The Ottawa Charge kept its championship dreams alive on Monday night, defeating Montréal Victoire 2-1 in Game 3 of the PWHL Walter Cup Finals.
Facing elimination, Ottawa rallied with two late third-period goals to stave off a sweep in the best-of-five championship series. Although Montréal still holds a 2-1 series lead, Ottawa’s dramatic comeback now forces a pivotal Game 4.
A playoff-record crowd of 16,894 fans watched the battle unfold. Both teams played scoreless hockey through the first two periods, as goaltenders Gwyneth Philips and Ann-Renée Desbiens protected their nets.
Montréal broke the ice nearly halfway through the third period as Hayley Scamurra capitalized on a rebound off the back boards to give the Victoire a 1-0 lead. That goal put Montréal just minutes away from capturing the 2026 Walter Cup trophy.
But Ottawa refused to fold under pressure.
Late Goals Save Ottawa Charge in 2026 Walter Cup Finals Win
With five and a half minutes remaining in regulation, Charge rookie Peyton Hemp scooped up a loose puck. She subsequently slipped it past a sprawling Desbiens to tie the game with her first-ever playoff goal.
That momentum shift spurred Ottawa native Rebecca Leslie to fire a shot through heavy traffic — with just 56 seconds left on the clock.
The puck found the back of the net, triggering chaos in the arena. Officials reviewed the play for a potential hand pass, but the goal stood.
"We're not done yet," Leslie told press. "We've just had a no quit attitude all year, and this group is really special. I'm speechless. It's just such an honor to play for this city. We have the best fans in the league."
Where to Watch Montréal vs Ottawa in PWHL Finals Game 4
The Victoire still lead the PWHL finals series 2-1, meaning the Charge needs another win to keep its quest for the 2026 Walter Cup on track.
Game 4 kicks off on Wednesday at 7 PM ET, live on ION.
The Montreal Victoire pulled off a stunning comeback to defeat the Ottawa Charge in Game 1 of the PWHL Walter Cup Finals on Thursday night.
In a game that seemed destined for an Ottawa victory, Montreal erased a late deficit to silence the crowd of rowdy Charge fans at TD Place. With their thrilling overtime win, the Victoire now hold a 1-0 series lead in their quest for the PWHL championship.
Abby Roque Nets 'Miracle' Overtime Goal
The game reached a fever pitch in the final few seconds of regulation. Trailing by one, Montreal pulled their goaltender for an extra attacker. The gamble ultimately paid off when the Victoire found the back of the net with just 2.1 seconds remaining on the clock.
That down-to-the-wire surge sent the match into a sudden-death overtime period where star forward Abby Roque got a lucky break. As she weaved through the Ottawa defense, an errant pass ricocheted off her helmet and into the back of the net.
"I just saw the puck go right between my eyes and… then it somehow went in," she said after the game. "I was just hoping that's a goal."
Victoire head coach Kori Cheverie summed up the wild on-ice twist by dubbing it " a miracle in Laval."
Laura Stacey Injury Update
The biggest question for Montreal Victoire fans heading into Saturday is the status of alternate captain Laura Stacey. During the final minute of regulation in Game 1, Stacey took a heavy hit into the boards from Ottawa's Gabbie Hughes.
The star winger appeared to be in extreme pain and had to be helped off the ice by Marie-Philip Poulin, sparking immediate fears of a season-ending leg injury. But Stacey provided a massive emotional lift by returning for the start of overtime.
Not only did she play through the discomfort, but she also recorded the primary assist on Roque’s game-winning goal. Stacey finished the night with 21:54 of ice time, proving her essential role in the Victoire lineup. While there is no official word yet on her status, Stacey's ability to finish Game 1 is a positive sign for her availability during the tournament.
PWHL Walter Cup Finals: What’s Next for Montreal vs. Ottawa
The heartbreaking Game 1 loss is a tough pill to swallow for the Ottawa Charge, who controlled the pace for the first two periods at Place Bell. Still, the best-of-five series format gives them a quick chance to rebound.
The quest for the PWHL 2026 championship continues with a high-stakes schedule:
- Game 2: Saturday, May 16th at 2 PM ET
- Game 3: Monday, May 18th at 6 PM ET
- Game 4 (if necessary): Wednesday, May 20th at 7 PM ET
- Game 5 (if necessary): TBD
Fans can stream the tournament on the PWHL YouTube channel.
The road to the Walter Cup Finals hit a sudden detour on Monday night. The PWHL postponed the winner-take-all Game 5 between the Montreal Victoire and the Minnesota Frost due to "player safety concerns related to illness." Originally, the league slated the high-stakes matchup for Monday evening but has now rescheduled the game for Tuesday night.
