Over the course of the PWHL postseason, PDRD will take the form of a playoff series recap following each of their conclusions. Here, the Frost look to successfully defend their title against a Charge team that knocked off the favourites in Round 1.

Tuesday, May 20: Game 1 (Ottawa, ON)

1st Period

Each team began the finals with a power play opportunity that they couldn’t convert on, with Minnesota unable to get much going and Ottawa looking too often for the perfect pass, though Kateřina Mrázová came close to finding it. The Charge controlled most of the even strength portion, leading in shots 9–4, but couldn’t solve Nicole Hensley.

2nd Period

Mrázová would once again be at the forefront of the second period storyline, but not by choice, or for good reason. The oft-injured centre took a knee-on-knee hit from Britta Curl-Salemme and limped off the ice, briefly returning before leaving for good after another rough collision in the third.

Back to the hockey part of the hockey game, the Frost began manufacturing the chances that eluded them in the first. Brooke McQuigge was sprung on a breakaway but was denied by Gwyneth Philips’ pad, while Denisa Křížová put the moves on national teammate Aneta Tejralová before sliding a backhand wide.

Against the run of play, however, Ottawa would charge the other way. Tereza Vanišová made a nice drop pass to a trailing Rebecca Leslie, who, as commentator Kenzie Lalonde poetically put it, made the iron sing with a bar-down snipe past Hensley. Leslie’s second time opening the scoring in as many games gave Ottawa the lead going into the third.

3rd Period

As well as Philips had played to this point, she’d fly a little too close to the sun in the third period. The netminder went out to play the puck, eventually throwing it up the boards with minimal support and maximal pressure from the Frost fourth line, who put their stamp on both series they partook in. Katy Knoll found Klára Hymlárová in front of the vacated cage and she calmly put it in before Philips could scramble back. Tie game, 1–1.

Overtime

Unlike Ottawa’s last overtime, this one didn’t last nearly as long. Emily Clark recovered the puck in her own end and shot up the left wing, and despite good defensive positioning from Sophie Jaques, her try on the rush eluded Hensley. Just as Leslie opened the scoring in two straight, Clark put the winner away in back-to-back games, giving the Charge the series lead.

Final Score: Minnesota Frost 1, Ottawa Charge 2 (OT) (OTT leads series 1–0)

Nat’s Stat: Despite Ottawa’s victory, Game 1 was the first time all year that Alexa Vasko finished the night with a minus rating. She had only been on the ice for a single even-strength goal against throughout the regular season, against Boston on March 15, but was spared a minus by Natalie Snodgrass’ goal with just thirty seconds remaining in the 5–2 Charge loss.

Thursday, May 22: Game 2 (Ottawa, ON)

1st Period

Mrázová would be out of the lineup for the Charge in Game 2, a massive blow to her line with Leslie and Anna Meixner that had found their footing in a big way in the playoffs. That wouldn’t stop Ottawa in the first period as they heavily limited Minnesota’s shot total in the first, but couldn’t get much themselves on Maddie Rooney who took over the Frost crease in this one.

2nd Period

The Charge, as they’re wont to do, got into penalty trouble in the second period, but were buoyed by an outstanding penalty kill led by Gabbie Hughes and Clark, who particularly was absolutely flying. By the end of the middle frame they had tripled Minnesota in shots, but Rooney was absolutely locked in.

3rd Period

The Frost began to push for offence more in the third, but it cost them in their own end late in the game. Maggie Flaherty coughed up the puck behind the net, Leslie found Jocelyne Larocque up the side boards, and the veteran outwaited everyone, including Rooney, to bank the first goal of the game with under three minutes to go.

TD Place’s collective jubilation, though, would quickly be flipped on its head. Vanišová took out Grace Zumwinkle’s legs to stop a scoring opportunity and was penalized for it, heading to the box for the third time this game. This allowed Minnesota a 6-on-4 to end regulation and they made no mistake, sending the game to overtime once more amidst a cavalcade of boos.

Overtime

The extra frame was all Frost. McQuigge cut in on the rush for another great chance but was miraculously denied by Philips, but the rookie goalie wouldn’t be so lucky on their next one. Mellissa Channell-Watkins’ shot off the zone entry was blocked but the resulting bounce was controlled and converted by Curl-Salemme, putting a stamp on an outstanding 37-save performance from Rooney.

Final Score: Minnesota Frost 2, Ottawa Charge 1 (OT) (Series tied 1–1)

Nat’s Stat: Trans rights are human rights.

Saturday, May 24: Game 3 (St. Paul, MN)

1st Period

It was Minnesota’s turn to limit the opponent’s shot total to start Game 3, but the shots they did allow were prime scoring chances. Ottawa took advantage, as Clark jumped on a loose puck during a scramble in front and deposited their first puck on net of the night. They’d only record one more in the period, but Rooney was forced to make an incredibly athletic save on Ashton Bell to keep the deficit to one.

