OTTAWA, ON– The Ottawa Cost clinched their spot within the PWHL Finals with a 2-1 win towards the Montréal Victoire on Friday night time in entrance of a roaring crowd of 8,011 at TD Place, profitable the best-of-five semifinal collection 3-1.
Ottawa native Rebecca Leslie put the Cost on the board early, burying a rebound off a two-on-one shot from Anna Meixner simply two minutes into the sport. The rating remained 1-0 by means of the top of the second interval, earlier than Emily Clark doubled Ottawa’s lead simply 31 seconds into the third interval.
Now needing a minimum of two objectives to maintain their season alive, the Victoire continued to use stress within the third interval, and Maureen Murphy ultimately discovered the again of the online with 5 minutes left within the sport to chop Montréal’s deficit in half. Whereas the Victoire pushed to tie the sport with a sixth attacker on the ice, Ottawa netminder Gwyneth Philips stood tall, ending the sport with 19 saves to backstop Ottawa to their first-ever PWHL Finals berth.
Montréal goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens stopped 21 of 23 pictures in her seventh profession playoff begin.
The Cost will face off towards the Minnesota Frost within the PWHL Finals, offered by Scotiabank, because the Frost look to defend their Walter Cup title. Sport 1 will happen on Tuesday at TD Place.
QUOTES
Ottawa Head Coach Carla MacLeod on getting the collection win: “It’s a fantastic second. From my vantage and for our gamers, I believe as you watch them develop all through the season and we watched kind of how we’ve approached this playoff— and it being our first playoffs— they put on their coronary heart on their sleeve, and I believe you could possibly see it. After which I stand on the ice after the sport, and I form of neglect that there’s so many followers behind our bench. And people gamers are actually fortunate as a result of it’s fairly a bonus to have the ability to see the assist on this journey that now we have, making an attempt to win a Walter Cup.”
Ahead Rebecca Leslie on the turning level of the Cost’s season: “From day one, we’ve had perception in our group. I believe that in a season, you’re going to have ups and downs. You have a look at this league, the highest two groups are out proper now. So, each sport is vital, and you may’t win all of them. However for us, we simply imagine, and we’ve been enjoying playoff hockey for the second half of our season. So, I suppose there wasn’t a second, however I believe that we simply knew that if we stored pushing, we could possibly be on this place.”
Montréal defender Erin Ambrose on the distinction between shedding a PWHL collection and on the worldwide scene: “I believe it’s arduous proper now within the second. After we misplaced sport one, it was like -okay, you don’t win or lose the collection in sport one. And clearly we had an enormous bounce again in quadruple OT, and that was huge for us. However I believe for the time being, proper now, it nonetheless hurts simply as a lot, if no more. I’ve at all times mentioned that internationally is nice. It’s clearly a privilege to play there, however to be on this staff with this group, day in and day trip, with this group of individuals and the outstanding people who they’re, it makes it actually disappointing that we couldn’t get the job carried out–– and that’s workers included. Our workers does all the pieces beneath the solar to arrange us, to get us in conditions. And I believe the toughest factor is understanding that this group won’t ever be again collectively.”
Victoire Head Coach Kori Cheverie: “Clearly we made a extremely good push until the top there, and we simply couldn’t appear to discover a strategy to get that little black rubber factor throughout the road. We simply couldn’t rating. We tried to do what was greatest for the group. Kudos to Ottawa for the collection that they put ahead.”
NOTABLES
Gwyneth Philips leads all goaltenders with a 1.14 goals-against common and a .956 save share by means of the primary spherical of the PWHL Playoffs. She was additionally the one goalie to document a shutout.
Ann-Renée Desbiens completed the collection with essentially the most saves (132) and was second amongst all goaltenders in goal-against-average (1.55) and save share (.943). Video games 3 and 4 marked the primary time all season that Desbiens misplaced back-to-back begins.
The Cost’s eight objectives within the collection have been scored by seven completely different gamers, with captain Brianne Jenner being the one one to search out the again of the online twice.
Ten gamers recorded a number of factors within the collection (MTL – 5, OTT – 5), with solely Jenner and Maureen Murphy (MTL) scoring a number of objectives (2). In contrast, the Minnesota–Toronto collection featured 25 gamers with a number of factors (MIN – 13, TOR – 12), together with seven gamers who scored a number of objectives.
