PDRD goes through all the game action in the PWHL over the previous week (April 28 to May 3, 2025). Take a look at the current standings, playoff picture, and other news around the league, with some fun stats and tidbits thrown in along the way.
Monday, April 28: Boston Fleet 2, Montréal Victoire 3 (OT)
The Fleet can clinch a playoff spot with a win in any fashion while the Victoire can secure a top two seed with one themselves, though they’ll have to do it without star defender Erin Ambrose who missed the game due to personal reasons.
1st Period
With so much on the line between two past playoff opponents, the game was understandably physical. Emma Greco took an early penalty for an illegal body check, and before the two minutes was even up Lina Ljungblom was sent to the box for a scuffle with Jessica DiGirolamo.
Neither team would break through on these chances, though Boston came close after a Jill Saulnier centring pass popped up off the stick of Amanda Boulier and nearly sailed over Ann-Renée Desbiens’ shoulder.
2nd Period
The teams traded penalties once more, one drawn by Mikyla Grant-Mentis and the other taken by her. Again, the Fleet would be the closer of the two teams to scoring the opener, as Susanna Tapani rang one off the post.
However, a later call against star defender Megan Keller that would initially leave them with just one blueliner on the penalty kill proved costly.
On the Victoire advantage, Boulier put a shot on with Catherine Dubois and Abby Boreen taking whacks at the rebound. Boreen put her arms up thinking her try went in, but the slumping forward’s backhand caught the far post. However, Jennifer Gardiner was there to clean up the play, marking the first goal against Klára Peslarová after over 136 minutes in the PWHL.
3rd Period
Montréal’s power play—usually an Achilles’ heel for the first-place team—was anything but in this game, as they’d strike again early in the third. Anna Wilgren took her time at the point, finding a circling Maureen Murphy at the right circle. Her shot was tipped in past Peslarová by Dubois, her second point of this game as well as second goal in her last two putting the Victoire up by two.
Penalties continued to prevent the Fleet from building any momentum, and even the play that gave them a late spark of life wouldn’t go smoothly.
Still shorthanded, Hannah Brandt made a beautiful toe drag move around Mariah Keopple, landing a shot on Desbiens and backhanding the rebound past her. The play was initially waved off though, as the net was dislodged as the puck crossed the line, but it would be deemed a good goal after a short review.
The delay wouldn’t faze Boston at all. Just 39 seconds later, Hannah Bilka took a great stretch pass from Sidney Morin and sniped it past Desbiens short side, tying the game at two in the blink of an eye. For the second consecutive game, a late jailbreak goal stunned Montréal, but this time they’d have a chance to make up for it in overtime.
Overtime
For the fifth consecutive game between the Fleet and Victoire, they’d enter overtime tied 2–2. Boston took the two previous shootouts but Montréal ended it before the skills competition in the other two matchups, and this trend would continue on Monday. Marie-Philip Poulin controlled the puck herself on an offensive zone draw, turning away from Tapani and finding her other half in Laura Stacey for the one-timer game-winner.
Nat’s Stat: Marie-Philip Poulin won 59.3% of her face-offs against Boston on Monday, getting back on track after winning just 31.8% in her last game in Ottawa. Before that, the last time she won less than half of her draws was also against the Charge on January 19, marking 16 consecutive games with at least a 50% face-off efficiency. With New York’s Abby Roque on an active 12-game streak and just two games remaining in the season, Poulin’s run will stand as the longest of its kind this season, and in PWHL history thus far.
Tuesday, April 29: New York Sirens 1, Toronto Sceptres 2 (SO)
While the least consequential game of the week in terms of playoff positioning, the Sceptres come in looking to hold on to the second seed while the Sirens could, if potentially temporarily, move out of last place.
1st Period
Toronto had a shaky start defensively, but were bailed out with an early lucky bounce for a player who’s had a lot go her way this season. Jesse Compher entered the zone with control, curling back and giving it to Savannah Harmon at the point.
Harmon sent it across to Daryl Watts along the half-wall, who flung it towards the net, but wide. However, the puck glanced off of the elbow of New York centre Abby Roque and caught the far side top corner, fooling Kayle Osborne and giving the Sceptres the 1–0 lead.