The decision to pause the Walter Cup playoffs came less than three hours before puck drop. Women's hockey league officials confirmed the move followed consultation with medical staff to prioritize the health of players and fans.
Notably, while the PWHL didn't disclose the nature of the illness, they did clarify that symptoms aren't consistent with hantavirus. That mention likely stems from heightened public interest following a rare cruise-ship outbreak of the respiratory disease.
Montreal Victoire Illness Update: Minnesota Frost Roster Cleared for Game 5
Inside sources confirm that the outbreak remains contained within the Montreal Victoire locker room. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Frost reported no illnesses among their roster as of Monday. After monitoring the situation throughout the day, the league opted for a delay as the number of symptomatic players in Montreal increased.
This move marks a rare instance of a postseason game shifting for health reasons outside of the pandemic era. The league confirmed that a Tuesday match-up would ensure both teams can compete closer to full strength.
Montreal Victoire vs. Minnesota Frost: Winner Advances to Walter Cup Finals
Tonight’s winner at Place Bell advances to the Walter Cup Finals to face the Ottawa Charge. Ottawa secured their spot after sweeping the Boston Fleet on Sunday. The league will honor all tickets from the original Monday date.
The rescheduled puck drop takes place Tuesday, May 12, at 7 PM ET. US fans can watch the match on Scripps Sports.
The 2026 PWHL playoffs brought the heat over the weekend, while the league also announced plans to add four teams via a new process that scraps the traditional PWHL expansion draft.
Two-time Walter Cup winner Minnesota took a 1-0 series lead over top-seeded Montréal with Saturday's 5-4 overtime victory. Jincy Roese scored the game-winner after Laura Stacey recorded the first hat trick in PWHL playoffs history for the Victoire.
Elsewhere, Ottawa evened its series against Boston 1-1 behind goalie Gwyneth Philips's 30-save performance.
The PWHL playoffs opened with intense physicality, as officials called 29 penalties through three games — including two majors and at least one suspension. Boston's Rylind MacKinnon subsequently served a one-game suspension for head contact against Ottawa's Gabbie Hughes.
"This series will be so tight," Ottawa coach Carla MacLeod said after Game 2's 3-1 finish. "We've seen it and we've said after last game, it's going to be hard-fought."
"Our players battle hard," Frost manager Ken Klee said after Game 1's 5-4 overtime win. "Sometimes it's us making mistakes, or other times it's just them making great plays."
PWHL Looks to Add Four Teams Without Expansion Draft
According to documents obtained by The Athletic, the PWHL expansion process will begin May 28th with multiple signing windows instead of an expansion draft. The league aims to give players more autonomy while adding four teams ahead of the 2026/27 season.
Expansion teams can now issue Expansion Franchise Offers — guaranteed contracts worth at least $100,000 with player-determined length up to four years. Teams may also hand out Foundational Player Offers worth $80,000 minimum over two years, with players free to decline the offers.
Unlike the previous expansion draft, existing teams can protect three players initially, then three more for a total of six throughout the five-phase process. However, teams can't lose more than four contracted players.
"Our approach has been thoughtful and player-focused, and we'll share more details at the appropriate time," the PWHL said in a statement.
Vancouver won the No. 1 pick in the June 17th PWHL entry draft, with Wisconsin and Team USA star defender Caroline Harvey expected to go first.
The 2026 PWHL postseason field is set, as Ottawa joined No. 1 Montréal, No. 2 Boston, and two-time defending champion No. 3 Minnesota with Saturday’s 3-0 win over Toronto.
The Victoire earned the No. 1 overall seed after a six-round 2-1 shootout win over Seattle on Saturday, opting to face Minnesota in this week’s best-of-five semifinal series.
“[Results] going all the way to the very end on the last day, I think it speaks to the quality of every single team in this league,” said Montréal head coach Kori Cheverie.
Four teams qualify for the Walter Cup playoffs, with the No. 1 seed earning both home ice and first opponent choice advantage.
However, the lower seed has gone on to win all four of the third-year league’s previous semifinals — putting the Victoire and Fleet on watch.
The Frost will look to lean on star Kelly Pannek, after the forward finished the regular season as the PWHL’s Points and Goals Leader.
“I think the mindset is celebrating the wins of the regular season, the successes we’ve had,” said Minnesota captain Kendall Coyne Schofield on Saturday. “Now let’s turn the page, and the new season begins — and that’s playoff hockey. That’s the best hockey that there is.”
How to Watch the 2026 PWHL Playoffs
The Walter Cup playoffs kick off Thursday at 7 PM ET, live on YouTube.
