Pride Expect More From Gilmore
Image via the Harvard Crimson
The Pride’s unpredictability in announcing players continues as instead of another returner, we get a newcomer.
On July 19 at 12:00 PM the Boston Pride announced the signing of their second player; Rebecca “Becca” Gilmore. With Brand already on the scene, scoring looks like it’ll be in the Pride’s future. Let’s break down the new signing.
Gilmore is a graduate of Harvard University where she won the 2022 Beanpot MVP. The Wayland, Massachusetts native is a three-time member of Team USA’s Women’s U-18 team winning two gold medals and one silver.
During her time at Harvard she played four seasons*. Her freshman season in 2017-18 was one of her best, scoring 16 goals and 19 assists for 35 points in 31 games. She followed this up by 21 points in 26 games in 2018-19 and 24 points in 33 games in 2019-20.
Becca’s senior season is perhaps the most notable. She scored 19 goals and 26 assists for 45 points during the 2021-22 campaign. During this massive scoring spree she earned the Beanpot MVP and Ivy League Player of the Year.
Gilmore will be a great playmaking addition to the team. Finding scoring opportunities fell a lot on Jillian Dempsey’s shoulders last season, and a younger playmaker will create better chances on the ever improving goaltending tandems. Despite being only 5’6”, she is unafraid to drive the net hard. Defined as more quick than fast, her top speed is still enough to pull away from defenders.
Mentioning Dempsey, adding another Harvard graduate is a good move for the Pride. While we shouldn’t expect Gilmore to be the next Dempsey, keeping connections and talent from all of Boston’s Division I colleges and universities is a big draw for their students.
A solid move for Boston in most regards. While she’s unproven in the professional environment, her playmaking and scoring prowess cannot hurt. This primarily sures up the team’s middle 6, which spent much of the early half of Season 7 in flux. Paul Mara now has flexibility in how he chooses to construct those forward lines. Gilmore can also be utilized on the penalty kill, but is unlikely to supplant the more seasoned tandems the team has employed in the past. She is the first collegiate free agent the team has announced thus far, and we project she will not be the last.
Let’s keep moving toward that fourth Cup.
*Because Ivy League Schools did not play in the 2020-21 season, Gilmore withdrew from college for a year to maintain her eligibility for the Crimson, as the Ivies also do not typically allow graduate students as athletes.