The Sirens would make it back before the end of the period, though. Multiple failed Toronto clearances led to over a minute of sustained zone time for New York, and they paid for it. Ella Shelton, Allyson Simpson, and Paetyn Levis cycled around their tired opponents and Shelton flicked a wrister past Sceptres debutant Carly Jackson for her eighth goal, breaking her own record for the most by a defender in a season.
2nd Period
The second period was sloppy for both teams, struggling to string passes together and putting just seven shots apiece on the opposing goal. Levis took a late cross-checking penalty that the Sirens killed fairly easily, as the once-fearsome Sceptres power play continues to be mired in a 1-for-24 rut.
3rd Period
Toronto stepped it up in the third, putting up triple the shots of their opponents, but Osborne was locked in. Even three consecutive penalties to kill wouldn’t faze the rookie netminder, and she did so with ample help from the team in front of her including a textbook sprawling block from Sarah Fillier. With no one able to break through the goaltenders, the game would require extra time tied at 1.
Overtime/Shootout
Osborne continued to be the reason that the game continued, making five saves in overtime including a clean breakaway from Sarah Nurse and a partial one for Emma Maltais. The extra time allowed her to set a new career-high in saves, as she headed to the shootout on 35 stops.
However, she could only do so much. Natalie Spooner beat Osborne twice on two shots, one backhand and one forehand, to bookend the Sceptres’ shootout scoring. The Sirens’ final three shooters each put their attempts wide, allowing Toronto to walk away with the narrow victory.
Nat’s Stat: Kayle Osborne’s .538 SV% in shootouts is the lowest among PWHL goaltenders who have faced at least five attempts. Adding insult to injury, Tuesday’s game was the second time this season Osborne partook in a shootout after the only goal she allowed in regulation was deflected off of her own teammate. Entering in relief of Abigail Levy to make her PWHL debut on December 22, Osborne’s lone blemish before the skills competition was an attempted pass that changed direction off the skate of Jaime Bourbonnais.
Wednesday, April 30: Minnesota Frost 3, Ottawa Charge 0
After their dramatic win over the Victoire on the weekend, the Charge have a chance to both clinch their playoff spot and deny the Frost theirs with a single point.
1st Period
Ottawa had more shots than Minnesota in the first, but the latter’s were significantly more threatening. Sophie Jaques and Liz Schepers had prime scoring opportunities but couldn’t solve Gwyneth Philips, who continued her run of form since taking over the starting goalie position for the Charge.
2nd Period
However, the script would be completely flipped in the middle frame. The Frost had a game-defining outburst, sending 17 shots Philips’ way. Denisa Křížová had a partial break that she couldn’t convert on, but she collected her own rebound and sent it to a trailing Dominique Petrie who was also unable to solve Philips. The rookie netminder performed admirably in the tough hand she was dealt, but she couldn’t do it all.
Petrie, who gave the Charge fits in this game, recovered a puck just before it crossed over the offensive blueline to keep the play onside. She handed it off to Michela Cava who was still deep in the zone, Cava found a streaking Kendall Coyne Schofield in the middle, and the captain beat Philips five-hole for the back-breaking opening goal late in the period.
3rd Period
Again, Ottawa’s skaters would rely too heavily on Philips without holding up their end at the other side of the ice, and another shot would find its way through.
This time, it was courtesy of defender Lee Stecklein, goalless to this point in the season but broke out at the World Championships and continued that momentum here.
Stecklein added an empty-netter for good measure to make it 3–0, and Nicole Hensley began to put a rough season behind her with an encouraging 24-save shutout to keep the Frost alive.
Nat’s Stat: With two assists in Wednesday’s game, Minnesota’s Dominique Petrie has now recorded seven helpers since scoring three goals in her first three PWHL games. Petrie’s ten points are the most among players who have alternated exactly once between goals and assists. Mannon McMahon, a Minnesota product and Petrie’s opponent on Wednesday, has the most goals of this extremely specific group of players, scoring her first four in the PWHL before being credited with an assist and having only four assists since.