As the 2025/26 PWHL regular season winds down, individual scoring records continue to fall in quick succession — with Hayley Scamurra driving the trend.
Just days after Vancouver’s Jenn Gardiner set the single-game scoring record with four goals against Seattle, the Team USA forward scored the fastest hat trick in league history in Montréal’s 4-3 defeat to the Goldeneyes.
The Olympic gold medalist scored her trio of third-period goals in just two minutes and 44 seconds — also becoming the league’s first player to register a hat trick in a losing effort.
Scamurra’s Victoire can afford the slip-up, sitting atop the PWHL standings heading into Saturday’s regular-season finale with its postseason ticket already punched.
Boston and defending champion Minnesota await Montréal in the 2026 PWHL playoffs, with Seattle, Vancouver, and New York eliminated from contention while Toronto and Ottawa battle for the fourth and final postseason slot.
“It will be like a playoff game before the playoffs,” Ottawa interim head coach Haley Irwin said of Saturday’s Decision Day. “The mindset, in terms of how we play and how we’re going to go about it doesn’t change.”
The PWHL’s Decision Day kicks off on Saturday at 12 PM ET, live on YouTube.
The defending champion Minnesota Frost punched their ticket to the 2025 PWHL Finals on Wednesday, keeping their dream of a second-straight Walter Cup alive by repeating semifinals history.
For the second year in a row, the lower-seeded Frost eliminated the Toronto Sceptres from the PWHL semis, adding Wednesday's 4-3 Game 4 overtime win to take the pair's 2025 best-of-five semifinal series 3-1.
Handing the No. 2-seed Sceptres an especially hefty dose of déjà vu was No. 4-seed Frost forward Taylor Heise, who netted the series-clinching goal to oust Toronto for second straight postseason.
With Wednesday's game-winning goal plus six assists across Minnesota's four semifinal clashes, the reigning Playoff MVP's seven points currently leads the 2025 PWHL postseason stat sheet — where an astounding seven of the league's top eight points-getters hail from the Frost.
Unlike Minnesota's 2024 semifinal series with Toronto, which required a full five games, the Frost completed the job early this year, earning some extra rest as they await the winner of the other 2025 semi.
Ottawa takes charge as Montréal faces elimination
Unlike the record-setting scoring that defined Minnesota and Toronto's series, defense owns the spotlight in the second set of semifinals, where the top-seeded Montréal Victoire are facing elimination, entering Friday's Game 4 against the No. 3-seed Ottawa Charge in a 2-1 series deficit.
At the center of Ottawa's success is rookie goaltender Gwyneth Philips, who stepped up in a big way after the Charge lost first-string goalie Emerance Maschmeyer to injury in March.
Since then, the third-round pick in the 2024 PWHL Draft has put together a star turn, becoming one of three 2025 Goaltender of the Year finalists and leading all postseason netminders with the top save percentage and an astoundingly low 1.18 goals-against average.
Additionally, Philips owns the only shutout of the 2025 Playoffs so far, with Tuesday's 1-0 Game 3 win over the Victoire also registering as the first postseason clean sheet by a rookie in PWHL history.
"I'm getting more comfortable and gaining confidence because I can feel that my teammates are feeling a little bit more confident with me. That's been my key to success," said Philips after Tuesday's shutout victory. "It's just knowing how much I trust my teammates and how much they give it back to me."
How to watch Ottawa vs. Montréal in the 2025 PWHL Semifinals
While the Charge aims to follow in the Frost's footsteps by booking a 2025 PWHL Finals spot in Game 4, Montréal will be hoping for a victory to send the series to a winner-take-all Game 5.
The puck drops on Friday's Game 4 at 7 PM ET, with a potential Game 5 decider set for the same time on Sunday.
Coverage of all PWHL Playoff games will stream live on YouTube.
Top-seeded Montréal suffered a surprising loss in their first 2025 PWHL Playoffs game on Thursday, falling 3-2 to postseason debutant No. 3-seed Ottawa.
Despite a tense back-and-forth battle, Ottawa forward Shiann Darkangelo broke through with a third-period game-winning goal, pushing the Charge to an early lead in the best-of-five semifinal series.
The Victoire, who notably used their No. 1-seed advantage to handpick the Charge as their semis opponent, have yet to log a playoff win, adding Thursday's defeat to last season's first-round sweep by Boston.
Even so, Montréal is already viewing the loss as fuel to even the score this weekend.
"We outshot them, we had a lot of great opportunities. We were right there," said Victoire forward Laura Stacey. "If we can put that game together for a whole 60 minutes, it'll look scary I think."