2nd Period

The third shot wasn’t much easier for the Frost goaltender either. Shiann Darkangelo was left alone in front but Rooney’s pad held strong, allowing the team in front of her to go the other way. Claire Thompson played catch at the point with defence partner Lee Stecklein, whose shot passed through a Liz Schepers screen that didn’t make contact with Philips until after the puck was in the net. Once again, Minnesota and Ottawa were tied, 1–1.

3rd Period

And once again, for the third time this series, that would be the score heading into overtime. It wasn’t for a complete lack of trying, as Thompson whiffed on a wide-open cage late in the frame, but it was as tentative a game as you’d expect from a tie in the third period of a playoff game.

Overtime

Philips showed up big in extra time, absolutely robbing Hymlárová with a highlight-reel glove save to keep the game going. And kept going it would be, as Ottawa’s inability to generate much as well as their goaltender’s stellar play sent this game past the first overtime for the first time this series.

Double Overtime

Like Thompson’s chance in the third, near misses came back to haunt Minnesota in 2OT. Schepers and Kelly Pannek both had chances to put the game away but hit the glass behind Philips. Leslie was booked for a rare hooking call, but the Charge managed to kill it off fairly comfortably.

Triple Overtime

Speaking of fairly comfortable kills, Thompson was sent off for cross-checking but the Frost penalty kill suppressed any dangerous chances. This would be the momentum boost they needed to finally end this marathon, and Hymlárová would be right in the middle of it again. Her shot was once again stopped by Philips but a rebound was left for Knoll to convert, and Minnesota’s fourth line put them within one win of repeating as champions.

Final Score: Ottawa Charge 1, Minnesota Frost 2 (3OT) (MIN leads series 2–1)

Nat’s Stat: With their contributions on the overtime winner, Minnesota’s Katy Knoll (2–2—4) and Klára Hymlárová (1–3—4) both recorded their fourth point of the playoffs after putting up two apiece in the regular season. Among players with more than a single regular season point, Toronto’s Maggie Connors as well as Ottawa’s Anna Meixner and Rebecca Leslie equalled their totals in the postseason, but Knoll and Hymlárová are the only ones to improve upon them, much less double them.

Monday, May 26: Game 4 (St. Paul, MN)

1st Period

Unlike the previous games of this series, this one was wide open to start. Each team put up six shots apiece before the first TV time-out, and they’d both double that total before the end of the period. In what was the theme of the finals, though, neither could beat the opposing goaltender.

2nd Period

Also unlike the previous games of this series, Minnesota would be the ones to open the scoring. With Larocque’s stick tied up and Thompson pinching down from the blueline, Bell was left alone to defend three players, and had to leave a passing option open. That turned out to be Pannek, who received the puck in front and roofed it over Philips, taking the lead in the potential cup clincher.

3rd Period

With the season on the line, the third period seemingly couldn’t have started worse for the Charge. Meixner was forced out of the game after getting pulled down from behind by Curl-Salemme, while a collision in the defensive end left Clark skating off holding her wrist. Somehow, though, that didn’t faze them.

Danielle Serdachny, Ottawa’s second overall pick who had been consistently noticeable on the ice but not on the scoresheet, finally pulled through for them. She held off two Frost defenders behind the goal line and sent a backhand pass in front to Vanišová, who banged in her first of the playoffs to emphatically tie it back up.

Do you like 1–1 games heading into overtime? I sure hope you do. At this point, if you don’t, I don’t know what to tell you.

Overtime

Game 4 at Xcel Energy Center last season was rife with controversy, and this year’s edition wouldn’t be free of it either. Mrázová, back in the lineup after the beating she took in Game 1, got caught in the head by a pivoting Knoll’s elbow. As is often the case in playoff overtime, there was no movement from the referees, and any further review for a major penalty would likely prove unsuccessful due to the inadvertent nature of the incident. Thus, we play on. And did the Frost ever.

Knoll and Hymlárová carried the puck down the ice, chipping it behind Philips’ net where Knoll won the eventual puck battle and sent it in front to Schepers. Her first try was thwarted, but her second ensured that there would remain just one Walter Cup-winning goal scorer in PWHL history. After winning it on the road last season, Schepers was able to bring her hometown crowd to their feet, crowning the Minnesota Frost champions once again.

Final Score: Ottawa Charge 1, Minnesota Frost 2 (OT) (MIN wins the Walter Cup)

Ilana Kloss Playoff MVP: Gwyneth Philips (G, OTT)

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Photos from PWHL, @PWHL_Minnesota, and @PWHL_Ottawa