Clinching Check-In
Going into the last day of games, here’s how each of the three teams in the running for the last two playoff spots can punch their ticket:
Boston Fleet
- Win in any fashion against Minnesota
- Overtime/shootout loss against Minnesota
- Toronto win in any fashion against Ottawa
Ottawa Charge:
- Win in any fashion against Toronto
- Boston win in any fashion against Minnesota
- Overtime/shootout loss against Toronto; Boston overtime/shootout loss against Minnesota
Minnesota Frost:
- Regulation win against Boston
- Overtime/shootout win against Boston; Ottawa regulation loss against Toronto
Now, onto the triple-header.
Saturday, May 3: Montréal Victoire @ New York Sirens
1st Period
Abigail Levy got the nod for the Sirens for the first time since December, and unfortunately it started just about as well this time as it went the last. Poulin was given far too much space off the opening draw and sniped in her league-leading 18th off the rush just eleven seconds in.
Not four minutes later, Kaitlin Willoughby sent a pass across to Dubois that Levy completely bit on, and could only watch as the Victoire tapped in their 2–0 lead. The assist was Willoughby’s first point since the final game of last season.
2nd Period
Poulin did not appear satisfied with her cushion atop the goal leaderboard, and struck again just over halfway through the period. Murphy was spilled in the corner, but managed to poke the puck over to Dara Greig. The rookie handed it off to the veteran, and Poulin found the smallest bit of daylight short side on Levy to extend the lead to three.
3rd Period
The Sirens wanted to end their season on a good note, though, and they got started early with the help of a Montréal bench minor. Fillier, a virtual lock for Rookie of the Year, bolstered her case even further with a snipe to spoil Desbiens’ shutout. This put her one point behind Hilary Knight for the league lead in points, and she’d continue gunning for it throughout the third.
With Levy at the bench late in the game, New York would hand the keys to their dynamic offensive duo once more. Fillier found Alex Carpenter on the goal line who deftly pulled the puck to her forehand and just as quickly popped it over Desbiens’ shoulder to give the home fans one last highlight-reel play to cheer for. The Sirens would not be victorious in this game, but Fillier earning a share of the scoring title was a massive success for a team now looking towards the future.
Final Score: Montréal Victoire 3, New York Sirens 2
Saturday, May 3: Minnesota Frost @ Boston Fleet
1st Period
Well, this one got out of hand real quick. It took just 3:08 for Minnesota to go up multiple goals, and they’d add another on the power play late to go into the dressing room up 3–0. Stecklein, traditionally a reliable shutdown defender, surpassed her goal total from all of last season in about 19 minutes of game time between today and Wednesday. Aerin Frankel’s return from injury in the World Championship finals went about as disastrously as it could have.
2nd Period
Even giving Frankel the hook in favour of Peslarová couldn’t stop the bleeding. The Frost extended their lead all the way to 5–0, doing their damage on one less shot than they put on Philips in the second period alone on Wednesday. Jaques’ goal to bring the lead to four was her 18th even strength point of the season, putting her into a tie with Stacey for fifth in the league among all skaters in that category.
3rd Period
The third period… certainly happened. Fleet coach Courtney Kessel pulled Peslarová for the extra attacker for the first time just over three minutes into the frame and continued to do so intermittently, leading to by far the earliest empty-netter in PWHL history from Brooke McQuigge. Jaques would add another with the goaltender on the bench, hilariously recording Minnesota’s first jailbreak of the season in the process.
Boston would have one last memorable moment at home to end the regular season, as fan favourite defender DiGirolamo scored her first goal in 62 combined regular season and playoff games to break the shutout.
However, Minnesota wouldn’t even let them have this, quickly responding with a first career goal of their own from Klára Hymlárová on a late power play. The Frost punched their ticket to the postseason with authority, while the Fleet’s destiny left their own hands for the first time all year.
Final Score: Minnesota Frost 8, Boston Fleet 1
Saturday, May 3: Ottawa Charge @ Toronto Sceptres
1st Period
Both teams took to the first cautiously, as they recorded just four shots apiece over the course of 20 minutes. It did begin to unravel as the period went on, as Nurse caught the crossbar with a shot, and the teams traded penalties, with Ottawa’s coming with just two seconds left in the frame.
2nd Period
The Charge killed it off and struck back the other way with close chances from Mannon McMahon and Zoe Boyd, but the Sceptres’ defence was getting back just in time to prevent pucks from going on net. Their defensive play allowed them to go the other way and strike first, and fittingly, it would be the one who was the closest to breaking through in the first.