Toronto takes Game 1 from defending champs Minnesota
In the PWHL's other semifinal matchup, No. 2-seed Toronto claimed a one-win advantage over No. 4-seed Minnesota on Wednesday, halting the defending champion Frost's late-season surge with a 3-2 Sceptres victory.
Captain Blayre Turnbull opened scoring in the first period, giving Toronto a lead that they never relinquished, while rookie Julia Gosling netted a second-period brace to secure the Sceptres' win.
Minnesota, acknowledging the tough road they face to return to the championship ice, has already set their eyes on Game 2.
"It's going to be a hard-fought series," said Frost head coach Ken Klee after the Frost's Game 1 loss. "We didn't get one tonight…[so now] we're looking forward to Friday."
How to watch the 2025 PWHL Playoffs this weekend
Toronto and Minnesota are back in action for Game 2 of their series at 7 PM ET on Friday, before traveling to St. Paul for Game 3 at 6 PM ET on Sunday.
Sunday will also see Montréal’s attempt to even their series with Ottawa, with the puck dropping on their Game 2 matchup at 2 PM ET.
All games will stream live on the PWHL YouTube channel.
The 2025 PWHL playoffs are officially set, with the Ottawa Charge and Minnesota Frost punching their postseason tickets in Saturday's final regular-season games to join the first-place Montréal Victoire and second-place Toronto Sceptres in the second-year league's playoff bracket.
While third-place Ottawa secured their postseason spot with a 2-1 overtime victory over Toronto on Saturday, the reigning champion Minnesota Frost staged an improbable late-season surge to claim the fourth and final playoff berth.
Needing two wins in addition to two losses from either the Charge or the Boston Fleet for a chance to defend their 2024 title, Minnesota found another gear in the season's final week.
The Frost first defeated Ottawa 3-0 last Wednesday before handing a crumbling Fleet side an 8-1 Saturday thrashing, leapfrogging Boston to narrowly advance to the playoffs following an up-and-down regular season.
Minnesota's massive momentum grab directly affected this week's 2025 PWHL semifinals pairings.
As first-place finishers, the Victoire had the opportunity to choose their first-round opponent between the third- and fourth-place finishers — with Montréal opting out of facing the Frost to instead open the playoffs against the Charge.
"This group is hungry, and we're excited for the playoffs," said Victoire captain and the 2024/25 PWHL season's top goal scorer Marie-Philip Poulin. "We're pretty excited to start the playoffs at home, in front of our fans."
Also snagging home-ice advantage is second-place Toronto, who must now overcome Minnesota in their best-of-five semifinal series to earn a spot in the 2025 Walter Cup championship series.
How to watch the 2025 PWHL Playoffs
The puck drops on the 2025 PWHL Playoffs on Wednesday, when No. 2-seed Toronto and No. 4-seed Minnesota will meet on the ice at 7 PM ET.
Top-seeded Montréal's semifinal series against No. 3-seed Ottawa will begin at 7 PM ET on Thursday.
All games will stream live on the PWHL YouTube channel.
The PWHL Player Safety Committee issued fines to two star players on Tuesday, after reviewing penalties that occurred during Saturday’s matchup between the Montréal Victoire and the New York Sirens.
Victoire forward Marie-Philip Poulin was charged a $500 fine for roughing in the second period. The Committee found that she "exhibited no attempt at playing the puck as she hit her opponent in retaliatory fashion."
Forward Dara Greig also caught a fine for a second-period penalty. There, the PWHL issued a $250 penalty charge for boarding after determining that Greig's check came "from behind and caused her opponent to impact the boards dangerously."
The league-leading Victoire went on to beat the Sirens 6-2.
Poulin pays back-to-back PWHL fines
This week’s ruling marked Greig’s first-ever PWHL fine. However, Victoire captain Poulin has now tallied two, with her first coming less than two weeks ago. That was when she incurred a $250 fine after a major penalty for charging during Montréal's 2-1 win over the Sirens on February 2nd.
In that incident, Poulin avoided an immediate "game misconduct" determination by on-ice referees. As outlined by PWHL rules, it was ruled that the charge did not cause injury to the head or face of her opponent.
Unlike Poulin's first fine, both her second and Greig's initial offense came from incidents that constituted minor penalties during competition.
PWHL monitors player safety in growing pro women's league
Operating under a new set of rules governing both gameplay and disciplinary action, the second-year women’s pro ice hockey league is still navigating how to handle penalties and when to impose fines.
Charting the league's disciplinary course is especially complex in a sport where body checking and other forms of physicality are hallmarks of the game.
When those tactics are deployed strategically, they can intensify the PWHL's already tough competition. However, that's only as long as the league's safety guardrails are clear enough to ensure player protection.