The Cost scored on their first energy play of the collection however have been held with no aim on their ultimate six alternatives. Montréal went 2-for-2 on the facility play in Sport 1 however did not convert on their subsequent seven probabilities throughout Video games 2 to 4. In complete, each groups mixed to kill off the ultimate 12 energy performs of the collection.
The Victoire went winless in all 11 video games this season when held scoreless by means of two intervals—together with Video games 3 and 4 of this collection.
Rebecca Leslie scored her first aim of the playoffs, matching her regular-season complete by means of 27 video games and equaling her output from 5 playoff video games final yr with Toronto. The aim additionally marked her first even-strength tally of the season, having beforehand scored shorthanded on Mar. 25 towards the Sirens.
Anna Meixner recorded her first profession playoff level with an help—her second of the season and her second within the final seven video games—after going with out an help in her first 25 video games to start out the yr. With the help, Meixner grew to become the thirteenth completely different Cost participant to document some extent within the collection, in comparison with simply 10 gamers for Montréal.
Emily Clark scored her first profession playoff aim, snapping an eight-game aim drought courting again to the common season. The tally stood because the game-winner—her third game-winner of the season and first since Feb. 22, additionally towards Montreal. The aim, scored 31 seconds into the body, is the quickest aim to start out any interval in PWHL Playoff historical past. Clark completed the collection with three factors (1G, 2A).
Gabbie Hughes recorded an help for the second straight sport and was the one participant to document factors in each Sport 3 and Sport 4.
Murphy scored her second aim of the collection, giving her three profession playoff objectives in seven profession video games. The Victoire ahead had three objectives in 28 regular-season video games this season and has eight objectives in 52 profession regular-season appearances.
Marie-Philip Poulin recorded her first help of the postseason, bringing her to 2 factors (1G, 1A) in 4 video games—matching her playoff complete from final yr in three video games. Throughout each the common season and playoffs this yr, the Victoire captain didn’t go greater than two consecutive video games with out recording some extent.
Jennifer Gardiner recorded her third help of the postseason, tying her for the rookie lead in postseason scoring.
Clair DeGeorge made her first look of this yr’s playoffs, inserted into the Victoire lineup instead of ahead Claire Dalton.
Ottawa opened the scoring in three of 4 video games this collection and remained excellent when scoring first, with a 3-0 playoff document in such video games. Throughout the common season, they scored first in 18 of 30 video games—tied with Minnesota for the league lead—however had the second lowest win share when doing so, going 10-1-3-4 (.648).
Ottawa’s aim at 2:00 of the primary interval was the quickest of the 2025 postseason and the second-fastest in PWHL playoff historical past—trailing solely Minnesota’s aim 59 seconds into Sport 3 of final yr’s Last. It additionally stands because the second-fastest aim the Cost have scored this season, behind a tally 45 seconds into their April 2 matchup towards Boston.
The Victoire led the PWHL with 32 second-period objectives throughout the common season however managed simply two on this collection. Tonight’s aim additionally marked Montréal’s first third-period aim of the collection, after ending the common season with a league-low 18 objectives within the ultimate body.
All 4 video games of this collection have been determined by one-goal. Montréal performed in a league-high 22 one-goal video games throughout the whole season, profitable 13. Ottawa has performed in 20 one-goal video games and has received 12 of them.
SCORESHEET RECAP
1st Interval-1, Ottawa, Leslie 1 (Meixner), 2:00. Penalties-No Penalties.
2nd Interval- No Scoring. Penalties-O’Neill Mtl (tripping), 4:05; Clark Ott (tripping), 14:34.
third Interval-2, Ottawa, Clark 1 (Hughes), 0:31. 3, Montréal, Murphy 2 (Gardiner, Poulin), 14:58. Penalties-served by Dubois Mtl (delay of sport), 0:31.
Pictures on Aim-Montréal 7-8-5-20. Ottawa 6-10-7-23.
Energy Play Alternatives-Montréal 0 / 1; Ottawa 0 / 2.
Goalies-Montréal, Desbiens (23 shots-21 saves). Ottawa, Philips (20 shots-19 saves).
A-8,011
THREE STARS
1. Gwyneth Philips (OTT) 19/20 SV2. Ashton Bell (OTT)3. Rebecca Leslie (OTT) 1G
SERIES
Ottawa wins the collection 3-1 over Montréal
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Ottawa: Sport 1 of the PWHL Finals vs Minnesota on Tuesday, Could 20 at 7 p.m. ET (TD Place)