Renata Fast pinched in to block a clearing attempt and sent it over to Nurse, who protected the puck by pivoting to her forehand. The quick-thinking and skilled move left her uncontested in front of Philips, and she popped the puck far side over the glove. With the knowledge that they wouldn’t be getting any help from the Fleet in the other game, the situation became that much more dire for Ottawa.
However, they didn’t panic in the slightest, and less than a minute after Nurse’s opening goal they got to work. Every Charge skater on the ice touched the puck on this play, as Shiann Darkangelo cycled the puck back to Boyd who went D-to-D with Ronja Savolainen.
The Finnish defender—Ottawa’s unsung hero all season who fittingly wouldn’t record an assist on this play—sent it in the corner to Tereza Vanišová who finally looked to the middle. Her pass deflected off of Darkangelo and to a lurking Brianne Jenner, who roofed it on Kristen Campbell to tie it right back up.
3rd Period
The third saw the same wariness as the first, especially from the Charge, whose season hung in the balance. However, it almost unraveled on them exceedingly quickly, as Kateřina Mrázová was spilled in the offensive zone with no penalty call, and the forward currently gritting through a wrist injury went off in discomfort. Not to worry, though, she’ll be back later.
Adding insult to near-injury, Gabbie Hughes was sent to the box for a similar trip not even a minute later. The power play brought numerous scrambles in front of Philips, and even with her down and out on multiple occasions, the puck inexplicably stayed out, ensuring Ottawa’s season would last a little bit longer at the very least.
Overtime
The Charge wanted this, and they wanted it bad. Emily Clark, one of Ottawa’s foundational players and leaders, looked like she was shot out of a cannon to begin the extra frame, and it would be her that started the decisive play. She stole the puck off of Fast, Toronto’s only defender on the ice, and banked a breakout pass off the boards behind her.
Mrázová collected it, staring down fourth-line forward Maggie Connors. Savolainen flew up the ice, occupying the backchecking Blayre Turnbull and putting the possibility of a pass in Connors’ mind.
She laid out to remove Savolainen as an option, but Mrázová cut back towards the middle, and before Fast could recover to stop her she shot across her body to go top corner on Campbell. For the first time in team history, the Ottawa Charge will play playoff hockey.
Final Score: Ottawa Charge 2, Toronto Sceptres 1 (OT)
Standings Synopsis
- x – Montréal Victoire (12–7–3–8, .589, 53 pts)
- x – Toronto Sceptres (12–3–6–9, .536, 48 pts)
- x – Ottawa Charge (12–2–4–12, .489, 44 pts)
- x – Minnesota Frost (10–5–4–11, .489, 44 pts)
- e – Boston Fleet (9–6–5–10, .489, 44 pts)
- e – New York Sirens (8–4–5–13, .411, 37 pts)
By virtue of tiebreakers, Mrázová’s heroics boosted the Charge up from the brink of elimination to the third seed. The Frost’s blowout victory pushed their regulation win total up to exactly what they’d need to squeak into the dance for the second straight season. The Fleet, meanwhile, will watch from the sidelines despite being in the best position to qualify at sunrise on Saturday.
News & Notes
Expansion… again!
PWHL Seattle is indeed a reality, as the league announced the second expansion team for next season on Wednesday. Much like Vancouver, their home arena of Climate Pledge Arena was established, but the remainder of the logistical details are still up in the air.
Montréal sets the playoff field
As a reward for finishing atop the regular season standings, the Victoire get to pick their playoff opponent between the third and fourth seed. On Sunday, they announced that their first round matchup would be against the Charge, leaving the Sceptres to face off against the Frost.
Predictions, you ask? I’ll go with Montréal in five, Minnesota in four, and then Montréal over Minnesota in four to win the Walter Cup. Now that I’ve said it, none of these outcomes will happen. My sincerest apologies, Victoire fans.
Photos from PWHL, @PWHL_Boston, @PWHL_Minnesota, @PWHL_Montreal, @PWHL_NewYork, @PWHL_Ottawa, @PWHL__Seattle, @PWHL_Toronto, and @PWHL__Vancouver
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