of penalties in the final minutes of the second created power plays for both the Fleet and the Victoire, but both goalies stood tall. Boston landed just 11 shots on goal after two periods.
The Fleet received a golden opportunity in the third on its final power play of the night, but the unsuccessful attempt was flipped on its head when Ljungblom lit the lamp.
Boston emptied its net to deploy an extra attacker in the final minutes of the third but couldn’t solve Desbiens despite scoring chances from Megan Keller and Haley Winn from the point.
Boston Fleet defenseman Riley Brengman, left, checks Montréal Victoire forward Dara Greig at the TD Garden. (Staff photo by Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald)
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